Consumer complaint received 2026-02-03 00:00:00
Product: Checking or savings account — Savings account
Issue: Managing an account — Problem using a debit or ATM card
Company: SYNCHRONY FINANCIAL
State: AZ

Complaint narrative:
This is a new complaint based on information I was only recently able to obtain from Synchrony Bank, as I have been unable to log into their website from abroad. I now have proof, via bank statements and emails, that they have been lying about not charging international transaction fees since I first asked them about this in XXXX, XXXX, and in subsequent emails and phone calls. 

Synchrony Bank has consistently lied about charging ATM or foreign currency transaction fees since I filed this complaint last XXXX. Again, I have been consistently told by Synchrony that they do not charge international transaction fees and that they reimburse ATM fees. See attached emails for proof that they have been lying since XXXX, XXXX about international trasaction fees. 

CFPB Complaint filed against Synchrony Bank on XX/XX/XXXX Description : Synchrony Bank failed to respond appropriately to my original complaint -- especially my well-supported documentation of claims made by bank personnel both before and after my recent XXXX travel, which have been totally contradicted by Respondent -- as well as my complaints about being unable to reach their so-called " XXXX banking department '', the Respondent 's contradiction of the terms set forth in their Consumer Deposit Account Agreement and Disclosures, and serious complaints about their so-called " chat customer service '' function which is a total joke, as third-party chat agents have no access to account information. despite the fact that these issues have been well known to XXXX since XX/XX/XXXX. Their recent " response '' contains the following misstatements, equivocations, fabrications, and outright lies : XXXX XXXX Synchrony Bank was informed by me on XX/XX/XXXX at XXXX pm XXXX that my XXXX phone number was no longer valid and should never be used to send security codes or other account confirmation information. During that same call, I provided a valid phone number for Synchrony Bank to reach me in the XXXX, but they never called me back. Despite this, XXXX claims that a " colleague '' attempted to contact me on that invalid phone number on XX/XX/XXXX, more than XXXX weeks after I informed them telephonically that the XXXX phone number was no longer valid. This constitutes a gross violation of account security, as the phone number may well have been reassigned to another customer by that date. Synchrony Bank is fully responsible for any breach of account security due to their grossly irresponsibility and negligence. XXXX ) All phone charges from the XXXX have been documented in the complaint, and will not be documented by " fax '', XXXX pigeon, snail mail, nor any other XXXX or XXXX technology. XXXX will provide a secure email address for all future communication. International phone calls to the XXXX from XXXX XXXX are based on a flat rate of XXXX XXXX, or roughly XXXX XXXX. There is no documentation from XXXX XXXX of charges for individual international calls. I do have phone logs of all calls made or attempted to the number I was given by your chat center, XXXX, and the general customer service number I was obliged to use after that number ceased working, XXXX. YOU WILL COMPENSATE ME FOR EVERY MINUTE USELESSLY SPENT ATTEMPTING TO GET ACCOUNT INFORMATION FROM YOU AT THESE XXXX NUMBERS, AND YOU WILL SUPPLY A SECURE EMAIL ADDRESS FOR THE DELIVERY OF COPIES OF MY CALL LOGS. BASED ON THE FEE OF XXXX XXXXXXXX, SYNCHRONY NOW OWES ME APPROXIMATELY {$25.00}. XXXX ) Respondent claims to be " appreciative '' of my informing them about the misinformation I was given on XX/XX/XXXX and afterwards regarding Synchrony 's fee-free international withdrawals and reimbursements for all ATM fees, yet neither is mentioned specifically in the replay, and respondent deliberately avoids confirming or denying that such claims were made to me both before my departure from the XXXX and XXXX XX/XX/XXXX. Such claims were indeed made, and Synchrony has a legal obligation to abide by them. XXXX ) Respondent 's claim about the XXXX XXXX is laughable on its face, as I do indeed have a permanent XXXX address which I have been unable to change on Synchrony Bank 's website because I am unable to log into it. There is no obligation for a XXXX phone number from any of the other XXXX banks I do business with, and confirmation by email is all they require. In XXXX case, a bank activated my account for XXXX ACCESS confirmation so that neither telephonic nor email confirmation would be required. Synchrony has made no effort whatsoever to provide login confirmation by email, nor by a third-party confirmation app such as XXXX ACCESS because they simply don't care whether they have my account or not, and are outrageously incompetent in providing customers with alternatives to telephonic confirmation. For this egregious oversight alone, they should not be allowed to continue to conduct banking activity in the United States. XXXX XXXX Synchrony Bank indicates that they can not use an international mailing address to send account information to. I have never requested that they do so. I provided my permanent XXXX mailing address to the " XXXX '' with whom I spoke on XX/XX/XXXX, but she obviously never reported it to the bank. In addition, all mail sent to my previous address will be forwarded to my permanent mailing address in the XXXX, as indeed Synchrony already knows, as they continued to send mail to my previous address despite my informing them of this change. The claim that somehow I am eligible to do banking in the XXXX because I have no XXXX mailing address is fallacious and a red herring, and Synchrony Bank knows it is. In addition, the international number XXXX provided XXXX XXXX XXXX no longer works, and since my original call to that number on XX/XX/XXXX, I have been unable to reach anyone using it. Synchrony Bank has no " XXXX Banking '' department, and the claim by the XXXX I spoke with on XX/XX/XXXX that she was in that department was a total falsehood, as personnel at the regular customer service number have confirmed on multiple occasions. Respondent 's claim that I am unable to close my account because I am not physically present in the XXXX is the height of absurdity and worthy of ridicule and lawsuits to force them to abandon such a ridiculous claim. XXXX ) Respondent confirms that Synchrony Bank will refund all ATM fees charged by ATM machines up to {$5.00} per statement cycle. I have absolutely no way of knowing whether Synchrony has lived up to this promise because I have been unable to access my bank statements for the last 3 months, as Synchrony well knows. The distinction between an ATM card and a debit card is moot and absurd, as Synchrony 's ATM card functions exactly as a debit card, and no withdrawals can be performed above the current balance in the account. It baffles me that Synchrony would make such a ludicrous claim which has utterly no relevance to my complaint. Respondent 's claim that " Synchrony Bank does not refund any foreign exchange conversion or ATM access fees when you use your card internationally '' directly contradicts what I was told by Synchrony Bank personnel both before my departure AND on XX/XX/XXXX, when I spoke with a " XXXX '' in the " XXXX banking '' department. No such distinction between foreign and international transactions appears in Synchrony Bank 's Consumer Deposit Account Agreement and Disclosures, so ALL ATM FEES MUST BE REFUNDED UP TO THE {$5.00} LIMIT PER BILLING CYCLE. ANY FAILURE OF SYNCHRONY BANK TO ABIDE BY THEIR OWN DECLARATIONS AND THE Consumer Deposit Account Agreement and Disclosures MUST BE CONSIDERED WILLFUL BREACH OF CONTRACT AND FRAUD. In addition, Synchrony confirmed before my departure and afterwards that Synchrony charges no international transaction fees, and that is indeed what I was told by way of confirmation from the " international banking XXXX '' I spoke with on XX/XX/XXXX! ANY CLAIM TO THE CONTRARY IS A FLAT-OUT LIE, AND CONSTITUTES ANOTHER BREACH OF CONTRACT. ( NOTE THAT EVERY TIME I HAVE WITHDRAWN MONEY FROM MY SYNCHRONY ACCOUNT, SYNCHRONY HAS USED THE OFFICIAL XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX PLUS A XXXX % XXXX  CURRENCY FEE, WHICH IS NOT APPLIED BY THE BANK OWNING THE ATM NOR BY XXXX XXXX, BUT ONLY BY SYNCHRONY BANK! AND I HAVE CHALLENGED THIS FEE EVERY TIME I MAKE A WITHDRAWAL, AND RECEIVE A REVISED NOTICE INDICATING THAT THE FEES HAVE BEEN REMOVED FROM THE TRANSACTIONS. BECAUSE RESPONDENT 'S CLAIM CONTRADICTS SYNCHRONY 'S MULTIPLE ASSURANCES THAT NO INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE FEES ARE EVER CHARGED BY SYNCHRONY, IT MUST BE VIEWED AS A DELIBERATE BREACH OF CONTRACT BY THE BANK AND MUST BE FURTHER INVESTIGATED BY THE CFPB! XXXX ) Apparently the XXXX fails to understand how " the internet '' works when she makes the following asinine statement : " Online account access may not be available, as we are not an international bank ; as a XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX  can not be verified ; and the internet may not support our website- www.synchronybank.com. Please know, chat agents are unable to verify the account, and they will direct the customer online. Once logged into your account, you can send a secure message to Synchrony Bank, and the account information can be provided through secure message. '' I have never had a problem accessing XXXX from the XXXX. The problem, as XXXX well knows, IS THAT I CAN'T LOG IN WITHOUT A CONFIRMATION CODE WHICH SYNCHRONY REFUSES TO SEND TO THE VALID EMAIL ACCOUNT ASSOCIATED WITH MY SYNCHRONY ACCOUNT, BUT INSISTS ON USING ONLY AUTO-GENERATED SMS CODES TO A XXXX PHONE XXXX WHICH HAS NOT BEEN VALID SINCE XX/XX/XXXX, AS I INFORMED SYNCHRONY ON XX/XX/XXXX. YET SYNCHRONY KEEPS INSISTING THAT I CAN ONLY ACCESS MY ACCOUNT ONLINE. I CAN NOT BECAUSE THEY REFUSE TO PROVIDE CONFIRMATION CODES BY EMAIL, PURE AND SIMPLE, AND AS A RESULT, SYNCHRONY IS REFUSING TO PROVIDE ACCESS TO MY ACCOUNT. THIS DIVERSION INTO THE MYTHOLOGY OF " THE INTERNET '' IS NOTHING MORE THAN A DISTRACTION FROM THE REAL ISSUE RESPONSIBLE FOR DEPRIVING ME OF ACCESS TO MY ACCOUNT, WHICH IS SYNCHRONY 'S INSISTENCE ON SMS MESSAGES ONLY FOR CONFIRMATION CODES. NO ONE IS CONVINCED BY RESPONDENT 'S ATTEMPT TO BLAME THEIR ACTIONS ON " THE INTERNET ''! XXXX ) Synchrony 's vapid XXXX regarding their concern for their customers is beneath contempt! Their is not a single " compliance '' issue related to my accessing my account at Synchrony, as I am able to do with XXXX other banking institutions which are linked to my Synchrony account. I have no such " compliance '' issues with them, as they actually care about their customers -- including those traveling abroad -- and provide full access to their account via email confirmation and account login not requiring SMS confirmation codes. Synchrony is on its own with this, and it is they who are not in compliance with the norms of reputable customer service. None of the issues I brought forward in my original complaints have been addressed by XXXX. This case MUST remain open until Synchrony complies with my right to access account information from overseas. Failure to do so is actionable, regardless of the CFPB 's findings, and will be pursued under state and federal banking regulations as appropriate. Because Synchrony Bank has failed to respond adequately to any of the claims made in my original complaint -- even after taking almost XXXX weeks to respond -- I submit this new complaint as a means of forcing respondent to deal with the lies, deceptions, denials, deferrals and outright fabrications which appear in Synchrony 's so-called respond. Nothing has been resolved. My demands for reimbursement still stand, as does my demand for access to my account! Sincerely, XXXX XXXX RESPONSE : XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX Subject : CFPB Case XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX  Account Dear XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX behalf of Synchrony Bank , we are responding to your concerns raised through the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ( CFPB ). We appreciate you bringing this matter to our attention. My colleague attempted to call ( XXXX ) XXXX, the phone number on file and on the CFPB complaint on XX/XX/XXXX, in order to discuss your account ; however, they were unable to reach you and received a busy signal. 
We previously responded to your complaint on XX/XX/XXXX. For your convenience, a copy of our response has been enclosed. After a review of your concerns regarding international contact with Synchrony Bank, online access, ATM fees and international transaction fees. Synchrony Bank feels we have accurately addressed your concerns. Our position remains the same as stated in our original response ( XXXX ). If you have any additional documentation for review, please provide a copy to us and we can reopen your investigation. 
The following Information that can be found in our website www.synchronybank.com under FAQ : You can use an ATM displaying the XXXX or XXXX logos. Your ATM card is provisioned to work in the XXXX and internationally. To locate an ATM, click here. 
