Bob
Rochester,#2UPDATE EX-employee responds
Sat, September 10, 2005
Hello, I am a former Citifinancial employee and would like to clear a few things up. First of all, the $9000 you claim you owed was actually the total of payments including unearned interest. The actual payoff amount was probably around $5000 but the reason why they only filed for $4000 was probably because of the small claims limits in your state. In some states the limit is $5000, others it is much lower. If a creditor wishes to suit for a higher amount they would need to hire a lawyer and that will cost big bucks and cut into their bottom line. So they do it themselves by sending that 20 year old punk down to the courthouse with a check for $65 and a hand written complaint and the court does the rest. The clerk assigns a court date and the sheriff serves the complaint. So you fell behind and refinanced, fell behind again and refinanced, refinanced a third time and all along the way you are getting a larger contract because the branch is giving you more money each time you refinance. I know this because the branch has monthly sales goals and a refinance won't count unless they give you at least another $500. They have you come in, all scared and broke, sit you down in a nice closing room and the first thing that 20 year old kid does is put that check for 500 bucks in front of you and you forget about what the new payments are gonna be and you sign away. You walk outta there feeling pretty good because now you have $500 to pay the light bill and get some groceries. This is one of the things that makes Citifinancial a predatory lender because their entire business model calls for the refinance of all of their notes in order to increase the bottom line. And the way that they do it is questionable because they wait until you're late on your payment and down on your luck and as vulnerable as can be. As far as the credit insurance, if it was cancelled then you are entitled to the unused premium, not the branch. If you find evidence that they cancelled the insurance and applied it to the loan balance then you will need to contact the attorney general of your state because this is a big time no no. Your case is not uncommon, I have seen other customers make a good appearance before a small claims judge and walk out of the courtroom smelling like a rose. The problem is you still owe the debt. The note and security agreement is a powerfull instrument that can be used by a third party agency in the future. Also, the fact that the debt is unpaid will remain on your credit report for 7-10 years after the last date of activity. The account is more than likely in a charge-off status at this point but you still owe the money to them. The best thing you can do is try to either settle it at 50 cents on the dollar or pay it off completely with another loan somewhere else.
Bob
Rochester,#3UPDATE EX-employee responds
Sat, September 10, 2005
Hello, I am a former Citifinancial employee and would like to clear a few things up. First of all, the $9000 you claim you owed was actually the total of payments including unearned interest. The actual payoff amount was probably around $5000 but the reason why they only filed for $4000 was probably because of the small claims limits in your state. In some states the limit is $5000, others it is much lower. If a creditor wishes to suit for a higher amount they would need to hire a lawyer and that will cost big bucks and cut into their bottom line. So they do it themselves by sending that 20 year old punk down to the courthouse with a check for $65 and a hand written complaint and the court does the rest. The clerk assigns a court date and the sheriff serves the complaint. So you fell behind and refinanced, fell behind again and refinanced, refinanced a third time and all along the way you are getting a larger contract because the branch is giving you more money each time you refinance. I know this because the branch has monthly sales goals and a refinance won't count unless they give you at least another $500. They have you come in, all scared and broke, sit you down in a nice closing room and the first thing that 20 year old kid does is put that check for 500 bucks in front of you and you forget about what the new payments are gonna be and you sign away. You walk outta there feeling pretty good because now you have $500 to pay the light bill and get some groceries. This is one of the things that makes Citifinancial a predatory lender because their entire business model calls for the refinance of all of their notes in order to increase the bottom line. And the way that they do it is questionable because they wait until you're late on your payment and down on your luck and as vulnerable as can be. As far as the credit insurance, if it was cancelled then you are entitled to the unused premium, not the branch. If you find evidence that they cancelled the insurance and applied it to the loan balance then you will need to contact the attorney general of your state because this is a big time no no. Your case is not uncommon, I have seen other customers make a good appearance before a small claims judge and walk out of the courtroom smelling like a rose. The problem is you still owe the debt. The note and security agreement is a powerfull instrument that can be used by a third party agency in the future. Also, the fact that the debt is unpaid will remain on your credit report for 7-10 years after the last date of activity. The account is more than likely in a charge-off status at this point but you still owe the money to them. The best thing you can do is try to either settle it at 50 cents on the dollar or pay it off completely with another loan somewhere else.
