Monday, September 19, 2011

You're Too Kind

Backstory: Back in June, we decided we were going to pay off as many of our credit cards as we could, starting with the retail cards. I got my statement for the Best Buy card and then called the customer support line to confirm the amount before I closed the account. They said yes, that was the correct amount so that's how much I paid...

Fast-forward... I got a statement in the mail saying I owed $1.24 on my Best Buy card. So I phoned in this evening to talk to someone about it. I think "Customer Service" is sometimes a misnomer, "Condescending Line" is more accurate.

Me: "I would like to know why I'm being charged $1.24 after I confirmed the amount to be paid, and then paid that amount on the same day."

Captain Condescending: "Well..." (oh, this is starting off on the right foot already) "... they wouldn't say that is the amount to pay because interest is calculated daily."

Me: "Yes, he did say that. I told him I'd like to close my account and asked how much I needed to pay. He told me the amount and that's what I paid."

CC: "Let me explain it to you so you will understand..." (Let me show you the inside of your lip) "...we calculate the interest on a daily basis..." (yes, you mentioned that, Sparky. It's not a difficult concept to grasp) "...so between your statement date and your payment date, you accrued $1.24 in interest."

Me: "So, the person I talked to didn't know the interest would be accrued?? He couldn't just tell me I needed to add $1.24 to the balance?"

CC:  I can hear him rolling his eyes... "What I'll do is I will reverse the $1.24 from your account so we can stay on positive terms..." You are too good to me. What's your name so I can plant a tree in your honor. Maybe I could even write you into my will. What is the appropriate level of grovelling and showering of appreciation for clearing off my entire outstanding balance? I don't want to seem ungrateful to such a generous benefactor.

Part of me wanted to see this go to collections because I'm sure it would've cost them way more than $1.24 to come after me. They have already spent more in postage sending me account statements than what I owed.