Citi Credit Monitoring Service and Citi Identity Monitor (Product Review)
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Recently, I took a look at Citi Credit Monitoring Service from CitiBank. After reviewing offerings from WaMu and Bank of America, I wanted to see what CitiBank offers.
A Google search with “Citibank credit monitoring” keywords retrieved a results page with the Citi Credit Monitoring Service site listed near the top. I clicked on that link which took me to this page:
The landing page copy was a little confusing, since it didn’t provide much information about the service. I clicked on a left-column “Click here if you are not a current member” link, which took me to the following page:
Apparently, CitiBank no longer accepts new enrollments for its Citi Credit monitoring service. I wonder why. The page didn’t provide an explanation. Was something wrong the service? The page provided a link to the Citi Identity Monitor service. Why the replacement service? Is it any better? I followed that link to this page:
The landing page clearly summarized key features and benefits of the service, plus its monthly price. (Hear that WaMu?) Features include daily credit file monitoring, alerts, 24/7 access to credit reports and credit scores, access to telephone support and help reps, and online access to credit information and credit tools. This is pretty basic, standard stuff. Nothing unique.
The following copy caught my attention:
“Access to 3-in-1 credit reports, credit scores and monitoring from the 3 leading credit bureaus at no additional cost”
Does the site provide a consolidated summary of consumer credit reports? Or does it provide the full text credit report, a format close to what the credit bureaus provide? I hope that Identity Monitor provides the full text.
The service provides consumers with assistance from, “Fraud and Credit Education Specialists,” but the site did not explain the qualifications of this staff. What experience and training do they have with identity theft? With credit resolution? Or, are they just glorified telephone reps? Unfortunately, the Identity Monitor site is about as poorly designed as most sites I've reviewed so far, since none of the sites I've reviewed explain the qualifications and experience of their fraud and credit resolution staff.
The service offers, “Identity Theft Expense Reimbursement Coverage of up to $25,000” which is about the same as insurance amounts available in some of the credit bureaus. The page also presented some odd copy in bold type:
“No matter what credit cards you have or who you bank with, help protect your identity and manage your credit with Identity Monitor.”
What does that mean? Any quality credit monitoring service helps a consumer manage and protect their credit reports independent of where the consumer banks and independent of what credit cards they use. This seemed odd as it attempted to position Identity Monitor as different from other credit monitoring services. If Identity Monitor is different, the site didn't say. This was my first warning flag that maybe the folks at CitiBank aren’t exactly sure what they are doing.
The Benefits page provided somewhat more detail about the service features and benefits. Many of the images were small and hard to read, even after I clicked on the “larger image” links. The Benefits page didn’t explain the alerts in detail, so you can’t tell if the service offers alerts via e-mail, text messaging, or customized alerts. The Benefits page also didn’t provide a sample of the credit report text, so you can’t tell if the service provides the actual full text of a consumer credit report, or a summary version.
The page included this copy:
“In the event of identity theft, immediate transfer to Citi Identity Theft Solutions”
That sounded interesting. What is Identity Theft Solutions? Is it another service? Must Identity Monitor subscribers sign up for it, or is enrollment included? Is there an additional fee? Is it an online service and web site, or is it just access to customer support reps via the phone? How does it differ from the fraud specialists available in the Identity Monitor service? Is it available to consumers while traveling outside the USA? The page didn't say, nor did it provide any links for more information.
The Benefits page did a reasonable job of explaining in plain English the insurance coverages. Like other services I’ve reviewed, the Identity Monitor insurance covers expenses a consumer incurs to fix damage from identity thieves, but doesn’t cover actual monies stolen. The page contained a link to the full text of the insurance coverage statement. Insurance is provided by s Virginia Surety Company, Inc. and the identity support and resolution services are provided by TWG Innovative Solutions, Inc. of Colorado.
The Enroll page includes a link to more information about the Identity Monitor service in plain English. That’s good, but the page lacked the site navigation presented on other Identity Monitor site pages. Why the omission? Plus, the Enroll page trapped my browser (e.g., Firefox v2) and disabled the browser Back button. CitiBank must be really desperate for new customers. Not a good customer experience.
Would I subscribe to Identity Monitor? It’s not for me. And I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone else.
Why? Too many unanswered questions. I got the impression that CitBank did a quick deal with TWG, and threw up this Web site... perhaps in haste or haphazardly. The site didn’t convince me that this is the best credit monitoring service available. The site lacks key information and service details. I’ll keep looking for another and better credit monitoring service.
If you subscribe to Citi Identity Monitor, please share your experiences. I’ve Been Mugged readers want to know.
During the upcoming weeks, I will review more credit monitoring services. You can access prior reviews at the Product and Service Reviews page, or via "Product Reviews" in the right-column tag cloud. To receive alerts about future reviews, click on either of the e-mail or RSS links in the right column.
George,
Exhaustive stuff! You do your homework. Like I said before I have done the research myself and there is still nothing on the market to approach the effectiveness of the Identity Theft Shield anywhere in the world.
John
Posted by: John Taylor | Thursday, July 31, 2008 at 02:52 PM
I guess you could say I took a gamble when I signed up for the service. I had signed up for a Citicard mastercard and this was one of the features they ask you if you would be interested in. I was 18 at the time and was concerned about my credit, so I gave it a try. I think I still only pay like 11 bucks a month. They update your score every month and you can view all your scores any time. They also have a feature where you can plug in info such as if you made all your payments on time for a year and what your score would be at then. So far it has been pretty accurate. Any time you apply for credit or get a collection against you they notify you via email immediately. I had my credit card information stolen and they resolved the problem within minutes. Try it out for yourself I think you will be happy with it.
Posted by: Mike | Friday, August 22, 2008 at 06:06 PM
I use the service and am very happy with it. It gives me timely alerts and has credit scores and reports for all three bureaus. It also has a great program for seeing how things impact your score (i.e. pay down this card over that, apply for credit, etc).
My one complaint is that the scores are lower than actual. Makes sense because I would guess that any service other than the actual bureau estimates the score and always estimates low.
But to be honest, I only compared with one other service.
Hope this helps your readers.
Don
Posted by: Don | Wednesday, August 27, 2008 at 02:53 PM
Don and Mike:
Thanks for taking the time to submit comments about your experiences with the service. Your comments are informative and I am glad that you are happy with the service you are receiving. I've Been Mugged readers want to hear about the good and the bad, to make good decisions as informed consumers. Thanks again!
George
Editor
http://ivebeenmugged.typepad.com
Posted by: George | Wednesday, August 27, 2008 at 10:03 PM
I never signed up for this service, but got charged for it. When I called Citi bank, they said it was not them, but a separate company. I finally go ahold of someone at Citi Credit Monitoring who told me I must have signed up for it. I told her I had not signed up and asked her to provide me with some proof that I was wrong. She said she could not do so. They stopped charging me from that day forward. Sounds like a scam. Anyone else had this happen??
Posted by: Ed Casey | Thursday, September 18, 2008 at 02:29 PM
I cancelled this service two months ago and recently noticed that they are still charging me for it.
Posted by: Debra | Sunday, October 05, 2008 at 04:38 PM
Debra:
Thanks for your post about your billing experience with Citi Identity Monitor. It's sad to hear of the company's inability to bill you properly.
George
Posted by: George | Wednesday, October 08, 2008 at 12:19 AM
I was ambushed by a Citi Monitoring Service rep when all I wanted to do was activate my Sears card by phone. He was damn persistent and assured me I could cancel. Needless to say, I was charged for the service and wanted the fee reversed. By talking with the people at the call center for the monitoring service, I could tell they were no where as professional as the "real" Sears or Citibank people. I would not recommend getting involved with these people.
Posted by: lin mud | Saturday, January 24, 2009 at 04:00 PM
i use the service, think it's great, esp. compared to the experian service since it does all 3.
I get alerts whenever something happens on my account- can be annoying when you change an address, etc, but I rather have too much than too little.
I think the main downside of this service is if you need to talk to a human, takes a long time and is a pain, but for the most part I don't have that need here and it works great.
Posted by: RobrtJ | Wednesday, January 28, 2009 at 11:35 AM
I have Identity Monitor and have been reading all the comments. How would you improve it?
Posted by: Avanti | Tuesday, February 10, 2009 at 06:21 PM
i have it for 3 years. you get free credit scores from all 3 bureaus. they let you know if someone rang up a new card or a major loan was paid off or taken out under your name. I have not had a major problem to fix so I don't know if they would fix it. they did help with a wrong street address. 7 was wrong 17 was right a few records said I lived at 7 when I lived at 17. only took 25 minutes to fix.
Posted by: philip arcario | Tuesday, February 24, 2009 at 09:08 AM
I signed up for this program in sept of 08 after a co-worker told me about it. At first it was awesome the information i had available. After months went by, i was iffy about it. My credit information never updated and i think my credit score updated 3 times. Almost 7 months past by and i still see my info from october. It never updated. I emailed them and they told me to call them. Last time i called them (because i forgot my password), the operators were VERY unprofessional. Not so much that they were not polite but their thought out conversations were unprofessional. Different operators were switching between convos at random times, people overtalking on the current person i was talking with. It was like i was calling best buy. When i experienced that, i got worried about my REAL information and how they handled that. So far i didnt have any problems and i get billed correctly each month. Im gonna wait a couple more months and see what happens and if im still not satified, im going to cancel it.
Posted by: Rob | Saturday, February 28, 2009 at 08:26 PM
I've used Identity Monitor for a couple of years now. I've found it to be a pretty good service and worth the $12.95 per month. I think a lot of the problems people have with getting current reports is that they may not know how to access them. There is an (illusive) link to it on your login homepage on the left side of the page. I've found it to be available usually after having received their monthly email announcement of either activity or no activity on my credit file (this is not an alert email). Once I've viewed the updated report the link no longer appears again until next month. For some reason the credit reports/scores that you can always access appear to be somewhat outdated (but, not ridiculously outdated) and I can't figure that one out. But, any time there has been the least bit of activity on my file I get an alert, login to the site and read the alert. It's always been told who's looking and why. But, since I'm not a wheeler-dealer and far from that pot of gold over that dumb rainbow, it may be that the service is right up my alley, being a poor slob who the thieves wouldn't care about anyway? Maybe?
Posted by: Kelly Bennett | Thursday, March 26, 2009 at 09:28 PM
I wouldn't recommend using this service anymore. I've been with them for a few years now and I just called to cancel. I follow up with an email asking them to confirm the canceling.
The reason why I'm canceling is because the credit report on the website had not been updated since October 1, 2008. It's currently May 2009 and the last "current" statement was for September 2008. That's 2-3 quarters ago! This is simply unacceptable for a company that charge that much a month. I had check beginning January 2009 and assumed they might post every quarter but that's simply not true. They are not current and hence completely useless.
Posted by: Cindy | Thursday, May 07, 2009 at 05:08 PM
I also have this service. In response to several other peoples posts indicating the scores have not been updated recently, it is IMPORTANT TO NOTE that you have to click the update link on the overview page to see the updated scores. The link will only be there if you haven't updated for 30 days or more. It is NOT automatic. Every 30+ days you can log in and update your scores. The most recently updated scores will always be available. It is actually a really helpful service, particularly if you are trying to raise your score. Your scores from all three credit agencies will be available as will the full reports, although they are in a side-by-side comparison table instead of the full individual reports. I think most information is included on the table.
If all you want is someone to monitor your cards because you are worried, I think Citi does that automatically regardless. We recently had a false alarm that really impressed me. I am not sure if I got such good, quick service because I have identity monitor or if that is universal for all users. The false alarm happened shortly after we moved. I changed our address in the Citi system and failed to tell my wife I did so. She tried to use a card to pump gas and when it prompted her for her zip code (as most pumps in California do) she entered our old zip code. Needless to say it wouldn't work. After several tries it locked her out, and I immediately got a call on my cell phone from Citibank telling me that someone was attempting to use our card with the wrong zip code as a gas station. We had it all sorted out before my wife even got through pumping gas! Very impressive.
I am not going to spend a long time answering all the questions, but I will say it is a good service for what I am paying, which is less than most people. I signed up for one month (which was free) so I could go ahead and see all of my scores for free. I was then going to cancel it because I didn't think it was worth the $12.95 a month. When I called in to cancel they offered it to me for $6.95 a month. If you call and threaten to cancel I am pretty sure they will do the same for you.
Posted by: Clifford | Tuesday, May 12, 2009 at 04:39 PM
Clifford:
Thanks for sharing your advice and experience with this service. Hopefully, this will help users get the most from their Citi credit monitoring service.
George
Editor
http://ivebeenmugged.typepad.com
Posted by: George | Monday, May 18, 2009 at 10:03 AM
I had Citi credit monitoring service and was quite happy with it for about 2 years. Since I've been a Citi customer for 12+ years, they offered it to me for $7.95/month, which I thought was a deal. Yes, I had problems with "old" reports and not updating, but you did have to do the refresh thing -- kind of wierd. About 3 months ago, I got a new Citi debit/credit card because they stated "a service provider had been compromised." OK, whatever. I activated the new card. Within two weeks, I got a letter from Citi Monitor stating they were cancelling my account because the card it was billed to was no longer active (duh, it's my Citi debit/credit card). When I called, they said they were a 3rd party provider and the account had been cancelled, but I can re-apply at $12.95 month. This is how I'm treated for being a loyal customer? In addition, I have overdraft protection with Citi -- they used to charge just interest (granted it was 18% -- but I always transferred money within a day or two) and now they charge $10 each time -- even if it's 5$ over! Citi has it's problems, but they're not standing by loyal customers. I'm seriously thinking of switching to Chase since I already have a credit card from them and the interest rate is decent (7.99). Did I mention that Citi upped my interest rate to 15.99%? Thankfully, I don't use that card, but it's good for my credit score. And, my credit score is 780+ and has been for several years. I'm now looking into Credit Score, which was offered to me by AmEx at 11.95/month for all 3 credit bureaus. I'll research and let you know how it goes. Citi has obviously left me high and dry!
Posted by: Paula | Monday, June 01, 2009 at 08:15 PM
Do not join Citi credit monitor. Their customer service is horrible. It takes at least ten - 20 minutes to get anybody on the phone. They don't allow cancellation of the program any other way. Even after canceling by phone they continued charging me. Even after I canceled my credit card so they couldn't charge me they continued my service. Canceling by phone was like trying to drag a seven year old to the dentist. The service rep just would not let me cancel my service and kept asking for a reason and trying to dismiss all my reasons. Then he put me on hold for another ten minutes so he could "talk to his supervisor" They deliberately make it so hard to cancel so that you give up. INsterad of admitting that 10 minute wait times and thirty minutes to cancel a service is way too long, he said the problem was I did not have patience. I think any customer deserves to be able to cancel a service without having to jump through so many hoops.
Posted by: Calvin Yang | Friday, June 12, 2009 at 08:51 PM
Calvin:
Thanks for sharing your story. Sorry to hear about your troubles. You can find reviews of other credit monitoring services in this blog. I plan to add more reviews later this month. Let us know what other credit monitoring service you switch to.
George
Editor
http://ivebeenmugged.typepad.com
Posted by: George | Monday, June 15, 2009 at 10:04 AM
Citi IdentityMonitor sucks.
None of America's service men and women serving overseas are able to use this service because Citi will not allow you to subscribe or ultimately access your account unless you are physically in the USA.
So, as far as Citibank is concerned, yes, they want our Armed Forces to defend them and their right to raise your interest rate to 37% and cut your credit limit 99% for no apparent reason, but they do not think they are worth the effort to allow them to become customers and obtain IdentityMonitor by Citibank.
Posted by: Bill | Wednesday, July 22, 2009 at 03:29 AM
I do not recommend this service. The scores are not updated for last 3 quarters. I was shocked to learn that I am shown delinquent for an account in Equifax and when I ordered my free annual report card from straight Equifax they don't show me as delinquent. Its a pretty shocking to see that a company of such repute has such shoddy service.
Posted by: www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1678332601 | Thursday, September 03, 2009 at 04:36 PM
I've had this service for a couple of years now and I'm beginning to wonder if it's even affiliated with Citi anymore or if it's just a complete fraud. I haven't been able to access any of my information for months and no matter when I call during the day, I get phone messages to try calling during business hours. I haven't been able to contact anyone. I'm a complete fool for staying with them for so long. Of course, it'll probably take several more months before I'm no longer charged...assuming I get through to someone live to speak to.
Posted by: Jay | Sunday, September 06, 2009 at 12:25 PM
I was on the Home Depot site trying to pay a credit card bill. In the process of navigating their (intentionally?) confusing process I was presented with a form that appeared to be part of the Home Depot process. Turns out I inadvertently signed up for Citi Identity Monitoring service - below is the email I received. So I call them up immediately to cancel - they cannot find my account - "call back in 72 hours" - I insist on talking to supervisors,end up talking with several people who have my information,but who say they cannot cancel the account. So I will have to call back using more of my free time to undo this trickery. I will not be patronizing Citi or Home Depot again if I can avoid it. I'm sure these sleazy marketing tactics are in hopes that some people will not realize they are being signed up and charged.
Reply
IdentityMonitor to
show details 8:21 PM (1 hour ago)
Dear :
Thank you for enrolling in Citi® IdentityMonitor®. You've joined other members who, like you, want the valuable credit resources that only Citi® IdentityMonitor® can provide to help you take control of your credit information.
IdentityMonitor is now available to you online with convenient 24x7 anytime, anywhere access to your personal credit information!
Once you receive your information, register as an online user at http://www.identitymonitor.citi.com to conveniently access your account online anytime, day or night. Remember - online customers get access to tools and resources that are unavailable to offline customers. It's information you can't afford to be without. All of these valuable credit management solutions, along with the convenience of e-mail alerts when any changes to your credit file information occur, are at your fingertips!
If you have any questions, e-mail us at [email protected] or call our Credit Education Specialists toll-free at 1-866-279-9637, Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. and Saturday 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Eastern time.
Sincerely,
Citi® IdentityMonitor® Member Services
http://www.identitymonitor.citi.com
Posted by: Joe Halloran | Tuesday, September 08, 2009 at 09:57 PM
Joe:
Thanks for the alert about web site customer service forms that also sign up consumers for credit monitoring services. Can you provide a link to the specific Home Depot online form? I am interested since so many companies now try to use "negative marketing" or auto opt-in mechanisms, that frequently result in the experience you described. In my opinion, it is a bad practice and needs to stop. Please let us know what happens with your situation. I hope that others who encounter a similar situation will share their experiences.
George
Editor
http://ivebeenmugged.typepad.com
Posted by: George | Thursday, September 17, 2009 at 12:12 AM
hey I closed my citi identity theft account 2 weeks ago and it is still working. I closed it because I found about the 4.95/month deal. I called them twice and they said that my has been closed but when I told them it is still working they told me that there may be sth wrong with the system.
Posted by: John | Friday, September 18, 2009 at 04:52 PM
John:
Thanks for sharing your experience. The above comments seem pretty consistent about poor service from this vendor. Maybe Citi will embrace social media sties and direct a company representative to post a comment here about what they may be doing to correct things. Probably not, but one can still hope.
George
Editor
http://ivebeenmugged.typepad.com
Posted by: George | Sunday, September 20, 2009 at 08:31 PM
I went to Sears one day last August and bought a shirt. I was offered a steep discount on the shirt if I signed up for their credit card. I did so. Sometime later I was called and offered the Identity Monitor, one month free if you cancel. Automatic billing if you don't. Upon getting my credit report I immediately called to cancel. Here is where the swindle begins: the operator tells you that the rest of the report is online. If you say something like "Oh, OK -- I'll check it out," they won't cancel the report. So at this point you MUST get a cancellation number. I didn't do that, so I was billed the following month.
Upon calling the number provided to cancel, the fellow explained with a smile (you can tell when someone is smiling as they talk, which is why telemarketers are told to smile during their spiel) that the service hadn't been canceled because I had viewed the report online. This time I said I definitely wanted to cancel and I got a cancellation number. As a further precaution I canceled the Sears credit card. This was in October. Today, November 3, I just received a notice in the mail that the Citi Identity Monitor had been canceled because they were unable to charge my Sears card for the month of November. So even my second attempt to cancel the service, made in early October, had been ignored. The cancellation number I got from the smiling phone-fellow was bogus, and the whole Sears/Citi Identity Monitor is a total swindle.
Oh -- and the shirt shrank in the wash and was unwearable.
Posted by: Bruce | Tuesday, November 03, 2009 at 06:13 PM
Bruce:
Thanks for sharing your experience. Getting a cancellation number is great advice. Wow! You've documented either incompetence, the operator lied to you on the phone, or both.
George
Editor
http://ivebeenmugged.typepad.com
Posted by: George | Tuesday, November 10, 2009 at 12:31 PM
I wanted to use the "Free" 1 month trial so I signed up for it February 1, 2010 and gave myself a calendar note to cancel it in 26 days. On February 26th I called and was put on hold, for 1 hour. I finally hung up. As luck would have it I didn't get an opportunity to call again until 3/2/10. On the 2nd I again was on hold for an hour, but finally got through to a representative.
The representative (Esmeralda) gave me all the hard sell tactics and I practically had to crawl through the phone to get her to cancel it. Unfortunately, today (5/6/10) I noticed in my email that I was STILL signed up for it, and sure enough had been billed 3 times. Unfortunately I had trusted (as they were associated with CitiBank) that they would actually cancel it and did not get a confirmation number.
Steamed, I called their customer service again. This time I tried a different approach. The first thing I did was ask if they had on record each time I contacted them, and the woman said yes, that it showed I had called on March 2nd (She also mumbled under her breath, and I quote, "canceled... cancel was denied" < NO JOKE!!). So I told her the reason I called that day was to cancel but I still was being charged.
Instead of offering to fix it, she asked if I would like to view their online service. At the time I wasn't sure what that was for, and simply said I didn't want to do that because I did not want to accept any of the services since I had already canceled and wanted to be credited for the payments taken from me. NOW that I read these other posts, I realize she was trying to get me to use the service so I wouldn't be able to have it canceled.
But I digress. She said she canceled my service and gave me a confirmation number. I asked for the full spelling of her name and then asked she credit me back for the incorrect billings since 3/2/10. She said she couldn't credit me, but would transfer me to someone who could. I was promptly transferred... to Internet Support.
The poor woman who answered said she didn't speak to anyone who transferred the call and knew nothing of my situation. I explained myself and requested to be transferred (again) to someone who could help. This time I actually got someone who could help (Lori at the Utah Call Center, very nice lady). Lori listened to my story, put me on hold for a moment, and then came back with the news she would credit me for all 3 charges. She said they would not post until tonight (today 5/610).
I'll be back here to tell you if they don't actually come through.
Bottom line: DO NOT USE THIS SERVICE! Other than the nice lady Lori, it has been a terrible experience. If there are any attorneys looking for a class action law suit, you could probably make some serious money with this one. Feel free to use my story.
Regards,
Ethan
Posted by: Ethan | Thursday, May 06, 2010 at 01:22 PM
I did not sign up for this Identity Monitor, please cancel it asap. Please respond to let me know this has been cancelled. Thanks
Posted by: Richard Leibfried | Monday, May 24, 2010 at 12:19 PM
Dear Mr. Leibfried
I sent this message to you via e-mail and will repeat it here:
Canceling a subscription to a credit monitoring service is not offered in this blog. You need to go directly to the site and modify or cancel your subscription.
At this blog, people share comments about their experiences with various products and services. Again, please contact the Identity Monitor site directly via phone or e-mail to cancel your service.
George Jenkins
Editor
http://ivebeenmugged.typepad.com
Posted by: George | Monday, May 24, 2010 at 12:59 PM
I've used the service for a few years, yet finally gave up since I thought it wasn't worst it.
Basically all I need is an ability to look at my credit score once in a year. I've read I am entitled to it for free, but was never actually able to get it. Any tips?
Thanks in advance.
Posted by: Alex | Sunday, June 06, 2010 at 11:51 PM
i have read my George Jenkins experience. I dont really know what to do.Since april 2010 i am being billed $9.95 for myself and $9.95 for my spouse. it was a citi credit monitoring service. I have not it in months, Last night i tried to go on it.. the screen and site was the exact one I would get my credit info from, so i called the contact number on the site and was told my account was cancelled in Jan 2010. I then called my bank and the only info i was given was 877-974-7733, its a fitness center.. with a answering machine... I guess i will have to cancell the card linked to these charges! ANYONE ELSE HAVING OR HAD THIS PROBLEM! VERY UPSET!
Posted by: LAURIE DUNCAN | Saturday, December 04, 2010 at 12:40 PM
Laurie:
Sounds like you bank card info has been compromised. Things I would do in your situation:
1) Insist on your bank closing your current account and opening a new account.
2) Follow the guidelines by your bank about how to dispute (in writing) fraudulent charges. Typically, those charges you didn't dispute within 60 days you have to pay.
3) File a police report about the fraudulent charges. You may need that police report later to force the bank (or retailers) to action.
4) If your bank won't help you or won't provide the services you feel you deserve, close your account and open a new account at another bank. That may seem like a hassle, but it is your money and you should get the service you seek.
5) Check your credit reports at Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion for fraudulent charges. If you see any, follow their rules for disputing fraudulent charges in writing.
6) You didn't say whether or not it was your debit or credit card. I only use my debit card at ATM machines. There are posts in this blog that can help you decide which is better to use.
George
Editor
http://ivebeenmugged.typepad.com
Posted by: George | Sunday, December 05, 2010 at 01:00 PM
I use Sears Credit Card, it is registered in Citibank.
Posted by: agaian | Thursday, January 20, 2011 at 05:13 AM
We have always been happy with Citibank credit cards. This credit monitoring service included. Their customer service is top notch and if there is anything you do not understand, they will be happy to explain to you.
Posted by: amy amster | Tuesday, August 09, 2011 at 12:37 PM
We are partial to Citibank credit cards also. Their Credit monitoring service is excellent.
http://www.customercreditcards.com/citi-cards.php
Posted by: Jason Anders | Wednesday, August 10, 2011 at 01:10 PM
Amy and Jason:
Please share more. Who is the "we" you refer to? Is that other family members? Readers would like to hear more about **why** you are happy with Citibank credit cards. Your statements are so general and vague.
Last, Citigroup reported last week another data breach:
http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Security/Citigroup-Hit-Again-by-Security-Breach-505812/
This was after the larger data breach of several weeks ago:
http://ivebeenmugged.typepad.com/my_weblog/2011/06/citigroup-breach-revised.html
Any comments about this?
George
Editor
http://ivebeenmugged.typepad.com
Posted by: George | Wednesday, August 10, 2011 at 03:35 PM
I have had nothing but problems with other credit cards. Not with Citi. The interest rates are comparable to other cards, but the rewards and offers are far better.
Posted by: Jason Anders | Thursday, August 11, 2011 at 08:56 PM
I've had nothing but absolutely TERRIBLE service with Citi Identity Monitor. I originally enrolled for the free one month service to get my credit report. I had a number of problems accessing it online and called to have them mail me my credit report. After being transferred 6 times and being on the phone for 86 minutes, they told me that they will mail me a hard copy of my credit report since I was an enrolled member.
Long story short, I NEVER got my creditreport. I called later to request it and they said since Im no longer a member, I have to re enroll to get it. I was flabergasted! I was transferred once again to 4 different people and on the phone for another 72 minutes just for them to say NO. I was in disbelief.
Worst part was they actually told me I was talking to a surpervisor and when I asked her name, she said she is not a surpervisor and that the surpervisor went home. It was the most AWFUL customer experience I ever received.
DO NOT USE THIS SERVICE BASED PURELY ON THEIR AWFUL CUSTOMER SERVICE.
Posted by: Samira | Monday, February 06, 2012 at 07:36 PM
I had this service for about 3 months and my credit scores were not updated. Almost every weekday they called my cell phone saying that they were not able to retrieve more information about my credit score because they "required" me to make a photocopy of both sides of my social security card and/or W2 form to be mailed or faxed to them....I denied that request because there is a REAL RISK of identity theft doing that. I cancelled that service right then and there.
Posted by: Amanda | Thursday, June 28, 2012 at 01:46 PM
Isigned up for credit moniter after I co-signed my sons pickup. He didnt make payments for 18 months and I never got contacted by them that really is bad as then I had alow credit score for him not paying. I have since resolved his mistake and am getting my credit back in order no thanks to credit moniter
Posted by: Jerry | Monday, July 16, 2012 at 11:25 AM