Consumer complaint received 2024-08-27 00:00:00
Product: Credit reporting or other personal consumer reports — Credit reporting
Issue: Credit monitoring or identity theft protection services — Didn't receive services that were advertised
Company: CITIBANK, N.A.
State: FL

Complaint narrative:
This fraudulent black mark was instigated by Citibank in early XXXX and has never been removed, causing my credit rating of over XXXX to be destroyed. There have been several actions I have taken with CitiBank that have not been resolved yet but this letter is specific to case ID # XXXX that involves fraud, deception and lying by an unlicensed, uninsured and unprofessional party pretending to be a home inspector, that caused an {$800000.00} negative cost to two retired XXXX  citizens, one of whom is me. I have sent over 150 pages of proof to CitiBank over a five-month period with no affirmative action taken. In XXXX, XXXX, my partner and I decided to bid on a house in XXXX, Florida, that was bank owned. As I have bought many homes throughout the years, and have a strong construction/renovation background, as well as a businessman having owned a chain of stores and have been in court more times than some lawyers involving banks, landlords and customers, I felt that I had the experience to do my due diligence in a case like this and planned to do my own home inspection as usual. The suspicious data was that the bank owned the house, which appeared to be in very good condition, having been built in XXXX, and previously owned by a prominent dentist well known in XXXX. Since the Dentist was still in business and had moved into another home just three miles away, I was suspicious on why he abandoned the home to the bank. Since banks sell homes as-is, I knew that I would have to be especially diligent and thorough. So I decided that a professional home inspector should accompany me in hopes that with two experienced people we could figure out why the house had been abandoned.Second week in XXXX, my partner and I flew to XXXX XXXX in preparation for our long-planned XXXX vacation. We were staying in her sons house until it was time to board the ship. Just a day later, the bank accepted our bid on the house and only gave us seven days for the inspection. Giving up a vacation we had planned for years and had paid for wasnt an option. So I contacted the inspection company recommended by our realtor, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. I asked to speak to the owner and was put in contact with XXXX XXXX. I told her that I wanted to speak with the actual inspector who would be doing the inspection as I wanted two things checked in addition to the normal things that they checked. She said that her husband, XXXX XXXX, would be doing the inspection personally. I told her that I needed to speak to him before he did his inspection to double check my two suspicions I had about the house. I also told her to coordinate the three additional inspections I wanted, the pool, the elevator, and termite inspectors. She said she would. I paid the XX/XX/XXXX invoice {$1200.00}, which covered the regular house inspection by XXXX XXXX for {$680.00}, the elevator inspection was {$400.00}, the pool inspection was {$50.00} and the XXXX inspection was $ XXXX XXXX, day of the inspection, XXXX XXXX called me and said XXXX told him to call me and ask what specifically I needed done. I told him I was suspicious of the condition of the house because the Dentist had left what appeared as a house in good condition to the bank. Since the house was built just after the time that toxic  XXXX drywall had been making the headlines in Florida and Louisiana from XXXX to XXXX, I wanted him to look over the air handlers or pull off an outlet or switch cover plate and check that the copper looked like copper, and wasnt covered by black soot ( copper sulfate and copper dioxide ) caused by toxic XXXX drywall. I also wanted to know if the house had copper plumbing or plastic like pex or pvc. He said that he always checked the air handlers anyway and no problem to check on the condition of the copper. My partner and her son ( a California lawyer ) were witness to the conversation as I had my XXXX XXXX phone on speakerphone.He called on Saturday morning, XX/XX/XXXX to let me know that the inspection had been done on the house and for termites and the reports were on the web. There was no pool inspection because the pool inspector couldnt figure out how to turn on the pump. I guess that was my first clue that I was dealing with non-professionals. He said that the elevator inspector couldnt do the inspection until Monday, XX/XX/XXXX, and by then my partner and I would be boarding the ship for a three-week XXXX cruise. Since the inspection report was incomplete, I asked him whether the plumbing was copper or plastic. He said he couldnt tell. That was my second clue that I was not dealing with a competent professional. But I could live with plastic ; it would just mean that I might have an occasional bursting pipe, something I could live with. Then the most important question : How did the air handlers and copper wiring look. Again, with my phone on speakerphone all this time with my partner and her lawyer son listening in, he said, and I quote, It looked OK. No specifics, not very convincing, but he was supposedly a professional, and with a name like XXXX XXXX XXXX, maybe I was being too paranoid? So we decided to tell the bank we would buy the house. The elevator inspection happened a few days later and was clearly done by a professional. He had many photos and even listed parts that he advised to replace. No complaints with that inspection, and worth the {$400.00}. 

After closing on the house on XX/XX/XXXX, my partner and I drove to the house on Friday, XX/XX/XXXX, and seeing most of the light fixtures, switches and dimmers werent working, and only one of the four XXXX XXXX  were working ( no mention of this on the inspection report ) made a list and spent nearly {$1800.00} at XXXX XXXX on dimmers, switches, bulbs and AC filters. 

I can not tell you the feeling of what appeared to be my life flashing in front of my eyes when I pulled off the first switch plate to replace the dimmer. Look at the pictures in the cloud folder XXXX XXXX XXXX  XXXX ( the inspection reports and contracts are there along with a drywall photos folder that my lawyer told me to make for evidence against XXXX XXXX XXXX and XXXX XXXX ). 

I pulled off several more covers in several rooms, same thing. Then I pulled off the covers of all four air handlers ( two for the first floor, one each for the second and third floors ). All four were black, and only one was working. By the way, the pool pump was working and why the pool inspector couldnt figure out how to turn it on was a lot XXXX XXXXXXXX. Again, we were charged for the inspection that never happened. 
So I have been trying since XXXX when my CitiBank MasterCard statement came in to get CitiBank to realize that this was a clear case of fraud, since XXXX XXXX never inspected the house himself, lied about checking the air handlers, plumbing and copper wiring, was not even licensed himself or insured, so suing him was pointless, and every time CitiBank asks for evidence, I sent them the link to the folder with all the contracts, documents and pictures. Then after four months I am told that CitiBank cant use photos or any data I have as proof. So what am I supposed to send them? They have access to everything, except my witnesses.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation