Consumer complaint received 2025-09-23 00:00:00
Product: Credit card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Other features, terms, or problems — Other problem
Company: AMERICAN EXPRESS COMPANY
State: CA

Complaint narrative:
Formal Complaint Against American Express Unjustified Limit Reduction and Harassment Complainant : XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX, CA XXXX Account : Amex Credit Card Ending in XXXX CFPB Ref No : XXXX Amex Ref : XXXXXXXX XXXX. Original Complaint ( XX/XX/XXXX ) I filed a complaint regarding unfair and damaging actions by American Express after a technical banking error caused a one-day delay in payment on my Amex personal loan. 
I have been a loyal Amex customer since XXXX, with both a credit card and a personal loan. 
I have never defaulted or missed payments. In XX/XX/XXXX, I switched my autopay from XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX. The transition failed, leading to a single days delay on my loan. 
Upon being notified, I immediately paid {$1300.00} on XX/XX/XXXX, which brought my loan current. Despite this, Amex demanded that I make an additional {$1300.00} payment by XX/XX/XXXX, even though my account showed {$0.00} due. 
I reasonably assumed this demand was either an error or a phishing attempt. The suspicious nature of the XX/XX/XXXX email ( from AmericanExpressXXXX.americanexpress.XXXX ) further raised doubts about its legitimacy. 
Nevertheless, on XX/XX/XXXX, Amex reduced my credit limit from {$30000.00} to {$5800.00}. At that time, I had a balance of about {$5300.00}, which I planned to pay in full by XXXX. This arbitrary reduction immediately pushed my utilization to nearly 90 % and negatively impacted my credit score.

I believed this action was unjustified, punitive, and retaliatory. 

2. Amex Response ( XX/XX/XXXX ) Amexs written reply acknowledged that : My personal loan was past due in XXXX and became current on XX/XX/XXXX after my payment. 
They regularly review accounts and required a {$1300.00} payment by XX/XX/XXXX, as part of a periodic review. 
Because they did not receive this payment, they reduced my credit limit to {$5800.00} on XX/XX/XXXX. 
They state these actions were in line with their Cardmember Agreement and periodic review process. 

3. My Rebuttal and Feedback I strongly dispute Amexs explanation for the following reasons : Loan was Current : By XX/XX/XXXX, my personal loan was fully current. There was no valid basis for an additional required {$1300.00} payment in XXXX. When I checked my account, it explicitly displayed {$0.00} due for XXXX. This confirms that Amexs demand for another payment was arbitrary. 
Misrepresentation of Account Status : Amexs claim that my credit card account carried a delinquent or problematic balance is misleading. I had always maintained timely payments and used less than XXXX % of my available credit. At no point was my card account past due. 
Arbitrary and Punitive Action : The XX/XX/XXXX demand for a {$1300.00} payment resembled a phishing attempt, given the mismatch with my actual balance due and the suspicious sender address. The subsequent credit limit reduction, despite my strong payment history and loan being current, appears retaliatory. 
Direct Harm to My Credit : By reducing my limit to {$5800.00} while I had a balance of about {$5300.00}, Amex artificially raised my utilization ratio to nearly 90 %. This action immediately harmed my credit score and financial standing, despite my history of on-time payments and low utilization. 
Disproportionate and Unjustified Treatment : Amexs actions were not aligned with responsible lending practices. Instead of resolving a minor, one-time technical error fairly, they escalated it into punitive measures that damaged my credit.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation