I received a seemingly generous offer in the form of a letter on 8/11/2003 from Citibank to get 5% cash back on all qualified purchases through 2/28/2004 (up to $100). Refer to Letter #1 below.

After calling Citibank's customer service number on the back of my Platinum MasterCard to confirm the offer, even making sure a note on my account at Citicorp stated that I was really eligible for this offer, I switched all of my purchases to Citibank from a Wells Fargo MasterCard awards program that paid 2%. I proceeded to limit my spending at supermarkets, discount stores, drug stores and gas stations to my Citi card (up to the qualified amount) until the offer ended on February 28, 2004.

Approximately 2.5 months in the future, I received a disturbing letter on 10/21/2003 from Citibank stating: "We recently discovered that we inadvertently sent you a Cash Back offer for purchases as Grocery, Drug, and Discount Stores, and Gas Stations. Please be advised that the offer is not available to you based on your account status at the time the offer was mailed. We apologize for this error and any confusion it may have caused." Refer to Letter #2 below.

I have excellent credit (with no late payments in many years) and a very high FICO score, and recently I paid off the mortgage in full. I wondered what's up, and why the offer "is not available to you based on your account status at the time the offer was mailed"?

I called the Citibank customer service number on my card and spoke with a representative, who confirmed that my account status is excellent with no late payments in my history. She proceeded to put me on hold to ask a supervisor why I was disqualified. She returned to explain that the supervisor confirmed it had nothing to do with my good standing as a Platinum account holder, but that I was sent this offer in error along with many other Citibank card holders.

I asked to speak with a supervisor and asked her to honor their agreement since I had lost awards points in another credit card awards program by switching my purchases to Citibank. I reminded her that they made all this money charging a small percentage of my purchases to merchants to whom I charged my purchases. She refused and extended apologies on behalf of Citibank for any "inconvenience" this has caused. I went on to tell her that reneging on an agreement after the fact is fraudulent and makes Citibank "a criminal organization like Enron." She said that she could understand why I felt this way.

Another supervisor I spoke to at Citibank explained that Citibank had simply decided not to go through with this generous offer after it failed in "test markets." He also said that Citibank is not required to fulfill agreements that it retroactively decides to cancel. I was then transferred to a representative who offered to lower my interest rate on my card by 9% and place me in a program that pays 2% cash back on all future purchases.

As far as I'm concerned, I might as well have been mugged at a Citibank ATM by this bank's own representatives. I'm very bitter and in good conscience cannot ever use my Citibank Platinum card again. I have put it into a drawer with other cards that I never use. I didn't cancel the account because I recall reading somewhere that it costs them more to maintain accounts that are never used, than if I canceled the card. I want them to pay for seriously damaging my faith in the honesty and integrity of the banking system.

Letter #1:

"For your card ending in: [last four digits of my card]

"Get 5% Cash Back automatically on everyday purchases through February 28, 2004.

"Dear [My full name as it appears on my Platinum Citibank MasterCard]:

"OK, here's the scoop. Get rewarded for the things you buy every day. Now you can get 5% cash back until 2/28/04 for everything you buy at supermarkets, discount stores, drug stores and gas stations.* Just do your everyday shopping and remember to reach for your Citi(R) Platinum Select(R) Card and watch you8r cash back add up fast.**

"Start getting cash back today.

"You don't have to sign up or call. Whether you're picking up ice cream at the grocery store (yes, ice cream sometimes counts as a necessity), shampoo at your local discount store, a drug store prescription, or even pumping gas, you'll get rewarded just for using your Citi Card and shopping the way you normally do.

"Getting cash back just for using your Citi Platinum Select Card for doing what you do anyway. That's using your card wisely.

"Sincerely,

"Kendall E. Stork
"President and CEO
"Citibank (South Dakota), N.A.

"P.S. 5% cash back lasts until 2/28/04. So make the most of it by making your Citi Platinum Select Card the only card you use. And get rewarded for the things you buy every day.

" * Purchases that are eligible to earn cash back under this offer are purchases made at supermarkets, drug stores, discount stores, and gas stations or similar type purchases that Citi determines are eligible under this offer. You can get up to $100 cash back for the duration of the promotional period. Cash back is not earned on returned purchases, cash advances, convenience checks, transferred balances, fee and finance charges. For further details please refer to the back of this letter.

" ** You'll receive cash back in the form of a statement credit posted to your account once within 60 days after November 30, 2003, and once within 60 days after the offer end date of February 28, 2004."

-End of Letter #1-

(The back of the letter referenced in the footnote provides the definitions of "Discount stores, Supermarkets, Drug Stores and Gas Stations.")

Letter #2

"Dear [My full name as it appears on my Platinum Citibank MasterCard]:

"For your account ending in: [last four digits of my card]

"We recently discovered that we inadvertently sent you a Cash Back offer for purchases as Grocery, Drug, and Discount Stores, and Gas Stations. Please be advised that the offer is not available to you based on your account status at the time the offer was mailed.

"We apologize for this error and any confusion it may have caused.

"Sincerely,

"S. Larson
"Customer Service"

-End of Letter #2-


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