Merrick Bank Corporation

Mr. [redacted] opened an account in October 2015.  He used the account to purchase goods and services and made payments on the account. In April 2016 Mr. [redacted]’s account became one payment past due.  The April payment had not been received on the account as of the cycle date for the May...

statement.  It is Merrick policy and practice to call with a reminder of a late payment on an account. Merrick will attempt to call up to 6 times a day to all of the numbers provided on the account.  For example, 3 to the cell if provided, 3 to the home number if provided. I reviewed the call that Merrick had with Mr. [redacted] on April 26, 2016. The representative explained to Mr. [redacted] the reason for the calls and that if Mr. [redacted] made payment arrangements or made a payment then the calls to his number would cease.  I reviewed the call log and Merrick called the only number on the account between 4-5 times per day.  I have requested that the account have a temporary do not call flag placed on it for 90 days, if after that time the account is not current, or payment arrangements made, Merrick will again commence calling to collect on the account. Merrick has many payment plans and options to assist in reducing the balance of the account.  Mr. [redacted] can contact us to discuss which of those options may be available to him. Our number is ###-###-#### if he is interested in resolving the outstanding balance of the account.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Mr. [redacted] opened an account
with Merrick in May 2015.  He has used
the account for the purchase of goods and services.   Mr. [redacted] informed Merrick about fraudulent
activity on the account on February 12, 2016. 
The representative who spoke to Mr. [redacted] sent an...

affidavit for him to
return.    Merrick received the signed
affidavit and a police report on March 7, 2016. 
The Bank’s standard process
on an account that has a dispute is to place a block on the account while the
dispute claim is being investigated.  No
payment on the disputed amount is required during the investigation.  If the claim is accepted the fraudulent
changes are removed from that account or the account is closed and a new
account issued. 
Initially the claim was
denied because the fraud affidavit was not clear  which charges were being disputed.  A second letter from Mr. [redacted] was received
which help clarify the issue and the fraud claim was accepted.  On April 14, 2016 the old account was closed
and a new account opened with a new number. 
The fraud claim in the amount of $[redacted] was accepted and that amount
was removed from the balance that was transferred to the new account.  An adjustment in the interest charged was
also completed.

Upon receiving Ms. P[redacted]'s complaint I requested the Credit Department evaluate whether the account qualified for a credit line increase.  After that review they have informed me that they will grant a credit line increase on Ms. P[redacted]'s account.  The reasons for this are mainly due to...

her excellent account performance.  As of today her credit line has been increased to $1,200.00 She should be able to have access to this increase by tomorrow September 4, 2015. Merrick is glad to be able to assist Ms. P[redacted] and wish her well in the future.

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because: I was not notified via letter as described . I use this account which I have used and paid on time to keep revolving credit  this company has shown zero interest in showing character or integrity. It’s insulting to hear they believe they can simply pretend they sent notification that never existed.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Ms. [redacted] was notified by the Bank of possible fraudulent activity on her Merrick Visa account on April 26, 2016.  She confirmed that she did not authorize the suspected transactions and her account was closed and a new account opened.  A new card was sent to her and she activated it on...

May 7, 2016.  An affidavit was sent to her on April 27, 2016 to enumerate the number and kind of transactions that she did not authorize.  . Another affidavit was sent in response to a call from her on May 9, 2016 and the representative who spoke to her verified that we had the correct address prior to sending it.  She called again on June 12, 2016 and indicated she still did not receive the affidavit we had sent to her and another form was sent on that day.  On June 16, 2016 Merrick issued an interim credit to the account for the $193.70 which was the amount of the suspected fraud. Merrick is currently investigating the fraud claim but will still need the affidavit completed and returned to finalize its investigation.

All of the cardholder agreement have this closure language in them.  It is in section 13 of the agreement

Ms. S[redacted] accepted an offer of an account in June 2014.  The account has been used for the purchase of goods and services.
 
Ms. S[redacted] did not make a payment on the account for the month of May 2015 as shown on the statements attached.
 
The cardholder agreement that...

governs the account states the following in Section 2:
           
“No matter where Billing Statements are sent or when they are received, your obligation to make timely Minimum Payments and to pay all other amounts owed on the Account is not excused. “
           
I listened to the call Ms. S[redacted] has with the customer service representative. The representative suggested alternatives to Ms. S[redacted] in an effort to help with the payments due on the account.  They were suggestions only and there was no ill intent in the interaction.  Ms. S[redacted] can contact Merrick again and find out about payment plan options.  Merrick has many plans available, she can contact us at [redacted] to find out if she qualifies for any of the payment plan options.  The representative did remove the paperless statement option at Ms. S[redacted]’s request. She will receive statements via the mail beginning in August.
 
I have enclosed copies of statement reviewed and the cardholder agreement that governs the account for your information.

Merrick has no additional response to this issue.

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because: Listen to the recordings!!! You will see I was lied to, stop saying you did and I was given proper info.  Last week on Thursday I was td there was NO HOLD, amd my money would be available Friday, you ruined my vacation and embarassed me
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Merrick has no further response to this issue

The only record of an account
for Ms. [redacted]’s does not match the last four digits provided in her
correspondence. The account we have on record was opened in October 2001, and
was closed by her in March 2004. This account was later paid off in January
2006.

Ms. [redacted] opened an account with Merrick in July 2017 and has used the account for the purchase of goods and services.  The first payment on the account was on August 18, 2017. Ms. [redacted]’s account will qualify for a doubled credit line after she makes 7 months of consecutive on-time...

payments. This means that in February 2018, assuming the on-time payments noted above, the account will qualify for the doubled credit line.   I have attached an example of the offer sent to Ms. [redacted] for her account which shows the 7 payment requirement.

Merrick has no further response to this issue.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
Complaint # [redacted] has been resolved. They found my payment. Thank you,[redacted] 
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Upon receipt of this issue, I requested the Credit Department review the account for a possible exception to the declined credit line increase.  Based upon their review they have agree to grant the double your line increase given the circumstances Mr. [redacted] set forth in his...

correspondence.  The credit line on the account has been increased from $[redacted] to $[redacted]..  This is effective as of 4-12-16.

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because: They failed to address the deceptive and inaccurate reporting on their website or the poor customer service I received. To date I still have not received a phone call back from the Manager I left a message for to discuss this matter in detail. As viewed in the attachments the late fees were clearly assessed to the account after the payment was made. The claims that the late fee was assessed prior are inaccurate or at the very least deceptive and misleading according to the records they provide. The response also failed to acknowledge the payment scheduled in their system for the August payment. Based on the poor customer service received from Merrick Bank I have scheduled a payment via their website to pay the balance in full. I request that the account be closed once the payment processes and a confirmation email be sent indicating that the account is closed.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

A review of the account was
conducted.  Ms. [redacted] opened the account
in January 2015 and has used the account for the purchase of goods and
services.  During the life of the account
there have been 3 address changes.  The
first address was in Los Angeles CA, the second was in...

Atlanta GA, and now the
address is in Philadelphia PA.  These
address changes could have delayed the receipt of both the statements for the
account and any correspondence sent regarding late or missing payments.
The cardholder agreement that
governs the account states the following in Section 2:
           
“No matter where Billing Statements are sent or when
they are received, your obligation to make timely Minimum Payments and to pay
all other amounts owed on the Account is not excused. “
“You must notify us immediately of any change to your mailing
or email address.”
The account notes indicate that there were both letters sent
regarding the past due amounts and email reminders sent to Ms. [redacted] on several
occasions.  The notes also indicate that
customer service spoke to her in November and December 2015 regarding the
status of the account.  If Ms. [redacted] in
interested in a payment plan for this account she can contact us at
###-###-#### to discuss payment options. 
Merrick has several payment plans that she can choose from that will
help her pay off the balance of this account.

It is the policy and procedure of the Bank to check the mail every day except Sunday and Holidays.  Mailed payments are posted as of the day they are received until 5PM ET.

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because: when a customer is trying to pay there bill and when the customer service agent tells you there is nothing wrong with there phone sytem and does not offer any resolution that is a company that should not be running. Why when I called 3am in the morning the phone system worked and yes I did pay my bill and I will be closing my account worse company ever and they must train there agents to be ruid and not helpful. There is no reason for me to go online if the phone system was working properly. 
Sincerely,
[redacted]