Bob
Rochester,#4UPDATE EX-employee responds
Sat, September 10, 2005
Hello, I am a former Citifinancial employee and would like to clear a few things up. First of all, the $9000 you claim you owed was actually the total of payments including unearned interest. The actual payoff amount was probably around $5000 but the reason why they only filed for $4000 was probably because of the small claims limits in your state. In some states the limit is $5000, others it is much lower. If a creditor wishes to suit for a higher amount they would need to hire a lawyer and that will cost big bucks and cut into their bottom line. So they do it themselves by sending that 20 year old punk down to the courthouse with a check for $65 and a hand written complaint and the court does the rest. The clerk assigns a court date and the sheriff serves the complaint. So you fell behind and refinanced, fell behind again and refinanced, refinanced a third time and all along the way you are getting a larger contract because the branch is giving you more money each time you refinance. I know this because the branch has monthly sales goals and a refinance won't count unless they give you at least another $500. They have you come in, all scared and broke, sit you down in a nice closing room and the first thing that 20 year old kid does is put that check for 500 bucks in front of you and you forget about what the new payments are gonna be and you sign away. You walk outta there feeling pretty good because now you have $500 to pay the light bill and get some groceries. This is one of the things that makes Citifinancial a predatory lender because their entire business model calls for the refinance of all of their notes in order to increase the bottom line. And the way that they do it is questionable because they wait until you're late on your payment and down on your luck and as vulnerable as can be. As far as the credit insurance, if it was cancelled then you are entitled to the unused premium, not the branch. If you find evidence that they cancelled the insurance and applied it to the loan balance then you will need to contact the attorney general of your state because this is a big time no no. Your case is not uncommon, I have seen other customers make a good appearance before a small claims judge and walk out of the courtroom smelling like a rose. The problem is you still owe the debt. The note and security agreement is a powerfull instrument that can be used by a third party agency in the future. Also, the fact that the debt is unpaid will remain on your credit report for 7-10 years after the last date of activity. The account is more than likely in a charge-off status at this point but you still owe the money to them. The best thing you can do is try to either settle it at 50 cents on the dollar or pay it off completely with another loan somewhere else.
Bob
Rochester,#5UPDATE EX-employee responds
Sat, September 10, 2005
Hello, I am a former Citifinancial employee and would like to clear a few things up. First of all, the $9000 you claim you owed was actually the total of payments including unearned interest. The actual payoff amount was probably around $5000 but the reason why they only filed for $4000 was probably because of the small claims limits in your state. In some states the limit is $5000, others it is much lower. If a creditor wishes to suit for a higher amount they would need to hire a lawyer and that will cost big bucks and cut into their bottom line. So they do it themselves by sending that 20 year old punk down to the courthouse with a check for $65 and a hand written complaint and the court does the rest. The clerk assigns a court date and the sheriff serves the complaint. So you fell behind and refinanced, fell behind again and refinanced, refinanced a third time and all along the way you are getting a larger contract because the branch is giving you more money each time you refinance. I know this because the branch has monthly sales goals and a refinance won't count unless they give you at least another $500. They have you come in, all scared and broke, sit you down in a nice closing room and the first thing that 20 year old kid does is put that check for 500 bucks in front of you and you forget about what the new payments are gonna be and you sign away. You walk outta there feeling pretty good because now you have $500 to pay the light bill and get some groceries. This is one of the things that makes Citifinancial a predatory lender because their entire business model calls for the refinance of all of their notes in order to increase the bottom line. And the way that they do it is questionable because they wait until you're late on your payment and down on your luck and as vulnerable as can be. As far as the credit insurance, if it was cancelled then you are entitled to the unused premium, not the branch. If you find evidence that they cancelled the insurance and applied it to the loan balance then you will need to contact the attorney general of your state because this is a big time no no. Your case is not uncommon, I have seen other customers make a good appearance before a small claims judge and walk out of the courtroom smelling like a rose. The problem is you still owe the debt. The note and security agreement is a powerfull instrument that can be used by a third party agency in the future. Also, the fact that the debt is unpaid will remain on your credit report for 7-10 years after the last date of activity. The account is more than likely in a charge-off status at this point but you still owe the money to them. The best thing you can do is try to either settle it at 50 cents on the dollar or pay it off completely with another loan somewhere else.
Michaelle
Clairton,#6Consumer Comment
Sat, June 11, 2005
Way to go!! I am still fuming about the customer service i received from them. I went as far as refinancing with a different company just to get out from under them. But if there is ever a class action suit against them I would definately be a part of it. Hope all goes well with you.
Robert
Brampton,#7Consumer Suggestion
Thu, February 10, 2005
I am a victim of citibank fraud and like you, I will take them to court and expose them. This is not just a corrupt company but part of the most successuful scam in history. They take over everything. They hide there fraud under a hundreds different financial companys and 36 different credit cards . thank you again for not giving up Robert Piantoni .
S.n.
Bucyrus,#8Consumer Suggestion
Sun, November 28, 2004
Patricia, I hope your battle is soon over. Don't let your guard down for one minute. I am glad you found someone within the court system willing to listen to your side and to make an intelligent ruling. Hang in there. Anyone looking to use any Citifinancial or Citibank for loans or credit cards should be reading Rip-off Report on a daily basis. The reports posted here should make anyone look elsewhere for loans and credit cards.