Consumer complaint received 2025-01-22 00:00:00
Product: Checking or savings account — CD (Certificate of Deposit)
Issue: Managing an account — Funds not handled or disbursed as instructed
Company: DISCOVER BANK
State: TX

Complaint narrative:
This is a complaint regarding Discover Banks false advertising and predatory business practices, specifically with regard to an online certificate of deposit ( CD ) that I renewed on XX/XX/year> at a promotional rate of 5.10 % for XXXX  months. 

On XX/XX/year>, I received an email from Discover Bank advertising their promotional offer of 5.10 % APY for XXXX  months ( Exhibit XXXX ). 

XX/XX/year>, I received an email with instructions for renewing my CD online Exhibit XXXX ). I followed these instructions and was taken to a page on discover.com where I was given options for renewal, including the promotional offer of 5.10 % APY for XXXX  months. I chose that option. I also chose to transfer an additional {$4000.00} from my savings account into the CD when it renewed. I double- and triple-checked that page after navigating away from it to make sure my options were saved. 

I received an email from Discover Bank on XX/XX/year> stating that my CD had renewed. I logged into Discover Banks website that same day to check to see if the CD had renewed at the promotional rate of 5.10 % APY for XXXX  months. It did not. Instead, it renewed at a rate of 4.40 % APY for XXXX months. I never authorized Discover Bank to renew my CD under these terms and the renewal options state that if I do not provide instructions, my CD will automatically renew with the same term. The previous term was XXXX  months ( Exhibit XXXX ), so Discover Bank clearly received my instructions of XXXX  months and my transfer of an additional {$4000.00} into the CD, but chose to ignore the 5.10 % APY rate I had chosen. Interestingly, this error occurred just a few days after the Federal Reserve lowered interest rates by another 0.25 %. 

So, on XX/XX/year>, within the normal grace period for making changes to a CD, I called Discover Banks customer service department at XXXX to bring the error to Discover Banks attention. For XXXX minutes, I tried to reason with the customer service representative who insisted that no such offer ever existed and that further, since I deposited {$4000.00} into the renewed CD, that I had waived the grace period for transferring those funds to another account without incurring a XXXX penalty. Within XXXX minutes of the end of that call, the representative called me back to apologize and tell me that he did not know where to look for the offers in the system and that his supervisor had found them. He assured me that in XXXX  days, my CDs interest rate would be adjusted and that I would receive an APY of 5.10 %, including back interest. 

I called customer service again on XX/XX/year> to find out why the interest rate on the CD was not adjusted to 5.10 % APY after XXXX  days. This time, I was told that I would have had to open a new CD to receive that rate, completely contrary to the instructions I received by email AND the information I was provided by the customer service representative on XX/XX/year>. I was told by XXXX, a supervisor, on XX/XX/year> that to receive that rate, the customer service representative from XX/XX/year> would had to have filed a complaint with the promotions department to contest my current interest rate and there was no guarantee that the promotion would be honored. She apologized and said they can see that the offer was extended to me, but they could not change it for me. She filed the complaint with the promotions department on my behalf on XX/XX/year>. 

On XX/XX/year> I called the customer service department again to confirm that the complaint to the promotions department was filed, that notations were being made to my account showing that I was contesting my current interest rate, that I had never authorized Discover Bank to hold my money under threat of penalty under those terms, and that I was extremely dissatisfied with Discover Banks business practices. They confirmed that the complaint was filed. 

On XX/XX/year> I received the decision of the promotions department stating that they would not honor the promotional rate I was offered ( Exhibit XXXX ). 

Let me be clear. I renewed my account online, according to the instructions provided by Discover Bank. When I renewed, the promotional rate of 5.10 % was an option on Discover Banks webpage to renew and I chose it. I saved my choice and double-checked my work. No where, in any of the instructions in any promotion, any email, nor anywhere on the webpage with choices to renew, did Discover Bank inform me that I further needed to open a new CD account to receive that rate. I maintain that was an excuse concocted after the fact not to honor the promotion after the Federal Reserve lowered interest rates. I further believe the delay tactics used by the customer service department were designed to wear me down, not support my issue. All the while, I am being threatened with a XXXX interest penalty if I close my account. And if I do close my account anyway, how will I ever receive the interest I am owed? I feel like Discover Bank is holding my money XXXX under terms I never agreed to. 

I'm simply asking Discover Bank to honor the promotional rate that I chose on their webpage of 5.10 % for XXXX  months upon renewal of my CD on XX/XX/year>.

Company response to consumer: Closed with monetary relief