Consumer complaint received 2025-11-21 00:00:00
Product: Credit card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Closing your account — Company closed your account
Company: CAPITAL ONE FINANCIAL CORPORATION
State: WA

Complaint narrative:
On XX/XX/XXXX, I received a pre-approval offer from Capital One for a Venture X credit card. Based on that pre-approval, I submitted a full application. Capital One approved me for the card with a credit limit of approximately {$30000.00}, and the card was shipped to me.

Shortly after the approval and card shipment, I discovered that the account had been restricted. When I tried to access the card online, I saw messages indicating the account was restricted, and at one point the system even indicated that the card/account did not exist. At the same time, my credit reports at all three major credit bureaus now show hard inquiries from Capital One related to this application. 

I made multiple phone calls to Capital One to try to understand and resolve this : On my first call, I was transferred to the fraud department. The representative told me that she could not give me any details about why the account was restricted, said there was nothing they could do, and told me to simply wait XXXX business days for a letter. No concrete explanation or solution was offered. 
On my second call, I was transferred to the fraud department again ( it sounded like the same representative ). She asked for my information and then told me that she could not find my account and advised me to call back after 24 hours. When I asked to be transferred to someone who could actually help, I was sent back to a general customer service representative. 

The general customer service representative I reached after that was more helpful and explained that Capital One needed additional identity verification. This was confusing because Capital One had already requested and used my drivers license during the original application process. I was told that in order to verify my identity again, I had to send copies of my drivers license and Social Security card either by fax or physical mail to an address in XXXX XXXX XXXX, Utah, along with a case number. 

I specifically asked if there was a secure online method to upload these documents, but I was told there was no online option for my case, only fax or mail. I was given a case number and the mailing address, and I followed their instructions by mailing copies of my drivers license and Social Security card with the case number included.

TLDR : 1. I was pre-approved, then fully approved and had the card shipped, but before I could even use it, Capital One restricted the account and could not clearly explain why.

2. I now have hard inquiries on all three credit bureaus as a result of this process, but I still do not have a usable account and have not been given a clear, timely resolution.

3. When I called for help, the fraud department : Refused to explain the restriction, Told me to wait for a letter with no actionable next steps, and On a later call, claimed they could not even find my account and told me to call back later. 
4. I have now mailed highly sensitive documents ( drivers license and Social Security card ) through the mail because Capital One insisted there was no secure online method available for this identity verification, which increases risk and delays, even though more secure methods are common today.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation