HSBC Retail Services FRAUD! ripoff Carol Stream Illinois

First in response to the unemployment comment. I am a full time court interpreter so unless the entire spanish speaking population is deported ( which I'm sure a lot of you would like to see happen ) I don't think my job is going anywhere. HSBC as a finance company my not be the greatest but as an employer you can't beat their benefits and 401K package! It sure makes dealing with the credit- impaired on a part time basis somewhat bearable.

With that being said I would be willing to sacrifice my benefits and go with the wonderful ( however not quite as wonderful as HSBC) government benefits and retirement to see 100% of call centers outsourced to India.

It's a MARVELOUS idea! In my experience if there is one thing that people can't stand more than calling in to discuss their late fees ( which are valid 99% of the time such as in the case of Matthew) it is being transfered to India. So perhaps with the guarantee that every call people make will go straight to an incomprehensible indian rep, the credit-impaired like Matthew will actually take the time to figure out why they have accumulated $200 worth of late fees in the past year.

Go soak your head. Can't hurt you any. He's explained his case several times, and you come on here to tell everyone how you think it should be done.

NEWS FLASH>>>> If it weren't for those that have credit cards, YOU wouldn't have a job!! Outsourcing to another country is to YOUR advantage, not ours, and if I were you, I'd spend those hours each and every day explaining their terms 100 times if need be just to collect that paycheck! Take your high and mighty attitude and jump in a lake.

Go soak your head. Can't hurt you any. He's explained his case several times, and you come on here to tell everyone how you think it should be done.

NEWS FLASH>>>> If it weren't for those that have credit cards, YOU wouldn't have a job!! Outsourcing to another country is to YOUR advantage, not ours, and if I were you, I'd spend those hours each and every day explaining their terms 100 times if need be just to collect that paycheck! Take your high and mighty attitude and jump in a lake.

Go soak your head. Can't hurt you any. He's explained his case several times, and you come on here to tell everyone how you think it should be done.

NEWS FLASH>>>> If it weren't for those that have credit cards, YOU wouldn't have a job!! Outsourcing to another country is to YOUR advantage, not ours, and if I were you, I'd spend those hours each and every day explaining their terms 100 times if need be just to collect that paycheck! Take your high and mighty attitude and jump in a lake.

Go soak your head. Can't hurt you any. He's explained his case several times, and you come on here to tell everyone how you think it should be done.

NEWS FLASH>>>> If it weren't for those that have credit cards, YOU wouldn't have a job!! Outsourcing to another country is to YOUR advantage, not ours, and if I were you, I'd spend those hours each and every day explaining their terms 100 times if need be just to collect that paycheck! Take your high and mighty attitude and jump in a lake.

Usually, if a payment posts between the due date of the prior month, and the next statement "drop" date, (the date it gets printed and sent) it gets applied to the account balance, but not towards the minimum amount due. If your new statement gets sent out after your payment posts, and states a minimum amount due, you are required to pay that minimum amount due. You cannot subtract the money they received between statements towards your minimum amount due.

If your statement that showed the amount due as $53 also showed your previous payment of $50 posted 12/8, then they did not count that payment towards the minimum amount due of $53 and unfortunately you can't either. That means your payment of $43.44 was $9.56 too little.

Even if the payment is posted on time and you are not late, there is usually a one to 1.5 week gap between the previous due date and your next statment drop. Say during that gap you make a large payment. That payment made during the gap is not counted towards your minimum due when the statement drops.

I think that rule stinks, but it's what credit card companies do.

To the last person to post:
First, I wont devolve to your level of name calling. I will simply say that either you obviously did not read my statements, or you are incapable of understanding simple mathmatics. I did not try to pay ahead. You should really find out what you are talking about before calling other peoples intelligence into question. I did not move three times in two months. Get your facts straight before proving your ignorance. Perhaps I overexplained in my statements, and I may have overwhelmed you, so I will simplify it a bit for easier digestion.

HSBC claims they did not receive my payment and assessed a late fee. Following me so far? Billing cycle closed. Payment not received, late fee assessed. The next payment is due 1/2/06. The minimum due by 1/2/06 is $53.00. This is the total due, late fee included. Still following me? Now, they credit my one payment 12/8/05 of $50.00, and a second payment received 12/28/05 of $43.44, they received a total of $93.44 for the billing cycle ending 1/2/06, when only $53.00 was due. This is where you are getting confused, so read slowly. I overpaid what was due 01/02/06 by over $40.00. I am not trying to overpay.

I am not saying that the $40 overpayment should have gone to Februarys payment. I am trying to explain that there was absolutely no way HSBC could charge me a late fee for the January payment when they were overpaid, and again in February, March, etc etc.I am not saying that by overpaying my minimum the next month was taken care of. I am saying that they received almost twice what was due, and several days before the due date, and charged me a late fee anyways. It is that simple. It is that plain. I paid almost double what was due prior to the due date and was charged a late fee anyways.

I can repeat it again if it makes things easier. The only reason my moving comes into play is that I did not catch their mistake, which compounded itself monthly. By law, yes you can "pay ahead", but it goes directly towards the principal balance, not towards minimum payments. By continuing to charge me late fees wrongfully, they also then did not properly credit my overpayments to my principal balance. d**n, I overexplained again. I probably lost him after the first multisyllabic word. Oh well. Go look at something shiny for a while.

To the last person to post:
First, I wont devolve to your level of name calling. I will simply say that either you obviously did not read my statements, or you are incapable of understanding simple mathmatics. I did not try to pay ahead. You should really find out what you are talking about before calling other peoples intelligence into question. I did not move three times in two months. Get your facts straight before proving your ignorance. Perhaps I overexplained in my statements, and I may have overwhelmed you, so I will simplify it a bit for easier digestion.

HSBC claims they did not receive my payment and assessed a late fee. Following me so far? Billing cycle closed. Payment not received, late fee assessed. The next payment is due 1/2/06. The minimum due by 1/2/06 is $53.00. This is the total due, late fee included. Still following me? Now, they credit my one payment 12/8/05 of $50.00, and a second payment received 12/28/05 of $43.44, they received a total of $93.44 for the billing cycle ending 1/2/06, when only $53.00 was due. This is where you are getting confused, so read slowly. I overpaid what was due 01/02/06 by over $40.00. I am not trying to overpay.

I am not saying that the $40 overpayment should have gone to Februarys payment. I am trying to explain that there was absolutely no way HSBC could charge me a late fee for the January payment when they were overpaid, and again in February, March, etc etc.I am not saying that by overpaying my minimum the next month was taken care of. I am saying that they received almost twice what was due, and several days before the due date, and charged me a late fee anyways. It is that simple. It is that plain. I paid almost double what was due prior to the due date and was charged a late fee anyways.

I can repeat it again if it makes things easier. The only reason my moving comes into play is that I did not catch their mistake, which compounded itself monthly. By law, yes you can "pay ahead", but it goes directly towards the principal balance, not towards minimum payments. By continuing to charge me late fees wrongfully, they also then did not properly credit my overpayments to my principal balance. d**n, I overexplained again. I probably lost him after the first multisyllabic word. Oh well. Go look at something shiny for a while.

Without credit cards, none of us would have to deal with loser low-lifes like Elizabeth who couldn't get a better job.

Other than that part of her ridiculous rant: the others are correct; you have a certain amount of time to pay your bill. You can't ADVANCE pay your bill in one cycle and expect it to credit the next billing cycle. It will credit in the former, and if you don't pay in the later cycle, you'll be delinquent and get more fees.

Bottom line: pay HSBC off as soon as you can. Put the psycho Elizabeth and her 'ilk' out of a job.

Got some cardboard for a sign "Will harass for food", Elizabeth?

Without credit cards, none of us would have to deal with loser low-lifes like Elizabeth who couldn't get a better job.

Other than that part of her ridiculous rant: the others are correct; you have a certain amount of time to pay your bill. You can't ADVANCE pay your bill in one cycle and expect it to credit the next billing cycle. It will credit in the former, and if you don't pay in the later cycle, you'll be delinquent and get more fees.

Bottom line: pay HSBC off as soon as you can. Put the psycho Elizabeth and her 'ilk' out of a job.

Got some cardboard for a sign "Will harass for food", Elizabeth?

Without credit cards, none of us would have to deal with loser low-lifes like Elizabeth who couldn't get a better job.

Other than that part of her ridiculous rant: the others are correct; you have a certain amount of time to pay your bill. You can't ADVANCE pay your bill in one cycle and expect it to credit the next billing cycle. It will credit in the former, and if you don't pay in the later cycle, you'll be delinquent and get more fees.

Bottom line: pay HSBC off as soon as you can. Put the psycho Elizabeth and her 'ilk' out of a job.

Got some cardboard for a sign "Will harass for food", Elizabeth?

Without credit cards, none of us would have to deal with loser low-lifes like Elizabeth who couldn't get a better job.

Other than that part of her ridiculous rant: the others are correct; you have a certain amount of time to pay your bill. You can't ADVANCE pay your bill in one cycle and expect it to credit the next billing cycle. It will credit in the former, and if you don't pay in the later cycle, you'll be delinquent and get more fees.

Bottom line: pay HSBC off as soon as you can. Put the psycho Elizabeth and her 'ilk' out of a job.

Got some cardboard for a sign "Will harass for food", Elizabeth?

I work for HSBC and spend all day trying to explain how billing cycles work to idiots like Matthew. YOU MUST PAY YOUR BILL IN THE TIME FRAME BETWEEN YOUR CYCLE DATE UNTIL THE DUE DATE. YOU CANNOT PAY IN ADVANCE. Obviously this concept would be completely foreign to someone who moves 3 times in 2 months and wonders why he doesn't recieve his statements. Also I am so sick of whiney dipshits signing up for credit cards when they are not clear on the terms of the promotions. THIS IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY AS THE CARD HOLDER.I can guarantee that ALL of the information reguarding payments and promotional terms is provided ON EVERY STATEMENT as well as the SALE RECIPT.The problem is that people are lazy and want everything spoon fed to them and do not want to be bothered to read their statements. If you are one of these people like Matthew who cannot do something as SIMPLE as read the minimum payment due on your account and mail it by the RECOMENDED MAIL DATE (which is there for a reason) PLEASE I beg of you PLEASEEEE cut up your credit cards and put yourself and people like me who have to deal with you out of our misery.

I am so sorry you have had to devote time to this ridiculous problem. Credit card "fine print" is so important to read and HSBC is a company that has several different companies/names under it's corporation. Go to the BBB of Chicago or San Diego and you will see. I had my interest rate raised on my HSBC credit card when I made a late payment on my Best Buy account. A few years have pasted and I had forgot (!) Now I've submitted a auto refinance application to them and I already regret it.

Don't get credit with a company that is like this. It's like a bad marriage you can't get out of. We should all make it our goal to use CASH and get away from buying things we want but don't really need right away! Just for good customer service, did HSBC ever refund you anything?

Do they even read these postings (HSBC)? Forney, TX

Now, if Mary paid $48.72 on the 16th of the month, but there was a full moon that night, then what percentage of the payment actually ends up in her account?

And now, if Joe, Mary's younger brother, decided to also send in half of the amount that is due, then does the actual accrued interest rate go up or down?

And, what about the average daily balance?

If the payment leaves your house at an average speed of 27 miles per hour, and there is an identical payment on the opposite side of the highway going in the same direction as the mailman, when will all these things arrive at the UPS truck?

And, most important of all. If the mailman and his St Bernard both agree to pay the total balance in full, as a gift to Mary, what percentage of the pre-tax debit fund's deduction will be used for the original balance, and how much of the discretionary balance will be applied to the actual credit limit?

Are you freakin' kidding me here?

Trying to sort out all this accounting nonsense is crazy.

Cut that d**n card up and throw it away. You couldn't pay me to go through this kind of nonsense every month.

The answer here is to use cash, and simplify your life.

Matt -

Pay everything online & keep all confirmations. You can't rely on the Pony Express to get things in on time. Good luck!

All their energy and money comes from high penaltys and bogus late fee charges. I think its illegal for them to do what their doing but since no one would take the time to get a lawyer and open a law suit they are getting away with it! They're legally robbing us from our hard working money and its wrong!

To the person who posted the last, you must not have read the response I placed just before yours. Yes, I understand fully how the accouting works. You said "in order to expliain to you how the acounting works one would have to sit down with you on table with a piece of paper. lets not get too much into details because i dont intend to confuse you. will try and keep it simple." Instead of condescending and proving your ignorance, please re-read the post just prior to yours.

If the $50.00 payment that they received 12/08/05 was applied to the previous cycle (The one, conveniently ending on 12/8/05, the same day they CLAIM they received payment), the $19.00 I owed by 12/3/05 plus the $29.00 late fee only equals $48.00. So if it was applied to that cycle, I overpaid by $2.00. They can not take $50.00 when $48.00 was due, then say you owe us $53.00 for the January payment when my monthly payments are always $20 or less. Where would be the justifcation for an additional $33.00 ???? I would owe my usual $20 plus $33.00 ?? For what? They would have already had December payment as well as the late fee.

On the other hand, if the $50 received on 12/8/05 was applied to the January 2nd payment due date, the $53.00 due on January 2nd plus the $29.00 late fee only add up to $82.00, so with the December 8th payment of $50 and the December 28th payment of $43.44 I overpaid by $11.44. Any way you do the math, there was $93.44 paid, and absolutely no way $93.44 was due.

I come across something like almost everyday.There is nothing wrong with the accounting.

in order to expliain to you how the acounting works one would have to sit down with you on table with a piece of paper. lets not get too much into details because i dont intend to confuse you. will try and keep it simple.

lets say your bills are dated (sent out to you) on the 1st of every month ( this date will not change until the account is paid off). your due date will be exactly 25 days after the bills are dated. so your due date will be the 26th of the same month. now whatever you pay between the 1st the 25th will go towrds that bill. whatever the total amount due is, it should be paid before the 26th. your account will be considered as past due on the 27th.there will be a late charge.

store credit accounts are infact tricky.

