Consumer complaint received 2026-01-11 00:00:00
Product: Credit card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Problem when making payments — Problem during payment process
Company: AMERICAN EXPRESS COMPANY
State: GA

Complaint narrative:
Subject : Unfair and Deceptive Credit Limit Reduction Following Large Payment ( UDAAP Violation ) Financial Institution American Express ( XXXX XXXX Credit Card ) I am filing this complaint against American Express for what I believe to be unfair, deceptive, and abusive acts and practices ( UDAAP ) related to a sudden and materially harmful credit limit reduction that occurred immediately after a large payment was made. 

Timeline & Facts I maintained an American Express XXXX XXXX credit card with a credit limit of approximately {$12000.00} for years. 
Although my account experienced financial strain, I was not delinquent, and I did not miss required minimum payments. 
In preparation for publishing my book, I made a large payment of approximately {$8000.00}, in XXXX XXXX XXXX, using personal savings, specifically to : o Reduce utilization o Improve account standing o Earn XXXX associated with the card Immediately after this payment posted, American Express : o Reduced my credit limit to approximately {$6500.00} o Effectively absorbed the payment and eliminated my available credit o Left me with no meaningful access to funds, despite the payment being made in good faith Resulting Harm This action : Depleted my life savings Triggered significant financial hardship Forced me to pull funds from other sources to meet obligations Undermined the purpose of making a large payment in the first place At no time prior to the payment did American Express : Provide notice that my credit limit would be reduced Warn that making a large payment could trigger adverse action Offer an opportunity to modify how the payment was applied ( e.g., minimum payment allocation ) Failure to Respond or Remedy After the credit limit reduction : I contacted American Express multiple times requesting : o Reconsideration o Reversal of the limit reduction o At minimum, reallocation of the payment to avoid catastrophic financial impact American Express failed to provide any meaningful response No written explanation, accommodation, or corrective action was offered UDAAP Violations Cited I believe American Expresss conduct violates 12 U.S.C. 5531 & 5536, which prohibit : Unfair Practices The harm caused was substantial The injury was not reasonably avoidable There was no countervailing consumer benefit Reducing credit immediately after accepting a large payment creates a consumer trap Deceptive Practices American Express encouraged responsible repayment behavior The company failed to disclose material consequences of making a large payment A reasonable consumer would not expect a payment to trigger immediate loss of credit Abusive Practices The practice exploited information asymmetry It took unreasonable advantage of the consumers reliance on fair credit servicing It undermined the consumers ability to protect their financial interests Regulatory Concern This practice appears to : Discourage consumers from making large payments, which allows them to keep collecting high interest rates and keeps the consumer stuck in the debt loop. 
Function as a payment capture mechanism Shift financial risk entirely onto the consumer without notice If this is a standard risk-management practice, it should be clearly disclosed before payment acceptance, not after funds are seized.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation