Written Questions (re Credit Cards)

Snapshot of Question 13:     

What is the 'business case' that cost-justifies Citibank (from Feb. 2017) conducting a major advertising campaign for its Citibank Rewards Credit Card which heavily promotes a 0% interest rate on Balance Transfers (up to 80% of the Credit Limit) for 24 month?

Why is Citibank's 'Important Information' in breach of Regulation 28LFA of the National Consumer Credit Protection Amendment (Home Loans and Credit Cards) Act 2011?

Why does one webpage advertisement for Citibank Rewards Platinum Credit Card omit from its 'Important Information' four of its 10 'Important Information' clauses?

Question 13

Why is Citibank heavily advertising (on radio, television, online and in newspapers) its Platinum Rewards Credit Card which promotes:

  1. 0% p.a. interest rate for 24 months on Balance Transfers with a one off 1.5% Balance Transfer fee1 (then reverts to the cash advance rate)

  2. Reduced annual fee of $49 in the first year and reverts to a discounted ongoing annual fee of $149 2

  3. Access to the Citi Rewards Program with: 1.25 Citi Reward Points per $1 spent on eligible Purchases in Australia (up to $10,000 per statement period) and 1.25 points per $1 spent overseas (uncapped)3

  4. Complimentary International Travel Insurance, Purchase Cover Insurance and more4

Hidden well below Apply Now is fine print which 'inter alia' informs:

Re 1. above, any remaining Balance Transfer amount (after 24 months) informs that the Cash Advance interest rate is 21.74%

Re 2. above, for additional card holders an annual fee also applies, currently $90 per card.

Re 3. above, Citi Rewards are NOT eligible whilst ever you have any Balance Transfer amount outstanding.

Re 4. above, you need to open The Terms and Conditions re Complimentary Insurance at www.citibank.com.au/complimentaryinsurance which is written in tiny Arial 9 font.

 

Is Citibank heavily advertising its Platinum Rewards Credit Card because -

i)          Citibank wants to assist Credit Cardholders that presently have a large Outstanding Indebtedness on one or more 'other bank' Credit Cards to obtain 'interest burden relief' by paying a 1.5% one-off fee on their Balance Transfer amount (up to 80% of their Credit Limit) to secure a 0% interest rate on their Balance Transfer amount for 24 months; or

ii)         Citibank has empirical evidence that many such Credit Cardholders that avail themselves of similar Balance Transfer offers fail to make the Minimum Monthly Payment of 2½% of the Closing Balance each and every month by the Payment Due Date and thereby incur a $10 fee every seven days which is not disclosed on any of its advertised webpage:

Why does Citibank's 'Key facts about this credit card' breach Regulation 28LFA of the National Consumer Credit Protection Amendment (Home Loans and Credit Cards) Act 2011 by not providing contemporaneously when inviting readers to Apply Now a compliant SCHEDULE 6  Key Facts Sheet.

 

Why does Citibank have a Separate advertisement for Citi Rewards Platinum Card as 4 March 2017 which fails to include four clauses in 'Important Information', in particular the below Clause 10 in tiny Arial 10 font?

10. The maximum 55 days interest free period applies when you pay your balance off in full for two consecutive months. If you carry a balance on your credit card from month to month, the 55 days interest free period does not apply and you are charged interest once you make a purchase. No interest free period is available on Cash Advances or when you have Balance Transfers.

Click on:  Citibank Platinum Rewards Card, Citibank Classic Card and Citibank Simplicity Card as 25 Feb 2017. 

About one third down that webpage are 6 'print screens' of the 10 clauses within 'Important Information'. Below that is an extract of the text of those 10 clauses.  'Important Information' appears in 6 separate 'print screens' because Citibank provides its 10 clauses of 'Important Information' in a scrolling box that restricted viewing to 10 rows at a time.

Click on:  Separate advertisement for Citi Rewards Platinum Card as 4 March 2017.

Why are 4 clauses omitted from 'Important Information' in Separate advertisement for Citi Rewards Platinum Card as 4 March 2017 that appear in the other Citibank web add Citibank Platinum Rewards Card, Citibank Classic Card and Citibank Simplicity Card as 25 Feb 2017 (listed above)?

 

Below is text of Webpage e-mail sent 4:12pm Sat 4 March 17 to Citibank 'Contact us':

Please email me the Terms and Conditions for the Citi Rewards Platinum Credit Card which should be provided in an invitation to Apply Now pursuant to Regulation 28LFA - SCHEDULE 6  Key Facts Sheet of the National Consumer Credit Protection Amendment (Home Loans and Credit Cards) Act 2011 as your webpage is inviting me to Apply Now

Grounds for Question 13

Citibank is sanctimoniously/virtuously promoting its 0% p.a. interest rate for 24 months on approved Balance Transfers (for up to 80% of their Credit Limit) on Citi Rewards Platinum Card to 'other bank' Credit Cardholders that presently carry a large Outstanding Indebtedness because -

(i)         the vast majority of these 'other bank' Credit Cardholders possess low Financial Literacy Capacity; and

(ii)        Citibank has empirical evidence that many such 'other bank' Credit Cardholders that avail themselves of similar Balance Transfer offers fail to make the Minimum Monthly Payment of 2% of their Closing Balance each and every month and thereby incur a $10 fee every seven days. 

Citibank displays flagrant disregard for its obligations to prospective new Credit Cardholders, pursuant to Regulation 28LFA of the National Consumer Credit Protection Amendment (Home Loans and Credit Cards) Act 2011, to provide a Key Facts Sheet that accords to SCHEDULE 6 as Citibank's specific Credit Cards webpages invite readers to 'Apply Now'.  

Citibank fails to disclose to prospective 'other bank' Credit Cardholders in its specific Credit Cards webpage advertisements that if the new Credit Cardholder fails to pay the Minimum Monthly Payment of 2% (or $30 whichever is the higher) of the Closing Balance by the Payment Due Date, then Citibank charges a Late Payment Fee of $10 every seven days until the 2% (or $30 whichever is the higher) of the Closing Balance is paid.

 

Summary Page re Written Questions and the Grounds/Reasons

Grounds/Reasons  (one document with 21 Chapters)

Grounds/Reasons  (21 separate Chapters)

Written Questions  (one document with Written Questions)

Written Questions  (Individual Written Questions)