To answer the last question first, I did not receive mail because I moved several times and was not sure where I was going to wind up. Thanks for your question, in reality it obviously doesn't change any of the facts and is not intended as an excuse. It is simply a statement of how and why it took so long to catch this.

To answer another question asked, I have downloaded the statements from their website once they (recently) allowed me to do so after providing a current mailing address, which I did not have before. The same statement that tells me that I owed $53.00 by January 2nd says "Statement as of 12/08/05" and DOES show the $50.00 payment they received 12/08/05.

I know credit card companies can shuffle dates and apply payments in various ways, but here is how it looks from here.

I have given this a lot of thought, and contemplated what was said in the previous responses. Any way you cut it, I feel I am covered. If the payment went to the previous cycle ending on the 8th, I owed only $19.00 by the 3rd of December. So if the $50.00 payment was applied to the previous cycle, the $19.00 I owed by the third plus the $29.00 late fee only equals $48.00.

That means if they applied it to the previous cycle, I overpaid by $2.00 and there would be no justification for the $53.00 minimum payment due on January second (my minimum payments were $20.00 and had just gone down to $19.00). If it was applied to the January 2nd payment due date, the $53.00 due on January 2nd plus the $29.00 late fee only add up to $82.00, so with the December 28th payment of $43.44 I overpaid by $11.44. Any way you do the math, there was $93.44 paid, and absolutely no way $93.44 was due.

And I am sorry if I came off as rude in my last update.

By his own admission he didn't get mail for quite a while, so he probably doesn't even have the statements you are asking him to look at.

Why did you get no mail for 2 months?

There is a difference between a due date and a closing date. Closing dates are generally between 5-10 days after due date.

According to the information you provided, the due date was 12-3 and the payment posted on 12-8. If the closing date is 12-8, then the payment will have been included on the 12-8 closing statement. Therefore, that payment will not have gone toward the next billing cycle.

The payment they received on 12/8 was applied to the statement with the 12/2 due date. Read your terms and conditions, that's the way it works. Otherwise you would be missing a payment and not just late.

Matthew, a question. When does the billing cycle close? If it closed after the second December payment was posted, then they are definitely wrong. If it closed before the payment posted then they would charge the fees.

Look at both the December and January statements to see when the billing cycle closed. Often the closing date of the billing cycle and the next due date can be a few days apart.

No intent to be condescending, just trying to determine their processing on your account. Most credit cards do not have 30 day billing cycles and cause late fees as a result.

No, I am afraid it is YOU who are wrong. You assume I don't know there is a minimum payment due each month? Do you think I am an idiot? I don't know how to describe this without overexplaining and getting long winded. I will try and simplify it a bit for you.

The due date passed and the late fee was assessed on 12/03/05. Therefore, by their own statement, the TOTAL MINIMUM AMOUNT DUE by 01/02/06 was $53.00.

They received $50.00 on 12/08/05 and $43.44 on 12/28/05, for a total of $93.44. They received this $93.44 AFTER the late fee was assessed, AFTER the December due date had passed. The entirety of what was paid therefore must be applied to the 01/02/06 due date and $53.00 minimum payment, not the already expired 12/03/05 due date and $19.00 minimum payment. When you have a total due, you do not pay a previous total due AND the current total due. It is the TOTAL DUE. Period.

For arguements sake, let us look at the numbers from your logic, as if I had to pay the $19.00 minimum payment first from 12/03/05 and then the $53.00 due 01/02/06. They received $50.00 12/08/05. The $50 paid minus the $19 owed still leaves an overpayment of $31.00 that would then have to be paid towards the NOW EXISITNG DEBT of $53.00 due on 01/02/06. So, $53.00 minus $31.00 leaves $22.00 owed by 01/02/06. They received $43.44 on 12/28/05. That means, even by your severely flawed logic, I still overpaid by $21.44. None of the late fees are correct, and need to be reversed.

My normal minimum payment is $19.00. Due to a late payment (which I still contend they simply failed to process, btw) the TOTAL due by 01/02/06, all inclusive, was $53.00. This includes everything, it was the TOTAL DUE by 01/02/06. They received $93.44. Is this making a little more sense to you now? I know it is a lot to digest, but I am right on this, and your response I found as condescending as it was ignorant.

They received $50 on 12-8 for 12-3 due date.

They received $43.44 on 12-28 for 1-2 due date of the $53 due. You were short $9.56 for this month. Monies paid in a previous month do not count towards the next month. There is a minimum amount due each and every month.

The next month they received $40.00 of the $48 due, so short $8 on due date. So every month thereafter you kept getting further behind.