"Dont Apply With Citi"

Comment 1 by galxygrl

Me Too on 2008-04-14

When I applied they denied me aswell. When I officially got the letter it stated I was declined do to late payments on one or more of my accounts. I have never had a late payment. Ever! And the kicker is they sent me the pre-approved letter in the mail! -galxygrl*

Comment 2 by meya

Eeeel on 2008-04-15

That is just their sorry excuse for saying NO!

Comment 3 by palten

Have The Same Excuse on 2008-04-15

Guys they did the same to me!

2 reasons for my decline were

1. Too high balance

2. Late payments on accounts.

i was furious with this, for one I keep my balance to 35% of my total accounts, and I'm never late.

i pulled my Trans union account dated 04/07 ( they used one dated 04/05)

i spoke with 4 different reps already... All were unhelpful, no idea what happened blah blah!

I just faxed in the report to them this afternoon.

i can't believe these made up excuses, at first I thought I'm a victim of credit card fraud already.

and even the supervisor wasn't apologetic... Saying their copy is correct? Duh! DUH! Oh crap!

i'm going to call in 48 hours to check!

it's no longer the reversal of their decision, but I want to hear them say they were wrong! BECAUSE THEY ARE DEAD WRONG!

I never had any problems with Bank of America, American Express, HSBC or CHASE... That's why I'm very surprised with Citi

Comment 4 by hjm331

Citibank on 2008-04-15

They've been screwing up lately.

Comment 5 by wildrage2

Citi on 2008-04-15

How is Citi doing financially? I was under the impression that they were fairing a lot better than most of the other banks with this whole credit crunch / mortage crisis thing...

It seems that their criteria for approval is erratic and after what happened to my girlfriend last month (66% credit limit DECREASE on an account that is 5 years old, was never late with a credit score of 765), it makes me wonder...

Comment 6 by palten

Worst Customer Service! on 2008-04-15

After a few days with 4 of their customer service...

names were joey, then vhea both were females... I didn't bother to get the names of the supervisor..

same service... Lame, argumentative and clueless.

don't you just hate it when... After you tried your best to summarize your concern into 2 sentences to make your life and their life easier..

the CS rep will go to a series of round abouts... Which in the end CONFUSES them..

i really hate that experience..

and I hate the " pre-formed" responses.

sorry guys if I'm ranting.

to give you an example.

CS joey: how can I help you today?

palten: I'm concerned about the reasons why my application was declined. It states there I have a high balance and some late payments. I now have the latest Tranunion report saying OTHERWISE!

CS Joey: please hold, let me check your file:

palten : thank you

CS Joey: sorry but your application was not approved due to high balance and some late payments for 60 days.

palten: ( in my mind I'm losing my temper! Didn't I just told you that) but I politely said I know.

CS joey: is there anything else I can help you with?

palten: well you haven't addressed my concerns yet. I'm saying their's a discrepancy between your TU and my TU reports.

CS Joey : I'm sorry ma'am but we cannot discuss specifics with regards to your account... Please wait for the mail stating the reasons why you were declined.

Palten: now I'm angry! I have the letter already..!! That's why I found out why I was declined and the bogus reasons for the denial.

CS Joey: is there anything else I can help you with today?

oh yes the CS was american, so let's not blame other countries for this... Oh my GOD!! My blood pressure was shooting through the roof.

here is whre it got really annoying.

CS joey: ma'am you can dispute the report with transunion... I can give you their number

palten: I forgot to mention that iwas on the phone with a CS from Transunion and he verified the info I have with me. NO LATE PAYMENTS ever... Only 38 % utilization.

CS joey: but wer have your latest TU report dated 04/05

Palten: now I'm furious! Are you kidding me? I have the latest so far dated 04/07, and the reason I requested for this was bec of the denial you gave me.

CS joey : is there anything else I can help you with?

for the love of " customer service! I wasted valuable time talking to a CS named joey from Citibank..

sorry for the lengthy thread... I just needed to vent out!

thanks guys!

Comment 7 by wildrage2

Comment 7 on 2008-04-15

I know... It's ridiculous... And I'm not just blaming outsourced CS to other countries... It also seems that customer service is being outsourced to grammer schools and prisons... Because this is the level of intellect that we get from these people!

It seems like nowadays the people that you call are completely incapable of actually helping you with a problem. They can only recite the FAQs and insult your intelligence. It's like they hire people to just talk you in circles until you give up or just hang-up. It's the same way with other companies... Whenever I ask them to actually do something, they put me on hold, to call someone that 'can help'... And I know damn well they are calling the REAL corporate office, and then repeat what they are told like puppets.

I've started just completely disregarding customer service. I've started putting all requests to these companies in writing, via certified mail, directly to their corporate headquarters. It's been surprisingly effective. The last problem I had with Wachovia was resolved quickly and immediately by their corp. Office.

Comment 8 by palten

I'll Do That! on 2008-04-15

@wildrage2

you just gave me an idea.

i still have the documents I faxed.

i'll mail it tomorrow.

i agree with you on all points re the "puppetering" happening on the other end of the line.

thanks again

Comment 9 by lyyssa01

Wow on 2008-04-15

I've never had such problems with Citi. Customer Service has always been super with me. But reading what you guys are saying kind of makes me paranoid.

Comment 10 by palten

Valued Customer? on 2008-04-15

Maybe they have a different attitude if you've been a client for X amount of years compared to someone who's just applying for a credit.

I don't know.

but I had better service with Bank of America, Macy's, AMEX and yes even CHASE compared to this.

Comment 11 by garydman

Citi Is STRANGE. on 2008-04-15

Citi is a strange lender. I have their Citi Plat. Select M/C. I asked for a CLI after the account was open for 6 months and got denied due to a high balance on the card. I paid it in full and asked again and got denied due to inactivity... Lol. So I think the bottom line is they do what they want to, when they want yo, just because they want to.

Comment 12 by mcnally

Citi Gave Me A Headache on 2008-04-16

All the while I thought I am alone with my bad experience with Citibank.

I got a pre-approved personal loan on the mail from Citibank,

i only need to bring the flyer to the branch and show a valid ID and they guaranteed me a $30,000 credit line with low APR.

since I don't want and I don't need a BIG amount right now... I figured i'll just apple for a regular credit card with CITI.

in my mind, I thought since they pulled an inquiry already, I'm about 80-90% approved..

i was WRONG! I got declined for this card although my FICO is 724

the letter they sent to me states that:

the computer asigned numerical values on my credit history and my total wasn't enough to get approved.

I don't know how those computers added my score but

i am never late with payments

my balance right now is 12% of my total credit limit

i have on bankruptcy or collection agency matters

i have AMEX, HSBC, CHASE, Simmons bank, Macy's Elite Card, Nordstrom, Bank of America Platinum VISA and USAA VISA.

I will never do business with Citibank

Comment 13 by idbeatit

Hmmm on 2008-04-16

I aksed for a CLI from $3k to $10k after 6months, hard inquiry but was approved for it. When I 1st got the card the interest rate was 16.9% which is high, they have lowered to 13.9% without me asking, I'm sure I could call and get it lower but I hardly use the card anyways.

Comment 14 by palten

Updates! on 2008-04-17

Just to keep people in this forum updated.

i checked the " re-evaluation" that I requested.

still DENIED.

there excuse right now, the TransUnion I faxed was incomplete.

LIARS!

why can't they admit they got it wrong!

that the reasons they gave me before

1. Too high of a balance

2. Late payments in some accounts

and the TRansunion I faxed them shows that:

1 33% used in my total credit limit

2. No late payments ever.

reading from this thread, I just foud out that they can decrease your credit limit in a whim!

maybe they're doing me a HUGE favor by not making me a customer. I'll be saving some headaches in the future.

Comment 15 by desihunk17

Citi Is Good on 2008-04-17

I got Citi Dividend American Express card for year now... I was approved for $2000... Year later I am up to $10000... But when I applied for new card with them they decline me... Is that a joke..??

Comment 16 by hjm331

Wow on 2008-04-17

No one would believe me that Citi is screwing up on applications right now. Sorry to hear that but that truly is a mystery.

Comment 17 by wildrage2

CITI Is BAD on 2008-04-17

You might want to keep an eye on that 10k limit. They may decrease it without even telling you...

Comment 18 by palten

Check Your CL Always on 2008-04-17

His right!

before you make any purchase, check your credit limit first.

so as to avoid any embarassment.

my experience with Citi wasn't good.

Comment 19 by meya

Good Cli on 2008-04-18

TGhe gave you that limit in one year? I would not take it past $1k when charging on it. The may pull the machedy (did I spell that right?) out on you.

Comment 20 by hjm331

RE: Meya on 2008-04-18

It's Machete lol

Comment 21 by rockin35

I've Experienced The Same Thing on 2008-04-20

Yes, I too have had bad customer service with Citibank and conflicting information from different CSR's as well, Palten. I do believe that Citibank pulls the latest credit files from Transunion however, I wasn't aware that they have a different level of access than us. For example, I purchased a car through Leaders Credit Union, 8 years ago, I sent 1 payment late (payments due on 15th), they got the payment on the 19th. According to Leaders Credit Union, we have 30 days before they report it BUT, transunion counted this as 30 days late since it was NOT on the due date with Leaders Credit Union. How the bureau knew this is a mystery to me. I did a lot of digging to find this out and after working for Telecorp I soon found out that Credit File access varies. Rockin35!!

Comment 22 by macy

Re: Dont Apply With Citi on 2009-12-05

I noticed this happened in 2008. That was one of the worse years for banks. I worked for a bank and credit lines with long term customers with high limits were getting slashed to the current balance or $50. Oh and people were losing there jobs left and right... All frivilous reasons. So applying and getting the run around during the complete year of 2008-beginning of 2009 for credit was "the norm".

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