Action: The credit card charge nobody would discuss

In June, we decided to make a huge effort to pay off my deceased mother's and my credit cards. As part of this plan, we started to check very carefully and understand every charge on each credit card statement. One of the charges we investigated was $24.50 for a credit protection fee on our Citibank credit card.

On July 17, we called Citibank and were told that this was a plan my mother had signed up for in March 2001, and that she had been charged the $24.50 every month for this protection. We told Citibank that since she had passed away in August 1998, she could not have signed up for any plan in March 2001.

During the next month, we spoke weekly to various people at Citibank. We recorded their names, and each time we called (because they never called back, as promised) we were told "oh no, that is not the person to talk to/how to resolve this." We were even told that one of the representatives to whom we had spoken didn't exist.

On July 30, we wrote to Citibank Credit Protection Processing Center in Fort Worth, Texas, as instructed, to ask that the monthly charges be stopped. We also asked for a refund of all payments made to date. We never received a reply or an acknowledgement of this letter.

On Aug. 30, we wrote to S. Larson at Citibank in Sioux Falls, S.D., having been given this name by a Citibank Credit Protection employee as the person to contact regarding disputes. Again, we received no response.

On Oct. 8, we sent copies of our July 30 and Aug. 30 letters to S. Larson by certified mail, return receipt requested. We received a delivery confirmation from the post office stamped Oct. 14.

As of today, we have still not heard anything from Citibank. We have had frustrating, difficult issues before in our lives and careers but until now we have never been completely ignored by a company. We hope you will help us. Eugene McGee and Elizabeth McLeod McGee

Response: We have not heard from Citibank, so thanks for your note that the "elusive S. Larson" with Citibank's customer service department in Sioux Falls, S.D., sent you a letter saying that $343 has been credited to your mother's account, representing a full refund of all fees paid.

We cannot pass up the opportunity to remind our readers to check credit card statements when they are received, because errors must be disputed within 60 days of the date of the statement on which they appear.

Elusive furniture exchange

In March 2001, we replaced our bedroom furniture with a new set from Kane's Furniture in St. Petersburg. We followed directions carefully in taking care of the new furniture, but in late 2002 we noticed the drawers in the pearl double dresser were changing to a darker shade in many places. The same problem was occurring in the front drawers of the nightstands.

After numerous attempts, I finally was able to explain the problem to a customer service representative in January. I was told that the manufacturer's warranty was good through March 2004, and an appointment was scheduled for someone to come to inspect the furniture. This was done, and I was told it would be replaced and to expect a call from the store the next day.

After a few days passed with no call, I started calling Kane's myself. An exchange date was finally set up for Friday, Jan. 31, my day off work. We did have to change a doctor's appointment for my disabled husband, as the store could not give us an approximate time until the morning of delivery.

When the new furniture was delivered, the double dresser was the wrong one. Another date was set for the morning of Feb. 7. I called to confirm the date many times and was assured it would be a morning delivery so we could keep our afternoon doctor's appointment. I was told someone would call early that day with the exact time. When no one did, I called and was told the proper dresser had yet to arrive in the store.

When I told the store I was going to write to Action, I got a call from someone who said she was the head of ALL the Kane's stores. She promised to call us back that same day with a solution, but never did. Could you please help us resolve this problem? We no longer trust the store to follow through on the delivery. Eileen and Bob Mattioli

Response: Lynne Graham, customer service manager for Kane Furniture Corp. in Pinellas Park, apologized for your recent experience with the store. She said the St. Petersburg store manager contacted you about the problems with your furniture and as a result the drawers have now been replaced. Graham said the store is sending a $25 gift certificate to be used toward a future purchase.

-- Action solves problems and gets answers for you. If you have a question, or your own attempts to resolve a consumer complaint have failed, write Times Action, P.O. Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731, or call your Action number, (727) 893-8171, or, outside of Pinellas, toll-free 1-800-333-7505, ext. 8171, to leave a recorded request.

Requests will be accepted only by mail or voice mail; calls cannot be returned. We will not be responsible for personal documents, so please send only photocopies. If your complaint concerns merchandise ordered by mail, we need copies of both sides of your canceled check.

We may require additional information or prefer to reply by mail; therefore, readers must provide a full mailing address, including ZIP code. Names of letter writers will not be omitted except in unusual circumstances. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.

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