Consumer complaint received 2025-09-24 00:00:00
Product: Credit card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Problem when making payments — Problem during payment process
Company: DISCOVER BANK
State: MI

Complaint narrative:
On XX/XX/scrub>XXXX XXXX I called Discover to get help because I was going through a financial hardship and had fallen behind on my card. I enrolled in a hardship repayment program during that call. The terms were {$130.00} a month for 60 months at 0.99 % interest. I made the first {$130.00} payment during that call from my checking account ending in XXXX. I also gave authorization for Discover to take {$130.00} from that account on the XXXX of each month for the term of the agreement. On XX/XX/year>, I received written confirmation of those exact terms in my Discover secure inbox. Beyond the XXXX XXXX monthly payment, I never gave Discover consent to take any other amount from my account. 


On XX/XX/year>, instead of taking the {$130.00} payment I had authorized, Discover took {$1000.00} from my account without consent. It posted on XX/XX/year>. That was {$950.00} more than the agreed-upon amount, and I never authorized that debit. 

On XX/XX/year>, I called Discover to find out why this money was taken and to demand it be refunded. During that call, management reviewed the XX/XX/XXXX call and concluded that the unauthorized debit was the result of agent error. I was told the first agent failed to disclose that my account had to be brought current before the program payments would start. Because he did not explain this and did not recode my account into the program, my {$130.00} payment on XX/XX/XXXX was applied to my minimum amount due of {$1200.00}, leaving a balance of {$1000.00}. That {$1000.00} was then automatically withdrawn on XX/XX/XXXX. In other words, instead of properly enrolling me in the program at {$130.00} a month, the agent left my account coded as full minimum due. 
Instead of fixing this mistake and refunding the difference, the agent on told me that if Discover refunded this money, my account would be reported delinquent again and I would get multiple new derogatory marks on my credit report. I was told that if I allowed Discover to keep an additional {$260.00} of the money they took, plus the {$130.00} they were supposed to take ( {$400.00} total ), my account would be considered current and the hardship program could move forward. Out of fear of further damage to my credit, I agreed to this. I want to be clear though, this was not money I planned to pay, nor was it properly disclosed I needed to when I agreed to the repayment terms. I only agreed because to prevent even more damage being done to my credit. I was also told by the agent on XX/XX/XXXX, that the remaining {$680.00} would be refunded immediately, but because it was late Friday evening, the department that handled refunds was closed. I was given a number and told to call it to request the refund Monday XXXX  and that the notes he had put in my account would be all they'd need. 

On Monday XXXX XXXXXX/XX/year>, I called the number I was given. The first agent I spoke with informed me that an internal investigation had to be done before any refund could be issued, which would take up to five business days. This was the first time I was told anything about an additional investigation, so I requested a supervisor. After asking repeatedly, I was finally transferred to a supervisor named XXXX ( ID XXXX ). She repeated the same thing, but after objecting to this as being unacceptable several times, she finally agreed to try to get it done in three. That was seven business days ( nine calendar days ) ago. Nothing has been refunded, and no one has called me or sent me any emails or messages. 

All three of these calls were made with my authorized agent, XXXX XXXX, on the line. She both participated in and overheard the conversations and can back up everything that was said, including that Discover admitted the debit was the result of agent error, promised me an immediate refund if I called back Monday, and used the threat of further damage to my credit to pressure me into allowing them to keep more money than I had agreed to pay. She also heard the agent try to spin this error as a benefit to me because it avoided a delinquency report in XXXX, even though it was used as leverage to get me to pay more than I agreed. 

On XX/XX/year>, I emailed a written demand to Discovers legal department, giving them 24 hours to initiate my refund. That email laid out all of the facts along with my demand for the {$680.00} to be refunded immediately. Discover has not responded, not even to confirm receipt, and they have not initiated a refund. 

The responsibility of repaying my debts is very important to me, which is why I reached out to Discover and several other creditors during this time of financial hardship. Discover offered me a plan that should have provided financial relief, but instead they unlawfully took {$950.00} more than I agreed to pay and have now withheld {$680.00} of that money for over two weeks, despite admitting it was taken because of agent error. Those funds were already promised to other creditors that I had scheduled to make payments with. Because Discover has not returned these funds, several other creditors have cancelled my repayment terms due to non-payment, and charged me added interest and late fees. As a result of Discovers actions, what was a temporary financial hardship has now become an irreparable financial crisis. 

Because Discover has made my situation far worse than when I first called asking for help, I am requesting that this be corrected immediately. The {$680.00} needs to be refunded back to my account without further delay. I'm also asking that as restitution for the mishandling of my account, and the damage to my finances and credit as a result, that the way my account has been reported to the credit bureaus be corrected to show as either closed by the customer, or at the very least, in repayment status instead of revoked by the creditor. When I asked for this courtesy on the XX/XX/XXXX call in light of the agents error, I was told this could not be done due to federal auditing, but I now know this is not factual and that it can be changed to softer coding. 


Thank you, XXXX XXXX Account ending in XXXX

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief