Citibank's Disputed Transactions Dept. - Rigid approach has no value for Truth !

As I have been saying, the truth never works with Citibank U.S. ! In a matter of disputed transactions, it never pays to tell them the truth by saying that the credit card or debit card was in your possession at the time. They might reimburse money to you in a situation of identity theft, scam or fraudulent transaction ONLY if you claim even if falsely that the debit or credit card was not in your possession. They do not want to hear beyond that because they do not have time or patience to treat each case differently or consider exceptions where the fraudulent transaction may involve other serious circumstances.
They do not even want to consider cases where a case is a combination of identity theft and scam.  Basically they just do not want to put an effort into investigating cases. Also however fast you may be in reporting a fraudulent activity or dispute a transaction, their delayed action will cost you. They will make you wait endlessly anywhere between 45 minutes to around an hour and a half specially in the evenings to connect you to the Disputes Dept. to report fraud and scam concerning the account or transaction. They will not even try to help you in blocking a transaction even if it is in pending mode.There is lack of co-ordination between their departments too. Sometimes one department of the bank closes a matter even before a case manager can address it or research on it.
Always be prepared that Citibank U.S will not provide you immediate cash assistance even though provisional in times of loss of money. They are not reliable when it comes to that kind of immediate support which other banks may provide in these situations. Citibank U.S will never demonstrate sensitivity to you in times of emergency where your account may be affected due to identity theft. In general Citibank as a bank anywhere has a very rigid and insensitive approach towards it's customers.  And their rigidity and arrogance reflects in the tone and attitude of their representatives and staff too. Therefore think twice before banking with them ! 

Citibank U.S - Unpleasant Banking Experiences

Citibank U.S is the most rigid bank I have come across. From the beginning their services have not been good. The first time I issued a cheque from a sufficiently funded  account with them, they provided problems for the person I had issues it to. And unnecessarily because of them I had to pay a fine to the Management of the apartment I rented out. While issuing a cheque from another Bank here for the first time never poses a problem. They do not even agree to give a credit card. I had to get a credit card from another bank even though my entire salary was going to Citibank.

Also, Citibank's phone banking in U.S  is the worst ! Firstly they do not seem to know about their products or services that well. And they do not greet their customers warmly the way Wells Fargo or any other bank do,. If it were left to them they would want everything to be automated and not deal with the customer at all or resolve the queries. Their approach is not at all positive or interactive. Infact Citibank India performs better than Citibank U.S specially where phone banking is concerned.

One has to wait in line for 45 minutes or even more when you call Citibank U.S  to report a fraudulent activity or scam. The so called research they claim to do on a case is not at all thorough and is incomplete because they do not go into details to check the authenticity of the case. So calling their dispute department regarding identity theft in relation to your card or account is pointless ! Calling their dispute department to report a scam is a sheer waste of time as they will eventually dismiss the case just like that without consulting the video recording at an ATM place or shop. They do not have a proper structure for escalation of complaints where the customer could go higher up to appeal if the customer disagrees with a resolution.

Also I have learnt from my experience that truth never works when dealing with reporting a fraudulent activity to Citibank U.S. because they will always refuse to provide you provisional cash as is the norm in times of such emergency leave alone reimburse you for it. They just want to know whether the card was in your possession or not at the time of the transaction. In today's times fraudulent activities on your debit card could occur even without a physical card .It is just black or white with them. They do not even want to investigate matters even if one attaches a police report when disputing a transaction as a result of identity theft,scam or fraud. On the other hand, other banks like Credit Union Bank always is sensitive to it's customers at a time like this.

I have been doing a kind of informal survey amongst people I know and others regarding the services of Citibank. Most people seem to have the same bad impression of Citibank U.S . 

Citibank U.S.A Dispute Dept.- Not easily accessible when reporting fraudulent activity / No support or positive resolution in disputed transactions

Based on feedback and experience with the Citibank Dispute Department in recent times, I would like to comment that they are not at all easily reachable in times of emergency. In fact, I have been thoroughly disappointed with their phone banking system . One has to call them so many times during a serious situation regarding a disputed transaction.  The delay causes customers much inconvenience . To start with they make you wait as long as 45 mins. most times. I tried to report an issue to them while the transaction mode still reflected pending and right after reporting it to the merchant. I even followed it up by giving them the case number of the police complaint thinking that would make a difference.

Citibank's approach is quite insensitive and rigid.  There is total lack of co-ordination and the facts you provide are not related accurately on record which results in your being denied a favorable resolution.  They just want to close the case as fast as possible without actually researching it well. And that is what happened. While Citibank India at least has better phone banking services and you are heard out there and they provide support immediately specially when you want to withold a transaction or in any other matter. Even Wells Fargo bank here has a much more positive and personalized approach in their interactions over the phone or at branches.

 Truth holds no value when relating the facts concerning a transaction you want to dispute where Citibank U.S is concerned. All they see is whether the card was in your possession or not. Other circumstances like the ones related to scams or identity thefts are not even correctly investigated by them even if you provide them a copy of a police report. They just don't want to cover such cases. And they don't even give provision cash while waiting for a resolution. While other local banks are much better and sensitive in their dealings with their customers according to the feedback I gathered in this last month. People who dispute transactions even concerning transactions that are  identity theft or scam related are offered full support and compensation at other banks. Perhaps just saying that the card was not in your possession at the time of transaction works better for them in providing you with compensation rather than hearing facts and details. I wonder if they even really research the details the customer provides them regarding a disputed transaction. I believe that people who hold Discover cards are covered and protected in fraud related incidents.

My experience with them this past year has not been satisfactory. Wells Fargo provides pleasant banking experience in contrast.

Citibank India's unpleasant customer service

Citibank India's customer service has never been that great all these years but at least one could always rely on their Phonebanking for support and prompt actions. But my interaction with their Phonebanking Officer Mr. Naresh changed that impression for me as well because I feel that he lacked the patience, diplomacy, sensitivity and initiative that a person in his position must possess to deal with queries and complaints from customers. Instead of trying to understand my concern and demonstrate any effort or sensitivity in assuring me that my complaint would be considered, he refused to even give me a reference number for the issue I wanted to raise. He was not even ready to treat my concern as a feedback for future reference. Instead he was quite hostile and expressed lack of belief in what I brought to his attention regarding my account. In the past, many including I have been dissatisfied with their customer service in various branches but never did I expect such attitude from their Phonebanking officer.
As a consumer or customer, we have a right to raise our concerns and complaints regarding Citibank's services, Internet banking and other products. We have the Right to be Heard irrespective of how irrelevant our problems may appear to them. But despite my endless efforts to make him understand my concern at length, he expressed lack of belief just because according to him such a thing has never ever happened in his Citibank account or any of his other accounts. He came across as very arrogant,aggressive, difficult and hostile in his approach.
I had already raised another serious complaint with them a few hours before regarding a cheque. I had clearly issued a cheque of Rs.300 but Rs.3000 had been deducted from my account. I had discussed the same with the person the cheque was issued to and was calling Phonebanking to give a feedback on that issue and remind them to treat this matter as priority as promised a few hours back  by the previous Citibank Phonebanking staff. And that is when I thought about informing him about an unusual activity regarding my deposits where the money invested had been transferred back to my account much before the date of maturity and confirmation date of withdrawal. I couldn't help but co-relate the two incidents and pointed out that there may have been some technical error in their system in both the cases for which the backend team should be consulted. But instead of realising the insecurity of a customer regarding the account he became defensive and rude. In fact he was very abrupt and kept trying to terminate our conversation every time I talked about the second issue. The entire interaction with this person was unpleasant and made me consider if my continuing with Citibank India is a wise choice or not. I have often felt that Citibank India never takes responsibility and is not at all interactive with customers in addressing their complaints effectively. Also there is never a proper follow up.
 Please check your accounts regularly Citibank customers and take screenshots of any unusual activity in your account which unfortunately I forgot to take regarding my deposits. Also please follow up on the Citibank cheques you issue or the nominees you register in your deposits and account . I know a NRI whose nominee was changed from his wife's name to a stranger's by Citibank without his knowledge. So always stay alert when banking with any banks for that matter and particularly well known banks like Citibank India. We tend to trust famous banks without realising that they too can make mistakes.