Consumer complaint received 2025-12-08 00:00:00
Product: Credit card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Problem with a purchase shown on your statement — Credit card company isn't resolving a dispute about a purchase on your statement
Company: CAPITAL ONE FINANCIAL CORPORATION
State: WI

Complaint narrative:
In XX/XX/year>, I purchased running boards from XXXX XXXX so my XXXX  children could safely get into and out of our truck. The order arrived in early XXXX but was missing two of the required ten mounting brackets. Without the full set of brackets, the running boards can not be installed safely, and I can not risk my family using equipment that is not adequately supported. 

I notified the merchant immediately on XX/XX/year>. XXXX XXXX acknowledged in writing that only 8 brackets were shipped instead of 10 and told me they would check inventory and follow up. Over the next several weeks, I emailed repeatedly. Many messages went unanswered. When the merchant did respond, they gave multiple assurances that the missing parts would ship soon, but they never did. They stopped replying entirely for long stretches. 

Because I received an incomplete and unusable product and the merchant was not following through on any of their promised shipments, I filed a dispute with Capital One to resolve the issue. Only after the dispute was filed did XXXX XXXX reply again. On XX/XX/year>, they admitted they now had the missing parts but would only send them if I first agreed to cancel my dispute. Their exact wording was : To ensure we can proceed with shipping them immediately, could we kindly ask if you would be willing to cancel the chargeback. Requiring cancellation of a dispute before fulfilling their obligation is coercive and violates the spirit of consumer protections under the Fair Credit Billing Act. 

Throughout this process, XXXX XXXX promised shipment multiple times ( XX/XX/XXXX, XX/XX/XXXX, XX/XX/XXXX, and again in XXXX ). None of these promised shipments occurred. At no point did they ever send the missing parts. 

When I opened the dispute, I submitted emails showing that the product was incomplete, that the merchant acknowledged it, and that the merchant refused to remedy the situation unless I withdrew my consumer protections. Despite this, Capital One misclassified my dispute as goods not received, even though my documentation clearly explained that the issue was merchandise not received in full. This misclassification guaranteed the investigation would be handled incorrectly. 

I called Capital One multiple times and asked whether anyone had actually reviewed my evidence. Capital One never addressed the missing parts, never acknowledged the merchants written statements, and never responded to the merchant refusing to ship replacements. Instead, Capital One repeatedly issued template replies stating they did not find any errors and closed my case based solely on the fact that the package was delivered. 

Capital Ones evidence packet contains only shipping details and a delivery map. It contains no reference to the incomplete shipment, no acknowledgement of merchant misconduct, and no review of any correspondence I provided. This is not a meaningful investigation under the Fair Credit Billing Act.

I still have the running boards in brand-new condition because I can not install an incomplete, structurally unsupported product that my family would rely on daily. The product remains unusable, and the merchant has never provided the missing parts. 

I acted in good faith at every step, but both the merchant and Capital One failed to resolve the situation. The merchant refused to perform unless I gave up my rights, and Capital One ignored all evidence and focused solely on package delivery, which does not address the core issue.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation