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Thomas of Broken Bow NE (04/28/08)
I moved my business a year and a half ago and because I have some automatic charges on my Citi card each month I would write my change of address on each statement when I sent in my payment in the change of address section on the billing statement which was returned to Citi Cards with the payment. I have 2 Citi Cards for my business, I carried on and my wife the other. After getting a bill with late fees on it I contacted Citi Cards because I alway pay my balance when I get the statement. The told me they didnt have my change of address and I was told that the change of address on the billing statement means nothing all change of address's have to be sent in by FAX. Citi Cards dropped the late fees and interest and I faxed in the change of address.
Two months later I get another bill with late fees and interest. I call Citi cards and asked why? I was told I had the wrong address. We went over the address change again and I told them that I lived in a small town and I had not gotten an bill from Citi Cards and even if they had sent it to my old address it would have been forwarded. Citi Cards admitted they had not gotten any of my statements back. I was advised that I would still have to pay the late fees and interest because they could only waive those fees every 6 months. I asked to talk to a supervisor and the late fee and interest was waived. Because I was sick of dealing with incompetent people I cut up our Citi cards and stopped using them all together.
Low and behold I get a bill from Citi Cards, for $250 plus or minus. In March of 08 on my wife's card. I checked with Citi Cards and they couldnt give my any information on past months charges so I requested the past years statements on this card. Any activity on this account prior to September had some how managed to get to me and get paid, again with the change of address going on the return statement with the check. Some home the September bill for $88 didnt find its way to me until March or 08. Again I contacted Citi Cards and they were very kind. I told them I didnt believe I owed any late fees or interest because it was their mistake. They all agreed. Three times I payed on line and they assured me that it was all taken care of and they would get back to me with confirmation. No one ever did.
As I was cleaning this mess up I got a call from a collection company who was rude. I told them this had been taken care of and they needed to confirm this with Citi Cards. They would not. On 4-14-08 I was assured by Citi Cards this account was paid in full. I was told they would confirm this on or before 4-16-08. They did not. I called Citi cards on 4-21-08 and was told they payment had not gone through and that they would re-do it and it would be done that day. On 4-28-08 I got a letter from Academy Collections that I owed $302 on this account. I called Citi Cards and no one knew anything about my account. Richard, a manager told me that even though I had made my payment as agreed they had turned the account over to collections on 4-17-08 and there was nothing they could do about it. I would have to deal with collections.
I asked for a statement from Citi Cards stating my account was paid in full. He said he couldnt do that even though his people had assured me it was finished and paid in full. Citi Cards is one of the worst managed ill trained companies I have ever dealt with. This cost me $167.80 to clear my account. I was assured by the collection co that Citi Cards would remove this from my credit history. I am not holding my breath on that ever happening. I believe anyone who does business with Citi Cards is very unwise.
Sandra of Cortland OH (04/15/08)
I am going to attempt to put this letter in the order of events as they occurred: 1. I called to set up payments online thinking it was the day that my bill was due. The woman on the phone had the wrong date as did I. I made out a check to send and expected to get a late fee. When I got to work and looked at the calendar I realized that I still had a day left. I called and spoke to a gentleman to assist me in setting up an online account. He could not understand me and I could not understand him. He WAS putting in the numbers as I read them to him from the bottom of my check. By the time I got someone who could understand me it was 5:02PM and it was too late and the man that I talked to agreed to take the payment by check - no charge.
2. I was told that I could not pay online for 30 days. I then again attempted to pay online and the lady I talked to said that the routing numbers had nothing to do with my numbers. I know that everyone that I talk to says that I had to have put the numbers in myself. Contrary to that, the numbers were entered the first time by the gentleman that I was speaking to in India. I had documented what went on during our conversation. OK, one more time I have to send a check.
3. Again, I attempted to get assistance to set up an online account. Once again, I could not understand the person that I was talking to and he put me through to someone who spoke English. She stated that she would mark my account that 'I didn't like foreigners. I was highly offended by her remark. She actually said it twice. Then I was abruptly disconnected.
4. I called back and spoke to a very nice lady who offered to try and get the correct numbers in. I have been paying my bill out of the same account for years. I read the routing number and check numbers to her. For some reason, the system was not taking the first four numbers of my checking account. She told me she would attempt to have the late fee removed from my bill due to the fact that I had gone in on the 19th or 20th to have my payment done online on the 26th. I received my bill and had a $39 fee for a returned check. Needless to say, I am disgusted. As much by the fee as when I told the support people that I have paid my bill off every month for years and was thinking about canceling my account. The response is basically - go ahead.
I don't know what has happened to customer service or people listening to your problem. I know that it states that your call may be recorded - I wish they were and you could listen to what I have experienced and the amount of time I have spent on the phone attempting to rectify the situation. All I was trying to accomplish was to pay my bill.
Brenda of San Jose CA (04/14/08)
After decades of working almost exclusively with CitiCard for my credit card services, during which time I built up a credit limit of over $40,000 and great payment record, Citi Card tossed out my business over a $50 fee they assigned to me for business I didnt' want to do anymore with them. They added insult to injury by deciding because I would not pay their $50 fee that I was a bad credit risk and closed the account. Then they sent me notices saying they were doing me a favor by covering the $50 fee and giving me a credit line of $500 dollar--to start all over again with them. I dont' have the same issues with MBNA America, who will be getting all my business now.
This $50 dispute and Citicards take on the matter has effected my credit rating.
Michael of Chula Vista CA (04/10/08)
Last May 29, I had paid off my Citibank Credit Card 10 days in advance. Yet today, April 9, Citibank electronically debited my credit union account for $345.00!
I called to inquire as to why even though I owed Citibank no money why Citibank was still taking money from me (and no small change either). I was told by three different CITIBANK reps that because my bill LAST MONTH had showed a minimum amount due of $345, that regardless of whether I paid off my balances in full or not, that it would still be electronically debited from my credit union account. If I wished, I was told, I could request a refund. I did. That's when I found out that it would take one to two weeks for me to receive a check in the mail! I argued that since the mistake was THEIRS, that they should electronically re-credit the $345 from my Citi Credit Card account back into my credit union account as easily as they had taken it out. They all told me it was not possible and that I would just have to be content with getting a refund check within two weeks time.
This is nearly tantamount to robbery. Imagine a thug taking $345 from you without your consent, and promising to send you a refund back in the mail. What are you going to do in the meantime?
I requested to speak with a Citibank supervisor. Leigh Ann (?) was no help at all. She even told me it was my fault that I had paid off my credit card balance in full, and had not bothered to spend the time to call Citibank to tell them (that even though Citibank knew that I had paid off my entire balance) to please refrain from collecting anymore money from my credit union account. It's the way the system is set up. It's also what's written in the brochure we sent you in 2001, she said, So even though you paid off your balance, you should have called us so we wouldn't collect more.
Then she said she would hang up on me as she wasn't going to deal with this anymore. She offered to call me back if I still wanted to talk. What was the point? Citibank is taking and holding money that does not belong to it from customers like me because that was policy.
Veronica of Bristol PA (04/07/08)
My credit card (Mastercard) was suddenly closed by someone. I logged into my account on March 31 and saw a notice on the website saying this account was closed. I immediately called to ask who closed my account; they would not tell me who did it. I wanted it reopened and they told me it was impossible. I said how is it possible that someone closed my credit card without instructions or verifying first with the cardholder. That really upset me a lot, prompting me to close 2 other credit cards I had with Citibank right then and there.
This card was opened in 2001. Since they closed it, I'm sure my credit score took a hit. My dividend points also disappeared - I wasn't able to make use of them.
Deborah of Dallas GA (03/24/08)
Sold an account to a collection agency that has been using harassing tactics to collect payment. The problem with that is they have the wrong person. The individual has the same name as mine, but I do not have a middle initial J, nor is the last four of their SSN is the same. I cannot seem to convince the collection agency of this (national enterprise) and Citi's stance is they have nothing to do with it now. I have to resolve it myself with the collection agency. I cannot do anything more than what I have already done. I feel that since Citi sold them the account for collection, they should take some responsibility in helping me to clear this up. I do not have a Mastercard with Citi and I do not have a credit card at all with a credit limit of ten thousand dollars, the amount they say I owe. I would like for the calls to cease, but am not getting cooperation from either company. I thought there was a law preventing the kind of harassing calls I am receiving?
Andrew of Ridley Park PA (03/24/08)
I used citi card to transfer my high credit card payments to a low interest rate of 1.99% apr. I spoke to a customer rep who explained to me that this would lower my payments and this was an annual rate. Now they are actually charging me a rate of 1.99% a mth. NOT annually and I am actually paying more interest now than I was before.
I am now paying an additional $120 a month on fees that I was told I would only be paying every annually, not monthly.
Darryl of Portland OR (03/12/08)
I've been a Citi card user for 27 years, and the Citi-Miles service is as horrible as ever. Today is 3/12/08, and we want to use our Citi Miles to book flights to/from Portland OR/Las Vegas in July. All Citi staff wants to do is sell us other services while they insist they have NO flights to offer us on the days we want to fly. Better yet, the telephone CSRs are so rude and snippy they must despise their work. They won't even tell us what airlines they checked; it must have been too hard for them to do because we booked our own flights about 2 minutes after hanging up witk Citi. Guess who just lost a 27-year long customer? And, I'm not letting them simply treat me poorly. I know how to scale their ladder and get into the ear of their Customer Service management. Here I go...
Renee of Madison WI (03/03/08)
As a customer, I believe credit card companies have a duty to make it clear what you owe on your card and the due date for for your balance. Citicards has recently changed its website format. It says on the side in bold letters. Current Balance $172.99 and underneath it says Minimum Balance Due: $20.00. Underneath that it says, Due March 17th. Current Balance refers not to the payment due on March 17, but the payment due on April 17. I have been overpaying my account as the website is incredibly misleading. When I called to complain, customer service was extremely rude. I think that in light of its current financial troubles citicards is purposely making it difficult for customer to find out how much money they owe and the actual due date. They are trying to confuse customers into paying either the minimum amount and accruing interest, or in overpaying and then still owing the minimum for the next month. I suggest avoiding doing business with citicards.
I overpaid my credit card and had to borrow money from my retired parents to pay my other bills.
Timothy of Cranberry PA (02/21/08)
Citicard has been harassing me continuously concerning my payments. They are contacting me numerous times throughout nearly everyday. I contacted Sears billing at 1-800-917-7700 and spoke with a lady by the name of Daneh. I requested a summary showing payments made over the last 12 months. I explained to her that I disagree with statements sent to me regarding discrepancies on payments made. They have never sent one. I also in the past requested a summary on the items that were charged on this account, including dates and amounts. Their interest rates and late payment fees are entirely out of control and beyond my limit. They won't work with me or cooperate in any manner. It is causing mental stress.
Judith of Austin TX (02/19/08)
My payment was due Jan. 24. I sent it on-line, and Chase Bank paid it on the 24th. They say Citibank accepted payment at 1:47 pm on Jan. 24. Four hours of phone calls and wrangling, and this is the best I got: Citibank says it's due by 5 pm EST, and Chase was to account for any time zone changes. Accounting for that, the payment still would have arrived on time. Then they said the response time is two business days but can't define what they mean by that and can't send me a policy describing it. So when is it really due? Citibank waived the fee this once, but it means I can never again make the payment due on what the statement says is the due date. It also means if I ever make a goof and pay late, I've exhausted my one time waiver for a mistake I never made but for which no one is willing to be held accountable for. No one can tell me who the governing agency is that I can complain to. They just keep re-routing me to Customer Service on the back of my card, which is where I began.
They waived the penalties this one time but won't do it again if the same thing happens.
Jay of Oshkosh WI (02/17/08)
The card was brand new in June of 2007. I was charged with a late fee after the first bill came late and was confusing. I also incurred finance charges. After calling the company and discussing the problem that I travel throughout the month, we had the billing statement date changed to the 5th of the month after the Sept. 2007 bill. I always pay the entire bill off each month. After I paid the January 2008 bill, I received a late fee of $39.00 again, even after they had received or logged my payment on the 30th of January which would be 5 days before the due date per our Sept 2007 phone agreement. They acknowledge this took place.
So I called them, and they said there was nothing they could do; and they would not credit any late fees--that due dates fluctuate. I understand to a point, but a six day swing in three months is a lot. They also kept requesting me to hook up to electronic transfer, which I told them is out of the question--especially after what I have been through with them already.
At this point I have lost over $200.00 in penalties on a card I looked at because I thought I could save money. I have four other credit cards that I do not have these problems with.
Yelena of Woodbridge NJ (02/16/08)
I got a call from CITI Card customer service that I have some balance on my card. I never received any statement in mail or email. Apparently, they had my work email on file and were sending statements, but I never got those emails. Apparently, the card was not paid for couple months, and I had to pay a $300 fee. I explained the situation to the customer service, but the fee could not be waived. I always pay on time and full amount, and this situation is very upsetting.
Also, I checked all the statements that I missed before, and there are some international charges from New Zealand on my card, that I did not make or authorize. I will try to dispute those charges, but not sure if I will get my money back. My economic damage is an unauthorized charge for $89 and fees for late payment for $310.
Shawn of San Jose CA (01/25/08)
I believed I ahd been double charged, I still do, for nearly $600.00 dollars. After not being able to fix this dispute. I cancelled my card 12/31/07. I said I wanted to pay the bill totally, and did. I now have another bill for over $70, plus after calling customer service, I was told I have ANOTHER bill waiting for me??? I get NOWHERE! I already overpaid the $600, and now they want more?? HELP!!!
$596.64 that I paid twice, $70.22 that they say I owe, and who knows what will be on the NEXT bill
Judy of Maple Park IL (01/25/08)
In June of 2007 was on a trip with a girl friend and on our way back home we stopped at a gas station to top off tank and to make sure we were heading the right direction. I put the credit card in at the pump needed a receipt it said see cashier, I went in the girl asked for card , said it didn't read I gave her the card and she swiped it again got receipt and we went on our way. In July when my statement arrived It showed I was double charged 56.01. I called Citi they sent out forms , I filled out forms At least 3 time mailed, faxed papers to them thought all was fine and in Nov the charge was put back on and I called said this was a double charge and
,sent all the papers again and their response was I didn't report my card lost or stolen so the charge stands.I have been in contact with the billing dept of Amoco for that gas station,they said you were double charge that they would look into the tapes from that time and look for a 2- 56.01 charges with in a few minutes of each other, they called Mon. said they found them and that the gas station would be in touch. Thursday the gas station called and got my address and was sending a check. Now I have to figure out how to get this amt and the late charges off and I got this done in one month and Cit dispute could get this taken care of in over 7 months, I closed all accounts with them since I feel they did not handed this right for their customer.
Their reporting to credit bureau when I have been their customer since 2002, never late the hours spent phone calling e- mailing Amoco the paper work and the stamps When I get the check having to make copies sending them this the check and trying to correct all the mess up that they should off gotten right in the first place
Robin of Sarasota FL (01/24/08)
In Aug. 2007 I canceled my card. I received a letter acknowledgment saying that my card was canceled but other amounts may be owing. I cleared this. In Nov. I received another statement saying that I owe $3 for the financial charges. Citicard said that I should have canceled the finance charges company by phone. I replied that no one had told me this upon closure or even when I opened my account. Citicard waived away a couple of dollars, and the finance company did the same. Today, I have received an email saying that I owe a small amount. As far as I was concerned everything was closed. I have been constantly harassed by mail since closing the account. No matter how many phone calls you make - noone seems to understand. Are these people 2 sandwiches short of a picnic?
They said that there was going to be debt collector. I asked Laura to waive the charges since I was told they would be--and they did not.
John of Porterville CA (01/03/08)
I have had a CitiBank MasterCard for 28 years. I have maintained excellent credit always paying my monthly bill. My MasterCard balance was approximately $15,000. I made one late payment and the interestrate jumped from 14% to 25.8%. I couldn't believe it. When I inquired, I was told, read the small print in the loan agreement.
Fortunately, I was able to transfer the debt to a Capital One Visa account. Capital One offered 0% interest on the transfered balance.
CitiBank lost me as a customer and I advise others to seek a credit card company that truly appreciates your business.
The economic loss was the additional interest I had to pay until the account balance was transfered. I am lodging this complaint with the hope I can prevent others from experiencing an otrageous interet rate increase.
Bessie of Churchhill TN (12/06/07)
Through our Sears credit Citigroup has more than doubled what we orginally owed on the card with fees and charges added in the hundreds monthly. They contacted us 18-24 times a day, from 8 in the morning until 10:00 at night. We've logged as many as 48 auto dial calls from a citigroup computer. 2 payments per month has not stopped these excessive calls, they ring our phone constantly and between voice mail and answering machine, it dials every 15 min to every hour. They will not leave a message as this is some auto dial system they've set to ring our phone.
I run an online business and cannot get work done for the every 15 min voice mail. The telephone has been shut off from ringing, so my husband can sleep during the day after working 12 hr nightshifts. Mon through Sunday these calls and rings come like clockwork, all day. Family gatherings and such are a nightmare of the phone ringing and ringing. It's impossible to get ahead of payments because of their charges added monthly, min payments are more than a whole payday- up to $600.00 they have demanded. We pay what we can, this month $350.00, but today alone there were 18 calls made to our home # from them. We're at the point of considering having the phone taken out, getting cell phones and another form of internet just so we can carry on our normal lives, get our work done, and be able to have an hour of the phone not ringing. No one is avoiding payments to Sears here, but should we pay their $600.00 month we couldn't pay anything else nor eat. This has been going on for two months solid. At their interest rates, late charges and so on, even the $300.00 did not touch the balance and was absorbed as fees and charges. They make it impossible to get the card paid down.
Peter of Pasadena CA (11/28/07)
I received a Citibusiness Card cash advance offer via convenience checks, and I learned that the advertising on the whole page was misleading. It talked about cash advances on the whole page and the disclosure section that talks about the transaction fees states that a balance transfer fee of 3% ($5 min - $50 max) applies. I assumed that this fee applied to the cash advance since many offers use the terms interchangeably.
I am a small business owner, have done many transfers, have made mistakes in the past, and so feel I am pretty savvy. I was careful to make sure this was a good offer. There was no limit on the cash advance fee, and I was charged $592 on an advance of $20K. I called them and the reps are very versed on how to defend this. As I am discovering, Citicard is pretty brutal about not making reverses. This is terrible, and something should be done about their misleading advertising on these offers. If the entire offer was about cash advances, why would they mention anything about a balance transfer when they have nothing to do with the attached convenience checks?
Jerilyn of Wilmington DE (11/18/07)
Was charged a $29.00 late fee, I called and the late fee was removed because of my history of timely payments. Later I received a letter stating it would not be removed. I closed the account. Now I am receiving late fees for the late fee I refused to pay and $1.00 in minimum finance charges.
Steve of Denver CO (11/18/07)
This is a hard lesson to learn about credit cards. Years ago discovered the convenience of credit cards but got in over my head. I had several cards, all maxed out. I put myself in to finacial ruin with those damn things. Good news is I learned my lessons and managed to get all of those cards payed off. All except one -- CITICARD. They are charging me as much as they can. I am talkin 25%!! My minimum payment was $65.00 a month and they would charge me guess what.. $65.00 a month. So there for my balance over the last two years has been $2000.00. They say make extra payments, sure I would if I could. I asked if they could lower my interest they said we couldnt because I was current on the account. So I skipped a month to trigger their system. I called back and they said they will lower my rate to 10% and required me to pay by eft from my checking account. I said ok whatever. So I have $66.00 taken out of my checking account every month. I have been in this new arrangement for 3 months now and it is funny my balance is still $2000.00 plus they are trying to charge me with late fees for anything they possible can! They do not want to lose their money in any way, shape or form. Who the hell am I making rich. I have asked them if they would charge off the account and they wont. I am convinced CITICARD doesnt care to help because they are making a lot of money off of me. The actually acount has been closed for over 4 years, but yet it will not go away. I have paid CITICARD well over the amount it would take to satify this account and completely close it but they make lots of money from me why would they want to help!!
Victoria of Shelby Twp MI (10/18/07)
I'm a small business owner with great credit. On occasion, I use credit access checks as short-term loans and have done this enough times in the past that I feel I'm a savvy consumer.
Knowing that I was going to consolidate a few credit card balances, I had been looking for a good deal and set aside the attractive offers as they came in the mail. The Citibank offer of 2.99% through June of 2008 was particularly appealing. I made sure to read the fine print, which states the transaction charge was 3% of the amount transferred, with a minimum of $5 and a maximum of $50. No problem. I wrote a check (one of the checks included in their deceptive marketing packet) for $9,000 to my business account, which I am using to pay off my other credit card balances.
Again, I've done these transactions before and never had an issue. You cannot imagine my surprise when I received my first statement from Citi showing the $9,000 check (no problem), $10 interest (no problem), and $270 finance charge for the transaction. That is 3% of the entire $9,000. Nowhere on their deceptive marketing piece does it say that the checks they included did not qualify for the $50 cap and the sky was the limit.
I called Citi customer service, the agent that I spoke with was patronizing and rude to me, and all but called me stupid. Citi refuses to reduce the transaction charge.
Toby of Venice FL (10/10/07)
Last week, on October 4, 2007, I received an unsolicited, unauthorized credit card in the mail from Citi MasterCard with a credit line of $8,000. There was a written statement that I could call their 800 number and close the account if I did not want the card. I have no intentions of activating the card. However, I did not call to close the account because I do not know how closing the account would affect my very good credit score.
I am very angry to have received a credit card I did not want or ask for.
Elizabeth of Cramerton NC (10/06/07)
On October 6, 2007 I received a CitiMasterCard in the mail. I did not ask for it nor did I want it. They sent to me at my home, not my P.O. Box, a real credit card. I had to call to cancel the card! I had to put in the last four digits of my Social Security Number! This is very scary because I rarely receive mail at my home due to the poor service. (Just this year my son's tax return checks were stolen from the mailbox. One was cashed and one was never found.) My concern with receiving a credit card that I DID NOT apply for is this: what if the person(s) who stole my son's tax refund checks had gotten this? I would not have known that I even had a lost credit card out there! How can this be legal? Is there anything I can do to protect myself?
My peace of mind is gone. How can I be assured that Citi will not do this to me again?
Naomi of Glen Allen VA (10/02/07)
I am 90 years old and was hospitalized and had months of recuperation afterwards. During this time I was not always able to sign checks for my credit card payments. By the time I was able to take care of this again the card people raised my interest rate to 30% and raised the minimum payment so high I cannot possibly pay it. Since I cannot pay the minimum, they consider every payment to be late and charge me an additional $35 per month. This caused the balance to go over the limit, so they then charged me another fee for over limit.
For many months, they called me as many as ten times a day. They would leave one or two messages, and all the other calls were hang-ups (caller id googled shows it was them). I tried to talk to them, but they were arrogant and agressively argumentative. I am old and sick and cannot deal with this. So, I had my son write them and revoke their permission to use my phone number for any purpose. This worked: the harassing phone calls stopped. But now they refuse to communicate with me in writing despite written notification that I am unable to talk to them on the phone due to my physical limitations. We have written three letters in three months so far, with no response whatsoever.
Mark of Maplewood NJ (10/02/07)
CITIBANK NO LONGER HAS A 24-HOUR FRAUD LINE.
It seems that Citibank 24-hour credit card fraud line is now only open 8am to 12am EST. This obvious cost cutting measure places users at severe risk of fraud when traveling and in any other time zone except for the East coast. As an international business traveler this makes the Citibank Mastercard unreliable.
Obviously Citibank has stuck some deal with Fraudsters that they will not steal cards out of office hours and that they will now cover any additional liabilities.
To rub salt in the wound, they are still advertising 24 hour support on their web site and literature, surely this is illegal or Fraud (but obviously only during office hours).
Tram of Lincoln NE (08/24/07)
About a month ago, my account with Chase Credit Card had a balance of $1200 and some odd dollars. Earlier, I had received a promotion from Citicards for 0% interest on a balance transfer. So I went online to apply for it but later figured out that it would take too long to process the application and the balance transfer fee. I immediately called them and told them that I want to cancel the application. I was told thtat the application was cancelled and so was the balance transfer. I stopped worrying about that and transferred my balance to another card that I already had. Today, I received a statement from CitiCards saying that I owe a balance transfer from Chase and a transfer fee.
I called Citicards back and my call was taken by the most pointless person on the team. She put me on hold for about two or three minutes and came back to tell me that there's nothing she can do. I asked to talk to her supervisor but the supervisor turned out to be worse. She talked to me in an attitude that I was wasting her time. After talking to her, I just wanted to burst. She was one of the rudest person I have ever talked to.
Sj of Carbondale CO (08/24/07)
I closed and paid the entire balance of my account in December of 2006 after verifying all amounts due with customer service. In March of 2007, I received a paper statement. The statement showed residual finance charges or $50.34 and another $66.00 in finance charges and late fees accumulated since the account was closed. I contacted them and explained that they had not notified me of the residual charges and that I was locked out of my online access. I agreed that despite their error, I would pay the residual charges that they failed to notify me of, but that I would like them to waive the late fees. They sent a letter stating that they would do so. This never occurred.
Kenny of Lynn MA (08/03/07)
I signed up with Citi Diamond Preferred 3 months ago because of the promo (F1K7) that they ran which stated 0% BT for life as long as I make purchase 2 times a month. I've met all the required disclaimers and never late on my payment, but on my 3rd bill, Citi put the balance from balance transfer to a rate of 14.240%. And when I called CSR to dispute the rate, CSR claimed that the 0% rate expired in June which is not true. Citi even reminded me to make 2 purchases, on their on billing statement, to continue the 0% BT. <[>You could google Citi promo code F1K1 you'll see it is 0% for the life of BT. Even with this informations, CSR still come back and said that my BT rate is the Purchase rate of 14.240%. Anyway, I paid the bill in Full today and Canceled the card.
Colin, Cpa of Trumbull CT (04/25/07)
Citibank is a fine bank. But I have a particular card, the CitiBusiness card that goes out of its way to try to trap the user into paying late fees, as follows:
My March 19, 2007 statement had a requirement that I pay the $325.17 balance due (or at least the minimum) several days before the end of the next billing cycle (rather than just allowing my payment to arrive DURING the next billing cycle). In this example they demand the payment be in hand before April 14, 2007 so that they could have it posted to the account no later than the 14th. Allowing for mailing times, that means I must have it mailed to them a week before the 14th -- it must be in the mail to them by April 7th.
That leaves a short window of March 20th to Aril 7th to receive the bill in the mail, review it and make out a check to pay it. Only 19 days in this example. But CitiBusiness has a policy (that they absolutely deny when I call them on it) that they are holding back the mailing out of the monthly statements so that regular postal delivery is made each month by 8 to 15 days after the month close.
So now reduce the tight 19 day payment window I mention above by 8 days and we're talking I have a MAXIMUM of 11 days to open the statement, review it and pay it.
What if I happen to be away for a week's vacation? Or otherwise out of town for a mere week or two? Figure it out, CitiBusiness knows that the tighter that make the payment window, multiplied by millions of customers each month that they are raking in the extra interest and late payment fees.
The result of the bank's pushing the payment window tigher, is that interest and late payment fees are more likely to be assessed.
Lori of Webster, MN (04/10/07)
Interest rates on my platinum card are up to 30%. They said they could not lower it because I recently had something bad reported to my credit.
William of Mancos CO (04/06/07)
On March 2, 2007, two charges ($1568.30 & $1649.70) were placed against my credit card by persons unknown to me in Cochabomba, Bolivia. Citibank alert contacted me on my verification that the charges were not by me, the Citibank agent stated he would close the account. I agreed. A new credit card has been issued but the charges continue to be posted to the account.
I have twice mailed notarized statements (affidavits) and a follow up letter describing that neither I nor my family has any association with the charges. I have used the Citibank customer service email 3 times to request the bank remove the fraudulent charges from the account. This has not yet happened. By certified mail I have asked Security services to phone me. This has not happened.
Amanda of Wasilla AK (04/06/07)
I recently had a Sears Card through Citibank, I was in the process of paying it off, as my interest rates continued to grow. Each time I would call customer service to ask about odd charges and why the increase in interest, I was treated with no respect or any amount of understanding. I closed my account and just wanted to pay the card off. In January I received a bonus and according to my statement I paid the card off in full. I received a statement in March saying I still owed $47.
I called customer service and the girl was again rude and said there was nothing I could do and I still owed that money. I decided to call it quits with them that day and just hung up the phone. I just received a letter today (April 6, 2007) that is dated March 25, 2007 saying I neded to pay my balance. I called them and my payment is now 65 dollars and 36 days past due. The guy working in customer service said I need to pay it and that it is already on my credit report. This upsets me greatly being that I am trying to have a good credit score.
I asked to speak with his manage, and let me tell you he was horrible. He said That it is my fault, I owe them the money and there was nothing I could do about my credit report, because they did nothing wrong. I asked him for his name and he only gave me his first name and wouldnt give me his last for security purposes I asked to speak with his manager and he said that his manager didnt take phone calls.
Betty of Troy OH (03/31/07)
I made a payment on my account online. It did not get recorded, nor did it get withdrawn from my checking account. As soon as I realized the problem, I immediately made the payment. When I got my next statement, my APR has increased to 32.24%. I called and was told that because I was late, my interest was increased and would remain that way for 12 months. If all payments were received on time, my interest rate would be decreased. They did, however, refund the late charge, and then they put it back on again.
Corinne of Las Vegas NV (03/29/07)
I used my credit card to place an order for medication on 12/21 06 for $208.99. The pharmacy telephoned me to say that they were not allowed to ship medication to my State of Nevada. So I cancelled the order. The pharmacy proceeded to charge me 3 times for the amount of $208.99, but only credited me 2 times. I tried contacting the pharmacy to resolve it to no avail. So I filed a dispute with Citibank claiming that the charge of $208.99 should be credited by the merchant because they could not ship to my state and therefore I did not receive anything and should not be charged.
They placed a conditional credit while they investigated for about a month and then reversed it because the matter was resolved when I received the 2 credits from the merchant. They didn't seem to comprehend that there were three charges and only two credits.
Since 1990 I have been a Citicard customer and have always paid my bills in full. I have never complained in all that time about erroneous charges. Now I'm quite sure that things will get nasty because I refuse to pay the $208.99 and will probably receive late charges after this month.
Andrea of Whittier CA (03/27/07)
We made a payment through our bank on 3/10 and in order to avoid the interest we needed to pay by the 11th of March of 2007 in full. Since it was a weekend Citifinancial was not opened and our payment was not deducted from our account till Monday 3/12/07. I wanted to know since our due date fell on a weekend, can i be allowed till the next working day since they were closed on my payment due date and there offices were closed.
Salpy of Brooklyn NY (12/23/06)
On August 24, 2006, I made a $500.00 payment toward my account to basically bring my account balance down to ZERO. Upon receiving the next statement, I noticed the payment was not reflected and I had accrued a late payment charge. Citibank said they never received payment. I placed a stop payment/trace on the Money Order in question from MoneyGram (the company from whom the money order was purchased). They sent me copies of the front and back of the CASHED money order. It had been cashed and cleared by Citibank on August 29, 2006.
I faxed a copy of the cashed money order to Citibank's customer service reps. They placed a conditional credit for $500.00 on my account. On September 12, 2006, they reversed the conditional credit and charged me more late fees. I called them again, and this time was told they had never received any faxes from me, and that I should re-send them. So, I did just that.
In October, November, and December, I made several follow-up calls, as the issue is STILL not resolved, and kept being told my conditional credit was reversed in September, they would investigate the matter, I should try back in a week, and would I like to purchase some ridiculous offer from them! On December 12, 2006, I received yet another letter from Citibank, this time claiming that the copies I faxed them were illegible, and that I should YET AGAIN re-fax them.
I am considering contacting a lawyer to help end this matter once and for all. And, I also feel this situation calls for a consumer complaint.
Linda of Everett, WA (10/17/06)
It seems to me that their web page is down a lot of the time and if a person doesn't happen to have their Citicard with them it's almost impossible to make a payment. When I talked to them, before I left for Japan, they made it sound like things would work just fine over the internet.
How do they expect to get payments when their page is down? My credit will be ruined by the time I return from Japan in three months due to missed payments.
John of Fort Lauderdale FL (07/23/06)
This is a heads-up about citicard's 5% gasoline discount offer. When you read the fine print, it states that you must purchase gasoline form a stand alone gasoline seller. Convenience stores DO NOT QUALIFY! So, try and find a branded gas station that does not sell food or snacks. And further, many print their name as xyz mart, or Xtra mart etc. which disqualifies that purchase for the 5% discount (according to Patricia at Citicard customer service. I just did a survey and whatdaya know, I couldn't find a branded station without the convenience store name on the pump receipt. So in essence, Citicard may never have to give you a discount!
Troy of Oxford, NC (07/18/06)
In May 2005, I opened a new account with SEARS credit with the on-going promotion for "1-year no interest, no payment". I purchased several thousand dollars worth of merchandise from SEARS with the understanding and assurance from each SEARS department sales staff that ALL purchases made on that date would be included in the 1-year, no payment and no interest promotion.
A month after the original purchases, I started receiving billing notices from Citi Card on behalf of the SEARS account. The initial bill included finance charges and late fees. The Operations Manager at the SEARS intervened with Citi Card on my behalf, but they told him that nothing couldn be done.
Prior to the year end of the promotional period, Citi Card charged-off my account and because of that my credit FICA score went from 798 to 540, which has in effect ruined my credit.
Marie of Lake Balboa, CA (06/16/06)
Last June I called to let Citicard know that I was going to be late with my payment. One of the customer service representatives offered a fixed 12-month payment plan. He told me that I will not be able to use the card while I was on the program, but as soon as the 12 months was over, my account would be re-opened and i would have to start paying manually. Its been 12 months now, and now they are saying that they cannot re-open my account because it has been closed for 12 months! Well yeah it was closed because i was under the program!!! If i would've known my account would be CLOSED forever then i wouldve just paid for the late fees i wouldve had for that month. I think they are unfair and are pulling some kind of a scam for me to open another account. Once i was told that my account was closed, i was advised to just open a new credit card, i mean what is that all about!?! I cant speak to anyone who can help me out in my situation, but i just think it is unfair and people there give you the run around and they are no help at all. Never a straight answer of what was going on just a sorry i cant help you. I've had that credit card for years, and this is how they treat their customers!
They placed my card as if it were forcefully CLOSED. It was under a payment plan and i did not know it was through collections. It will affect my credit and i cant do anything about it!
Lidia of Miami FL (04/23/06)
In 1999, when I did not dream of being unemployed for any long period of time, Credit Protector called me and said they were calling "on behalf of" my Citibank Mastercard". They offered me a service that I WAS looking for at the time, which was protection in case I ever became unemployed or disabled to make my minimum payments so the balance would not accumulate. The only condition was that I qualified to receive unemployment benefits. He said back then when I specifically asked him, and they still say, that as long as I showed I received or was entitled to receive unemployment benefits, the "payments would begin immediately". Further, he even said in the case one were an independent contractor and work should finish, they would start paying.
After more than five years of having me believe I had this protection with Citicard and of charging my account, but most of all of having Citicard charge me monthly fees on their charges, I sent my first claim and their answer was that they could not cover my minimum payments, which back then were low. I spent months calling them and didn't even get an explanation. I have paid Citicard way more than my purchases have been, but waiting on them to start payments, when Citicard reps themselves told me they should have been paying, they have left me with the inflated balance they created and without the service I enrolled for.
How can a business like this continue operating? I can't calculate the amount of finance charges I paid Citicard for the almost six years of Credit Protector charges, just as for other "membership clubs" charges that I never signed for, but I know if I had a small business and defrauded even one customer like that I would at least have to refund all charges associated with my business, or am I wrong?
Richard of Staunton VA (04/15/06)
On March 7, 2006, I asked USAA Credit Card Services to send a balance transfer check of $1,000.00 to Citi Bank Credit Cards. The check was mailed on March 8, 2006 and cleared by Citi Bank on March 13, 2006. As of April 15, 2006, the $1,000.00 has not been credited to my Citi Bank account. I called Citi Bank and asked them if they could track down the check with the check number USAA had given me. Citi Bank said they could not do that. They said before I could be credited with that amount, I would have to call USAA and ask them to send me a copy of the balance transfer check, front and back, and then send Citi Bank the copy before they would remove the $1,000.00 balance from my account.
I simply wanted to transfer a $1,000.00 balance and now I am in debt $1,000.00 more, plus interest. I plan to close my Citi Bank Credit Card account as soon as I can. I would advise everyone to stay away from Citi Bank as much as possible. They are nothing but predators.
Lori of Blytheville, AR (03/28/06)
We fell behind on our payments. We went from owing $1800 to owing over $3400, so I contacted them with a good faith offer to pay $160 a month in re-payments. I was told that we could do this. Then towards the end of the conversation with "Faith" I was told that the payment had to be "drafted" from my checking account every month.
I am not comfortable with them drawing my account each month, plus I bank at a credit union and have had trouble with drafting before. So I politey told the lady that I would just send her a check each month. She said that was not possible and there were no other options available to help me.
I asked her, "Well ma'am, I am trying to make some kind of arragements for re-payment and if you are not willing to work with me what will I do?" All she could say was, "We don't have any "free will". If the computer says No, it is a No and we can't help you any further".
Gina of Shoreline WA (03/20/06)
Citibank has opened up a credit card in my name without my consent and is charging me for $4700.97 that is not my debt. The details are listed below.
1. On February 10, 2006, I opened ONE credit card online with Citibank. At the same time I requested to have ONE balance transferred from my Chase credit card in the amount of $4700.97. On February 13, 2006, I looked up my Citibank online account and saw that the balance transfer was not showing. So I called Citibank on 2/13/06 and spoke with Donna who informed me that the balance transfer to Chase did not take place and asked me if I would like to request the transfer again, which I did. I could not remember the exact payoff amount, but knew the amount was at least $4,700.00 and so this is the amount I requested to have transferred to pay off my Chase credit card.
I then received TWO new credit cards from Citibank in the mail. I did not apply for TWO cards, I applied for ONE card. So I called Citibank and had them close the credit card ending in 3933. Citibank sent me a letter dated 2/14/06 stating that this card has been closed and stating that my account has a zero balance. I then received a statement from Chase showing TWO payoff amounts. The first amount was for $4,700.97 dated 2/10/06 and the other amount was for $4700.00 on 2/15/06.
I then called Citibank and spoke with Yolanda on 3/1/06 and explained to her that there had been 2 payoffs to Chase on my behalf when there should have been only ONE payoff. She told me that there was only ONE balance transfer showing in the amount of $4,700 dated 2/15/06. I then asked to speak with someone else; but Yolanda said there wasn’t anyone else who could help me.
I called Chase and explained that this was in fact an error. They corrected my account for the same amount. See attached letter from Chase dated 3/1/06. On February 16, 2006, I emailed Citibank and explained in detail this error. They replied by saying I would have to call and talk to someone in person.
As instructed, I called Citibank on 3/18/06. This time I spoke to Lynette, who told me once again that there was only ONE balance transfer showing. I asked if there was a supervisor or anyone in the department who I could talk to and she said there was no one that I could talk to about this. In the meantime, I have received two credit card statements from Citibank. One account ending in 3933 (which I closed) stating I owe $4,700.97. The other account ending in 1632 stating I owe $4,300.00 and this latter amount is correct, as I have already made a $300.00 payment on this account. I would like this situation remedied as soon as possible before Citibank ruins my credit. Citibank refuses to acknowledge this issue. If Citibank is slamming me with credit cards and double billing me, then they are doing this to other people as well.
Sandy of Boyertown PA (03/18/06)
"Citi Card" is calling my home 4-5 times a day. The last two weeks I was home sick, really sick & my phone rang off the hook. Being ill, I let the machine pick up the calls. Always a hangup. I picked it up two times now, the first time they would not identify themselves, today I recognized her very distinctive voice. She said she was from Citi Bank & asked if I had a fax. I said No & hung up.Every time I let the machine pick up, they hang up. This happened at least 4-5 or more times in one day, for the last few weeks the lastest call was after 8 pm.
Heather of Dale TX (02/28/06)
My parents had recently been helping my with my budget, being in college and a homeowner, I needed the help. They asked me about my credit cards, and it made them think "Hey, where is our statement for this month from CitiCards?" They had to call the "customer service" number in order to get a copy sent to them. Come to find out, it showed a past due balance of a crazy amount, and a minimum payment due of just over $400. They have had that payment set-up on auto-pay from their account for the past 7 years. The only thing that has ever changed is the account they pay it from.
They went online 8 months ago and changed the auto-pay to their new account. The customer service reps couldn't tell them why CitiCards hadn't been deducting the payment. They finally got throught to a supervisor, and he showed that there has never been a payment from that new account. And supposedly the account had been closed because of the lack of payment, and they were going to raise the FIXED APR of 5% to 25%. Even though the account had been closed, they were still going to have to pay the raised percentage rate!!
CitiCards closed the account, and didn't even notify them about it!! the first people they had on the phone had that information and refused to tell them their acount was closed. My parents have no choise now but to file suit against them over this. They gave them the new account number, and they didn't apply the payments towards it, yet they took it off of their old account? Something seems fishy to me.
Kh.tahir of Karachi Pakistan (02/14/06)
My wallet was stolen in Barscolana Spain and charged i reported lost to citi bank Pakistan they say that i reported late and transaction was done my card is photo card and secoldy the recipt send to me is with out signature and citi bank is pressing hard againt payment the merchance name is indorejewls barcalona and they have have iniciated court case.
Lori of Lanesville, IN (02/11/06)
My minimum payment one month was $50. The next month the minimum went up to $148 without even making a purchase!
When I called to verify that this was some kind of mistake the person, after verifying all my personal info, proceeded to berate me saying they had every right to jump the minimum payment and increase my interest to 29.40%. They said this was per the new government requirements to get consumers to pay off debts faster.
I never in my entire 25 year credit history with Sears have been late or short on a payment. However now, with their loan shark tactics, I am now being harassed on a daily basis and have no hope of ever correcting this. My MINIMUM payment is now $401.07!
They refuse to help out in any way. My credit is now in jeopardy and there is no foreseeable end to the debt to this company.
Kelli of Excelsior Springs, MO (01/21/06)
I paid my Citi bill online. I meant to pay $60 but only entered the payment for $30 by mistake. My total payments for the billing cycle totaled $80 and my minimum due was $83.79.
I got the next month's statement and my interest rate of 12.99% had jumped to 31.27%! Plus I was charged a late fee $130 for interest and over limit fee. My minimum due was now $230!
I had always paid at least the minimum due since I used auto-pay but they stopped that online service. I wrote a letter, sent a payment off $100 but my next bill was $140, plus late fees and over limit fees again - total min due $680!!!!
Now my account is said to be in defalt and according to Citi they cannot do anything and all my other cards can now go into universal default. Can a credit card company do this?
Lin of Park Ridge, IL (01/14/06)
I was on vacation from Dec 17, 2005 to Jan 4, 2006. My Citicard statment dated 12/14/05 didn't reach me before I left town. On the 5th, I picked up the mail, and paid the bill in full, but the due date was 1/3. Citi got the payment on 1/6, and proceeded to charge me a $39 "late" fee. Late?
They got the payment 23 days after the date of the bill. I called them, explained about being out of town, and they said "tough" rules are rules. They said the payment was late, so they charged the fee and they wouldn't waive it.
Remember, I paid the full balance on the bill, not just a minimum, and I always pay the full balance.
Robert of Palatine IL (1/13/04):
I was originally offered a rate of less than 10% on a transfer balance. Several months later, a check bounced which I corrected immediately when they called me. Since that incident, the rate has been slightly more than 24% and my account is considered closed. For more than 18 months now, I have consistently paid down this bill yet the interest rate in several months has figured to amount to more than 24% with barely a reduction in principal. Additionally, the due date for each month varies by two weeks. I always send a payment immediately knowing they will consistently take this tack.
Frank of Scituate MA (1/9/04):
The interest rate was 3.9%. The card has auto pay which has been satisfied properly each month to avoid any late payment. Additional payments have been made each month to reduce the balance. This month's statement shows an increase to 27.9%. In talking to the representatives they indicated my account had gone into default because of findings of a default on a periodic check with some credit reporting agency. These are supposed to be totaly unrelated to Citibank. To my knowledge they do not even exist.
No notation was made on the statement, just an increase in the rate from 3.99% to 27.99% and of course the extra interest charges. The interest on the previous statement of $78.88 was increased to $447.44 in spite of my payments of $1,404.00
Jennifer of Princess Anne MD (6/25/03):
I called to asked why my APR charge was now 28.24% as opposed to my original APR charge of 10.8%. The gentleman explained to me it was because I went over my credit limit. I said I understood that for the month I went over (by $2 which included the 28.24% finance that I did not know would be added beforehand), but since I had paid $300 that month to take care of that unexpected situation, why was it applied to this month? He kept talking me in circles so I asked politely to speak with his supervisor. About 2 minutes later I heard this yelling from a female voice, thinking that I was connected to someone else by accident. I asked "Is this the supervisor?" She snapped back YES!! She continued on when I could not get a word in. When I started to talk she would cut me off. Extremely rude.
Shirley of Catonsville MD (6/24/03):
I have noticed the payment due date of the MasterCard has been changed several times during the past four months. Originally, it was the 20th of the month. Then in April, they changed to the 15th. After I called and complained, they changed it to 19th for May. Then in June, it is the 17th. I called Citibank and asked them why my payment due date fluctuates month to month.
Here is how the conversation goes: Rep: The due date changes because there are holidays and weekends, we don't want you to send in the payment and no one was there to post it. Me: But other banks don't do that. I always pay my Discover card on the 8th. Rep: We deal with the billing cycle, that is why it falls on different days. Me: But I find that very inconvenient. (I decided to close the account, because I now use it as a back-up, it doesn't have a high balance. It is too much trouble. The Rep. transfer me to another woman upon hearing my request to close the account.) Rep.2 : You can pay the balance on line and it will not be a problem to you. Just pay it 7 days in advance. Me: But as long as the date changes month to month, it is not convenient. Rep. 2 : If this the only issue, we can change your due date to the 8th. there is no holidays fall on it till the end of the year. I decided not to argue with her and end the conversation. I thought I'd send them a letter to close the account.
They must have thought I was born yesterday, to dish out some excuses like that and then tried to stop me from closing the account.
C.A. of Oak Harbor WA writes (9/4/02):
I have written and spoken to a rep about lowering the ridiculous APR of 24.99% on my card, I was bluntly told no. And when I stated that at this rate, the payments I am sending just pays the finance charge and makes no dent in the balance, they agreed that that is the jest of it. So now I will never get out from under this bill in my lifetime. They refuse flatly to even consider lowering it.
It upsets me that as a military man constantly being sent to volatile areas and away a lot now, that they couldn't help me in this simple request. I even e-mailed the CEO about this and never heard from him. Guess he is too busy spending the payments I send to this company, while I struggle to keep my head up above water.
Lovell of Atco NJ (7/15/03):
When I had my son three months premature, I contacted CitiCard and all of my other debtors to inform them that I was embarking on a hardship since I had to go in strict bedrest prior to my son's birth and subsequently was out of work several months after. CitiCard was the only card that refused to accommodate. One of my cards even stopped the interest and allowed me to pay a minimum balance! CitiCard offered no consolation.
I informed them that I was making a good faith attempt to prevent from accumulating exorbitant fees due to my inability to pay. To no avail. Upon returning to work, I resumed my payment schedule with CitiCard (then Citibank) only to begin a journey of telephone harrassment! They called my home on holidays, on weekends and during off hours (sometimes 10:00 pm!). Sometimes they'd call to "remind me" of an upcoming payment, while other times they were trying to collect money before my closing date!
Upon numerous rude phone conversations and a subsequent written request for them to cease calling me early this year, CitiCard mysteriously began to report me as being delinquent in paying my account since I could not pay almost $100.00 in fees per month that they requested on top of my regular payment. I continued to pay a minimum amount in spite of, and they took my account to collections and subsequently reported me as a "bad debt." This, after they used underhanded tactics like increased my minimum payment by $1.00 (without my knowledge) and charged me a late fee of $29.00 because I didn't pay that increased payment amount.
While I am currently considering legal channels, this inaccurate and unfair reporting on my credit report has subsequently lowered my credit score. I have never suggested that I was unwilling to pay the debt that I charged however, after $3,000 in fees later, I am simply unwilling to be bullied into paying for fees that I made a concerted effort to avoid when I embarked on my hardship in the beginning.
Dolores of Blauvelt NY (6/24/03):
I was late this past month, so I called customer service to see how much I have to pay to make my balance so that I won't be charged a late fee the next month. I made two payments, $226 on 5/28/03 and $118 on 6/2/03. I was told that bringa me up-to-date and below my balance. Low and behold I received my new statement with an overcharge of $69.44 due to the fact that because I was late for the first time with CITI Card, they defaulted me and raised my interest to 28%. I was charged 3 finance charges as follows: AdvancesFinance Charge $5.41 Purchases Finance Charge $42.71 Balance Transfer Charge $76.62.
I was told they checked my credit and saw I was late with my other credit cards the same time so that was the reason they defaulted me. I told them I had a death in the family out-of-town and that set me back last month on all my bills. I was courteous enough to call all my credit cards to find out the amount due and paid them asap. I was told that's the way it is and there is nothing that can be done, I defaulted. I work three jobs and am a single parent with three children. I try my best to be on time.
Yvonne of Pasadena CA (6/19/03):
Citibank is lowering my credit score because of an outstanding balance of $55 plus late charges. These charges were not even supposed to be on my account in the first place! I think they are retaliating against me for objecting to fees they kept charging me AFTER MY ACCOUNT WAS PAID OFF. Citibank still wanted to get me to pay charges even after I paid off the account. In January 2003 sent two checks which fully paid off the balance owing on the December statement. However, another statement appeared for $111.74 and I paid it IN FULL. Then, Citibank sent me yet another statement for 8.53, a credit protector fee which was assessed on the $111.74 which I previously paid. No problem, my check dated 2/25/2003 for $8.53 was mailed to Citibank. But Citibank was not done with me yet! Other creditors whom I had paid off still sent $0.00 statements. Therefore, the subsequent mail received from Citibank was unopened because I mistakenly assumed they were $0.00 statements.
Jill of Jackson NY (6/17/03):
Citibank constantly sends letters offering attractive balance transfer rates. First they lure you in to a transfer and then they review your credit report. Within weeks of the transfer they send a letter saying the credit report is derogatory and they close the account or increase the interest rate to an absurd percent! This was done to me last June and I did not use my card all year. Then the letters kept pouring in. I transfered a loan from 8.9% to Citibank for 3.9% and within 2 weeks I received a letter.
I cannot afford this bill. I would have been better off leaving the loan at 8.9%. They should review your credit before allowing the transfer to go through. My credit history with Citibank goes back about 20 years and they have never had a problem with me or my payments. I have a medical insurance and cell phone problem which are on my credit report. That has not stopped me from getting a mortgage or a car loan. Citibank plays illegal bait and switch tactics with its customers and needs to be stopped. I made numerous phone calls and they are not nice on the phone. I had to take a day at home to make phone calls and write letters and try to figure how to pay this off quickly. This is very unfair and happens to a lot of people every day!
Jim of Kailua HI (5/30/03):
I made the mistake of taking Citibanks offer for a 2.9% interest rate on balance transfers. I transfered $9000 to my Citibank card from my credit union account. I originally called Citibank just for balance information but the representative kept trying to sell me on their program. I thought there might be a catch and questioned him as thoroughly as I could but I didn't ask the right question as I imagine their staff who thought this scheme up calculated.
I checked the statement after the first month and was happy that it was indeed 2.9% and after several busy months of travelling and working I became concerned. I had sent in several payments but the balance didn't seem to be going down much. I was late sending my payment in a couple of times and once my statement got mixed with a stack of documents and I didn't find it until the next months statement arrived. No Problem, I thought. The interest still acrues to them and I pay a double payment and the late fee like I always have and everyones happy, right? Wrong. When I looked closely at my statement yesterday, the interest rate was a whopping 28%!!!
The total balance in the account is higher now than when I started several months ago. I was so shocked I could hardly talk. I called their customer service and talked to a supervisor. She informed me that they could charge that rate because I was in "default". When the representative originally gave me the sales pitch he told me that the rate could go up if I "defaulted". I wasn't concerned because I've never defaulted on a loan. I've always paid my bills. The catch was that they redefined the word "default" to mean having a payment arrive late. That they didn't tell me.
I'm moving the money out of there as fast as I possibly can. I've had a Citibank card for 17 years and though I've never expected personal care from them, I never expected this. I'm not a particularly religious person but if Satan exists, he must run that company. If he doesn't, he surely must admire them a lot. When the phone rep gave me his sales pitch, I asked him what the catch was and why Citibank would give such a low rate. He told me there was no catch and that Citibank just cared about people and wanted to help them reduce their debt. Shame on you Citibank, whoever you are and shame on me for being so stupid.
Barry of Fairport OH (5/27/03):
I became unemployed in 11-02, and since that time have fallen far behind (6 months) in my Citicard payments. When I became laid off I called Citicard and asked that my 24.4% interest be lowered and explained my predicament. I was told that this was possible and that if I sent in $202.00 they would lower my monthly payments. I sent in the payment, but this did not happen, instead I began getting daily calls from "Oliver" with a unwavering no-compromise attitude.
I have used all of my meager savings trying to cover utilities and mortgage payments and keeping the utilities on and a bit of food on the table. I am still unemployed and living off my wife's social worker income. I have filled out the bankruptcy papers but cannot bring myself to take the final tragic step. I owe them $10,000.00, but will not give them direct access to my joint checking account so they can take the minimum payment of $150.00 a month out. This amount and payment method was the "best that they could do for me." I have submitted a request for disbursment of my meager 401K ($7,00.00), but that will not come until July of 03, and they will not wait.
Alice of Studio City CA (7/24/02):
I went on vacation with my husband in Florida, and we brought two credit cards with us. One was Citibank, and the other was MBNA. After we came back, I still tried to use my Citibank card in 2 other stores. However, the card was denied, and I had to use my other credit cards. My first reaction was: someone probably stole my authorization and used the card. And the reason of my reaction was: I had never used my credit cards beyond the credit line. Two weeks later, I received the Citibank bill, and I was very shocked and angry that they charged me $29 over credit limit fee.
I understand there's is a piece of paper that they send to their customers regarding change of terms and policies, and I knew about this fee. But what made me angry about was: How come the card was not denied when it was breaking the credit limit? I could have easily used either cash or other credit cards to purchase, instead of overly using the Citibank card and getting charged for a unreasonable fee. I phoned the customer service, and their response was that the card was not denied because they didn't want to create embarrassment. Then I responded: "But what about the following two times when I tried to use this card and was denied. Did you say you didn't want to create embarrassment? I was embarrassed twice." They had no response.
I looked at my bill again, and the total balance was $1,341, which is $40 over the credit limit. However, they included the over the limit fee of $29 to the total balance. Therefore, I was actually only $12 over the credit line. I have been a customer of Citibank since 1998, and I had always paid my bills on time. And I have a great credit history. However, throughout these 5 years, Citibank had only increased my credit line once, and it was I who phoned up and asked for it. On the other hand, my other credit cards MBNA and Chase had increased my credit line at least 3 times, and I have been a customer for only 2 years.
My complaint is: I understand the over credit line fee, and I am willing to pay for it if it's reasonable. However, I don't understand why my card was not denied when I was breaking my credit line. It seems like that Citibank does this so they can make a profit from charging people over credit line fee. And this is why I am very angry about.
Citibank card is the first credit card I have ever had in my life. They gave me my first card when I was 20 in college, and it helped me build the credit history. Being a customer of 5 years, I always trusted what Citibank had to offer. However, after this incident, I closed my account, and I don't trust in corporate America too much anymore.
Faye of Memphis (8/1/02):
In January 2002, I made arrangements with Citibank, in "good faith," to bring my account current by paying $267.00 for six months. After paying the last payment on July 3, 2002, I was told there was no such arrangement or record of the arrangement and I was only paying late fees. I was then told I was two months behind and still owed $649.00, in late fees.
Because I am in the process of repairing my credit in order to purchase a house I am forced to either pay them out of money I had planned to save for the down payment of a house or to pay them the minimum payment and continue to be delinquent as before. If I would have known Citibank had no intentions of bringing my account current as discussed I could have made arrangements to pay the late fees only and work from there.
Brian of River Vale NJ (7/30/02):
Citibank has raised my rate for balance transfers (and purchases) on my credit card because of credit report problems with another company. This despite my perfect payment history with Citibank - I can't say that about all my credit cards. This is the second time this has happened. The first time I was able to get them to restore the rate to the promo rate and credit the additional finance charges (it took three months but eventually hundreds of dollars in fees were credited).
This time I have been unsuccessful so far in getting them to restore the rate and credit the excess charges. They're sticking to their guns saying that I've violated the agreement because some other company (not Citibank) has problems with me and therefore I should pay Citibank the high rate. Why this is legal and why Citibank is concerned with other companies credit problems is beyond me - perhaps they intend to buy those companies in the future.
The agreement says problems with other creditors 'may' cause the rate to go up but when I pointed that out the phone rep said it really means 'will'. The Citibank rep also claimed that all other credit card companies have this policy though apparently only Citibank is the only one to enforce it in the past 18 years I've been using credit cards. If I cannot get them to reverse the changes, I will be forced to repay the amount ASAP and will probably discontinue all transactions with Citibank with a loss to them of several hundred dollars per year in fees.
This has, unfortunately, become a common practice, certainly no unique to Citi.
Tim of Fort Worth TX (5/28/02):
This credit card company has been paid on time for over 10 years now. They have recently (over past year), used numerous reasons to adjust my interest rate. We agreed to a fixed rate (8.5%) and they have recently altered my APR at a felonious 25%. I have told them that I will not accept these new terms and will no longer use it for purchases.
They said they will cancel my card but will still apply the new ridiculous interest rate anyway! They say that I agreed to let them use other credit information to apply this interest rate! I have been arguing with them over past year (and they have played with my interest rate by raising and lowering it each month X12). Now how silly is that? I would never tell them it was okay to check into my background credit info. and use it against me! I am so angry I feel like I should just stop paying them period! Please help me to resolve this credit problem before it gets too far out of hand? Do I have any rights at all? These kind of rates will ruin me financially! Loan sharks don't require this much interest, how can they (Citibank) do it legally!?
Ali of Los Angeles (5/21/02):
I have been a valuable customer since 1995. I opened the citibank master card when i was a student at CSUN. The limit for the card at the time was $1500. Today, year 2002 citibank is charging me an interest rate of 24.99%. Where have you ever seen this? Most credit card companies are offering rates as low as 8%. I have written many letters requesting, in fact begging, for a decrease in the interest rate. No one has bothered to do anything. Today my account is over the limit, my financial status is bad and I have brought it to their attention.
The consequence is that my account is over the limit, I am being charged late fees left and right and I do not have the money to pay the account and it will take a long time to pay this account off. I simply do not have the financial capability.
I deeply regret that I opened this account. I am suffering the consequences.
Dolores of Brick NJ (4/2/02):
In early February I realized that a charge of $39 was being charged on my account. I checked and discovered that I had been billed for this charge for over one year. When I called Citibank I learned that this charge was for "credit protection". They claim a telemarketer called my home and I agreed to this service. That is absolutely false. The "credit protection" was coverage in case I lose my job or become disabled. I have been totally and permanently disabled since Feb. 11, 2000. Why would I purchase a coverage that I could never use?? My husband is also disabled and has been since 1981. We are both on Social Security. I told Citibank that I never ordered this service and they refuse to credit me for the year I've been charged. I do not use this card, so I never noticed the charge.
Lynn of Inverness FL (1/19/02):
Husband had a balance transfer rate of 9.9 for life ... caps on offer said THIS RATE WON'T EXPIRE. We had been paying since 1999 - never late - owed approximately $5000. Citibank upped our interest to 18.74. When I called I was told it was because of our other balances - and that all the big boys would be doing same. Isn't this a breach of contract? I paid it off - but just received notice that Citibank is doing the same to me.
We have 40 years history of always paying our debts - I have a plan in place to pay off all our credit cards - but this is based on the "big guys" keeping their end of the bargain. Jacking up the rates could throw us into bankruptcy, which I certainly hope to avoid!
And sure enough, all the big boys are doing it. The little ones too.
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