Citizens Bank: questionable behavior
When we moved into our current house, we had to replace the whole HVAC system at a cost of $8,100 from On Time Plumbing. We had the option to finance it, so we took up that option. It was financed through Wisetack, but the loan came from Citizens Bank, and I discovered some questionable behavior.
I made my monthly payment of $179.77 on Saturday, two days before the due date, knowing it would be taken on Monday or Tuesday. But on Sunday, I got two texts and two emails from Citizens Bank saying my payment was due. I thought maybe I didn’t click submit, which I had done before on another account. I checked the Citizens Bank website and clicked on View Activity, and no pending payments were showing.
I assumed I had not submitted the payment, so I made a payment. Upon making this payment, I saw that 2 payments were pending, so I did submit a payment the day before. However, there is no way to see pending payments on their website unless you make a payment, which is somewhat questionable.
I thought, “No problem. I’ll just call and get the second payment stopped,” which I did. They could see that two payments were pending; however, the representative told me that she could not cancel the payments; I would have to wait for them to clear before they could refund the payment. I want to be clear that I have not requested a refund of the second payment, but I find it unbelievable that they cannot stop a payment immediately after it is submitted. Every other loan or card allows me to stop payments online.
I explained the problem with not being able to see pending payments until another payment is submitted on the website to the representative, and she said she is noting it down. I do not believe it will go any further than a note in their CMS. I will be amazed if a website function to see pending payments appears.
In my opinion, the reminder email system should be directly linked to the payment system. Do not send reminder emails if a payment is pending; it’s not rocket science. Get your shizzle together, Citizens.