Be aware of your responsibilities for paying your credit card on time

Key Learnings:

• You are responsible for making any outstanding payments on your credit card.
• Accepting the terms and conditions for a product means that you agree with and acknowledge them.

Mr. S had his credit card for approximately one year. He made regular monthly payments online. Every month, he said he received an email notification that his online statement was available.  At that point, he would look at it and note the due date on which his payment was due.

After the bank updated its website, Mr. S said he did not receive the email notification. The area where he found his statements and balances online also looked different. As a result, he did not pay his outstanding balance, and accumulated interest charges of $40.00 for two months in July and August. He believes that he was unfairly charged because he did not get the email informing him that his statement was available. Mr. S asked to be compensated for the full interest charges plus $90 for his time.

The bank declined to compensate Mr. S. After our investigation, OBSI agreed.

Why was Mr. S. not compensated?

When he applied for the credit card, Mr. S agreed to the terms laid out in the cardholder agreement. The agreement stated that the holder must continue to make payments even if delivery of a statement is delayed. The holder also has the responsibility to contact the bank or access their account online to meet their payment obligations.

Mr. S made his payments in full online every month previously, meaning that he was aware of this responsibility. An explanation of how interest was calculated and charged was found on the statements OBSI reviewed. The statements also included clear instructions on how to make a minimum payment.

Mr. S acknowledged that he had frequently used the credit card during the period in question. He said he was aware that there was a balance owing. OBSI found that the bank sent Mr. S emails on July 8 and August 6, notifying him that his credit card statements were available online.

The bank records also showed he logged onto his account over fifty times between that same period, which Mr. S acknowledged. During these visits, he could have viewed his credit card account balance, transaction and monthly statements. OBSI confirmed that the website showed a list of all accounts and balances, including credit card accounts.

There is no evidence that Mr. S was prevented from getting the necessary information to make his payments. As well, he acknowledged the terms of the credit card usage at the outset. Since he missed the minimum payment, the bank had the right to charge interest on his outstanding balance.

This complaint was not upheld.

(2016)