A Customer Says Citizens Bank Denied a $300 Savings Bonus on Terms It Never Disclosed
The offer came in the mail. The terms, the customer says, changed after they signed up.
The Case
A customer received a mailed offer worth $600 for opening a checking account and a savings account at Citizens. The savings account part was worth $300 if they made a $200 deposit each month for three months. The customer says they were told at sign-up that a deposit made online that evening would count as the first of the three. They made the deposits, received the checking bonus, and never received the savings bonus.
The Consumer
They say they went to the branch several times and were told the bonus would come the next month. They filed a complaint in person at the branch, then went back for an update and learned that the bank had called with a result, which they say they never received. When the matter was escalated, a letter from the Office of the Chairman said the savings bonus was declined because they made only one deposit in a particular month. The consumer says that is untrue, and that their statements show the deposits. The letter also said the first deposit had to be made the month after the account was opened, which they say contradicts what they were told at sign-up. They say they called the number in the letter about 12 times, left messages, and never heard back.
The Institution
Citizens Financial Group received the complaint on 11 April 2023, responded on time and closed it "with monetary relief". The public data does not say whether this was the $300.
What the Law Said
Advertising for deposit accounts, including bonuses, is regulated: the terms that matter have to be clearly disclosed, and misleading advertising can be treated as a deceptive practice. The consumer's claim is, in substance, that the terms stated at sign-up and in the denial letter were different. Whether that amounts to a violation depends on the written offer terms, which the complaint does not include.
What Was Decided
There was no ruling. The company reported closing the complaint with monetary relief. This is self-reported and not verified by the CFPB.
Why It Matters
A bonus that is a few hundred dollars is rarely worth a lawsuit, so disputes like this either end at the branch or are abandoned. Here the customer followed the complaint through three levels (branch, executive office, CFPB), and the company reported monetary relief at the last. The consumer's case also turned on a paper document, the offer, which decides what the promise was.
What You Can Learn From This
- Keep the mailed offer or take a screenshot of the web offer before you sign up. The terms in writing at that moment are your evidence.
- Ask at the branch for the terms in writing, with the exact deposit rules and dates, and keep the answer.
- If an executive office denies the bonus, ask for the specific term it relies on, then compare it with the offer.
Documents & Evidence
Primary source: the CFPB complaint record (ID 6822179).
Authority: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)
Jurisdiction: United States
Outcome: Closed with monetary relief (self-reported)
Investigation: The Copy-Paste Complaint: How Templates Took Over America's Financial Complaint Database →
Dataset: The CFPB Complaint Vault Dataset (Zenodo, DOI) →
A CFPB complaint is the consumer's account, not a finding of fact. Company responses are self-reported and are not verified by the CFPB.