Credit card or prepaid card -- Fees or interest -- Complaint #5170436
Complaint Overview
Complaint ID: 5170436
Company: Synchrony Financial
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-Product: Store credit card
Issue: Fees or interest
Sub-Issue: Charged too much interest
State: California
ZIP Code: 920XX
Date Received: 2022-01-31T12:00:00-05:00
Date Sent to Company: 2022-01-31T12:00:00-05:00
Company Response: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Submitted Via: Web
Consumer Narrative
I made a purchase with the " XXXX XXXX XXXX '' with a Synchrony Bank private label credit card AKA as " SYNCB '' in XXXX of XXXX with a promotional offer to pay the {$3900.00} purchase in 18 months. This was initially due in XXXX of XXXX. Sometime in XXXX of XXXX, an extension was requested and granted to defer the promotional date until XXXX to pay this amount off via a refinance that I was working on at the time. In XXXX the mortgage company sent a check to SYNCB for the total payoff amount of {$2200.00}, which was the balance quoted by SYNCB at the time. In XXXX of XXXX, since the check had not been cashed, I kept calling to determine why. Since the check was not cashed and several weeks had elapsed, the mortgage company reissued the check with the same amount and put a stop payment on the original check. It turns out that SYNCB had the original check initially submitted all this time. This was returned by the bank due to the stop payment but, finally, sometime in XXXX of XXXX, the replacement check was cashed and the amount posted to the account. The {$2200.00} should have paid off the account but, SYNCB claims that, because it was not paid by the expiration of the " promotional period '', a very steep penalty is assessed : the balance of the account went from {$2200.00} to over {$4000.00} as a {$1800.00} interest was added to the balance due to the expiration of the promotion. The rate, according to SYNCB, is 29.95 % APR. However, that is not all. Much to my surprise, interest is applied every month, I suspect at the same rate, to the balance. I have made XXXX payments of {$99.00} each against the {$1800.00} interest and I still owe {$1200.00} from the initial {$1800.00} in interest. In other words, from each {$99.00} payment close to {$40.00} go to interest on the interest. In other words, SYNCB is charging, not only an outrageous interest rate on these " promotions '' but they also charge interest on that interest. If this practice is not illegal, it certainly should be. Consumers are in essence being ripped off with a practice that allows banks to charge outrageous interest rates in a way that is compounded. This is most likely under the radar as I just learned of this today and confirmed by agent " XXXX, agent XXXX '' at SYNCB.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Complaint #5170436 about?
Complaint #5170436 was filed against Synchrony Financial regarding Credit card or prepaid card specifically about Fees or interest. It was received by the CFPB on 2022-01-31T12:00:00-05:00.
How did Synchrony Financial respond to this complaint?
The company responded with: "Closed with explanation". The response was timely.
What is the risk level of this complaint?
See the risk assessment section for details on this complaint's risk profile.
How do I file a similar complaint?
You can file a complaint with the CFPB at consumerfinance.gov/complaint. Select the appropriate product category (Credit card or prepaid card) and describe your issue in detail.
Can I see other complaints against Synchrony Financial?
Yes, visit the Synchrony Financial company profile at readthecomplaint.com/company/synchrony-financial to see all complaints, risk scores, and analysis.
Disclaimer
This analysis is AI-generated based on publicly available CFPB complaint data. It does not constitute financial or legal advice.