Synchrony Bank does not currently charge a fee for using an ATM. However, there XXXX be an ATM fee charged by the ATM owner/operator or the financial institution. Synchrony Bank will refund domestic ATM fees charged by other financial institutions, up to {$5.00} per statement cycle. Synchrony Bank does not refund any foreign exchange conversion or ATM access fees when you use your card internationally. 
Our international phone number is ( XXXX ) XXXX, Monday - Friday : XXXX XXXX to XXXXXXXX XXXX. XXXX, Saturday and Sunday : XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. XXXX. 
Why does Synchrony not allow foreign addresses? In accordance with the XXXX XXXX and as part of our XXXX XXXX XXXX, Synchrony Bank is required to authenticate every Account Holders permanent address. Currently, we dont have a tool or system that can validate that a foreign address is legitimate. 
Please know, Synchrony Bank not an international bank. There is no guarantee that customers will be able to log in online when outside the country due to internet/website security restrictions. Our XXXX XXXX ( XXXX ) is the practice of using multiple data elements and more than XXXX factor to assist in the authentication of an account holder 's identity : XXXX ) Knowledge - something the account holder and only the account holder will know ( username, password, the answer to their security question, account data, etc. ). 
Page XXXX XXXX ) Possession - something the account holder and only the account holder has access to ( a verified phone or phone number ). 
XXXX ) XXXX - something the account holder and only the account holder is ( voice recognition or biometrics ). 
Updating personal information or sending an XXXX is a High Risk Transaction ( HRTs ), which is a transaction that could place the Bank or the account holder at risk of fraud. If these security measures can not be met, then we are unable to send an OTP to an unverified phone number, address, or email. 
For security purposes, when accountholders access an account via the Internet from an unregistered device, accountholders are required to complete a XXXX Time Passcode ( OTP ) process in which the Bank will issue a temporary PIN code that can be sent via text message or telephone call to confirm their identity. If the telephone number provided has not been registered in the Bank 's system, they will be retrieved from the credit bureaus. If an accountholder registers their device, they will no longer be prompted to complete this step. 
If you choose to close your XXXX account, the funds can be sent to a verified registered account or a check can be sent to a XXXX address. If you have any further concerns a banking representative can be reached at ( XXXX ) XXXX. 
We would like to stress compliance is very important to Synchrony Bank, and we follow all applicable laws and regulations. Your account is also important to us, and we strive to serve our accountholders in a timely and satisfactory manner. We regret any dissatisfaction you may have experienced regarding this account. 
Thank you for the opportunity to respond to your concerns raised through the CFPB. If you have additional questions regarding this matter, contact me at ( XXXX ) XXXX, extension XXXX. I welcome the opportunity to assist you. 
Respectfully, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Senior XXXX Corporate Consumer Relations Synchrony Bank Attn : IID XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXXXXXX Enclosure ( XXXX ) cc : Consumer Financial Protection Bureau New CFPB Complaint XX/XX/XXXX What happened? 
Despite what is clearly stated in Synchrony Bank 's Consumer Deposit Account Agreement and Disclosures, Synchrony Bank XXXX XXXX XXXX Account has failed to compensate for service fees and ATM fees for overseas transactions. There is no specification that foreign ATM withdrawals are exempt from Synchrony 's policy of reimbursing such fees in the Consumer Deposit Account Agreement and Disclosures. To date, Synchrony has charged my account more than {$50.00} USD in such fees, and has made no effort to reimburse my account. This is fraud. 
I want the CFPB to publish this description on consumerfinance.gov so that others can learn from my experience. 

The CFPB will take steps to remove my personal information from this description but someone may still be able to identify me. Learn how it works. I consent to publishing this description after the CFPB has taken these steps. 
Inactive modal Inactive modal Edit this section What would be a fair resolution to this issue? 
Immediately restore ALL FUNDS debited from my account for foreign ATM or transaction fees and notify me immediately by email that this has been done. Synchrony bank has my verified email address on file. Under no circumstances is Synchrony Bank to use my old phone number XXXX XXXX as that number is no longer within my control. Synchrony bank has received a Cease and Desist order prohibiting them from using that number, and any infractions will be prosecuted. 
Inactive modal Edit this section XXXX attachment View uploaded documents by clicking on the file name. Documents that pass virus scanning are typically available within XXXX minutes of upload. 
________________________________________ CFPB Complaint filed against Synchrony Bank on XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX

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