Consumer complaint received 2025-12-08 00:00:00
Product: Payday loan, title loan, personal loan, or advance loan — Installment loan
Issue: Charged fees or interest you didn't expect — 
Company: TRUIST FINANCIAL CORPORATION
State: CA

Complaint narrative:
Unfair Removal of Autopay Discount & Deceptive Autopay Policy * * Company : Truist Bank XXXX LightStream Product : Personal Loan Issue : Unfair Practices/ Deceptive Autopay Terms/ Unreasonable Penalties Summary of Issue I am filing this complaint regarding LightStream/Truist Banks removal of my autopay interest-rate discount in a manner that is fundamentally unfair, deceptive, and inconsistent with reasonable consumer expectations. 

LightStream permanently increased my APR by XXXX XXXX after an extremely brief interruption to autopay despite the fact that I immediately attempted to re-enable autopay. Their system would not allow reinstatement the same day, which effectively trapped me into the higher rate even though I had not missed a payment and had every intention of keeping autopay active. 

This feels like a deliberately engineered gotcha designed to charge borrowers a higher interest rate while hiding behind technicalities and restrictive system behavior. 
Details of the Problem 1. LightStream offers a lower APR only if autopay is continuously maintained.

This discount is heavily advertised and is a primary reason consumers choose LightStream.

2. The contract states that if autopay is not maintained for ANY reason, the APR will permanently increase by 0.50 %.

This is already problematic, but the company makes it even worse.

3. I attempted to re-enable autopay immediately, but LightStreams system would not allow autopay to be restored the same day.

This effectively prevented me from curing the issue even though I was trying to comply.

4. LightStream treated this temporary interruption caused by system limitations as a permanent loss of the discount.

They refused to reinstate autopay or the discount even though : I never missed a payment I attempted to restore autopay immediately Their own system blocked reactivation 5. This creates an unfair and deceptive setup : The discount is advertised broadly A single moment of autopay interruption triggers a permanent APR increase Their system prevents reinstatement The consumer is trapped into a higher interest rate without any opportunity to cure This is the definition of an unfair, deceptive, and abusive practice ( UDAAP ) under the Consumer Financial Protection Act.

Why This Is Unfair and Deceptive 1. Disproportionate Penalty A permanent APR increase over a trivial autopay glitch is punitive and not reasonably related to risk.

2. No Opportunity to Cure The systems refusal to allow same-day reactivation deprives consumers of any meaningful ability to fix the issue.

3. Misleading Marketing The lower autopay APR is used to promote the loan, but the conditions for keeping it are : extremely strict poorly explained technologically impossible to meet once disrupted XXXX. System-Engineered Failure LightStream creates a structure where : autopay must be continuous ANY break causes permanent loss the consumer can not promptly restore autopay the bank then charges the higher XXXX permanently This is a designed trap, not a reasonable policy. 



Harm Suffered Permanent XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX increase Higher monthly payment Higher total cost of borrowing Stress and financial harm No opportunity to cure or reverse Punished for attempting to maintain autopay This is exactly the type of practice CFPB was created to regulate. 



Requested Resolution I respectfully request : 1. Reinstatement of my autopay discount 2. Correction of my APR to the original rate 3. Refund or adjustment of any excess interest charged 4. Review of LightStreams autopay policies for unfair or deceptive elements 5. Investigation into whether the companys autopay system prevents consumers from restoring autopay to avoid rate increases I am not asking for anything unreasonable only that LightStream honor the autopay discount I attempted in good faith to maintain.

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