Extremely Weird Citi App Decline

Anonymous · ‎04-23-2019

Had the weirdest experience today. Applied for the Citi Premier Apr 13 with the 7-10 days pending message. No update online, so I call reconsideration (18006955171). The agent puts me on hold to verify details. He also asks for DOB and full SSN. Then, he says to continue the verification process he needs to give me an immediate callback. I've had Chase ask for my phone number to send me a verification text during a reconsideration call, so this seems fine to me. I give him my phone number which he says is the one that I applied with. I hang up and wait for half an hour with no calls. So I call back, and someone else then tells me that they can't approve the application because they couldn't verify my information when calling my number twice with no answer. He said that a letter is getting sent in 7-10 days, and that I could reapply again if I wanted to.

I don't have any products with Citi, but from my understanding, my credit is fine. I have never had a problem getting approved for similar cards (Chase Sapphire Preferred, etc.). In the past I have been declined instantly with generic reasons like too many new accounts or no installment loan history, which I understand, but this just doesn't make sense. As well, I am currently travelling outside the United States which could be why my phone line wasn't working properly. Is it worth contacting the Citi EO to see if they could review the application again? It seems ridiculous because everything seemed to be going well until the callback didn't work. If they need to verify my identity I am happy to provide copies of my SSN, ID, proof of address, etc.

mikesonthemend · ‎04-23-2019

You need to provide more information about your credit history in order to get good feedback.

"but from my understanding, my credit is fine."

That isn't sufficient for valuable responses.

Living through Darwinism is so much worse than learning about about it in school.

Anonymous · ‎04-23-2019

If you’re out of the country, it’s possible they flagged a foreign IP address or usage of a VPN as potential fraud, hence the phone call to the number on the app. It makes sense they would deny if they then couldn’t reach you on that phone number regardless of the circumstances. Fraud departments aren’t really known for giving you more than one chance to get it right otherwise they wouldn’t be very effective at stopping fraud so you might just want to wait until you’re back in the states and try again.

Anonymous · ‎04-23-2019

I am actually out of the country right now so that might be why...

ridgebackpilot · ‎04-24-2019

@Anonymous wrote:
If you’re out of the country, it’s possible they flagged a foreign IP address or usage of a VPN as potential fraud, hence the phone call to the number on the app. It makes sense they would deny if they then couldn’t reach you on that phone number regardless of the circumstances. Fraud departments aren’t really known for giving you more than one chance to get it right otherwise they wouldn’t be very effective at stopping fraud so you might just want to wait until you’re back in the states and try again.

+1. Experian doesn't let you access their website at all from a foreign IP address. You have to log in via a VPN based in the United States.

I travel a lot internationally and have had the same kind of trouble applying for cards and CLIs from overseas. It's best to wait until you're back home before applying for anything new. While most modern cellphones work fine overseas, calls don't always go through. Fraud algorithms used by credit card issuers are so effective nowadays that many don't require that you inform them of international travel. But the algorithms are very sensitive to anything coming from a foreign IP address or phone number.

UncleB · ‎04-26-2019

@Anonymous wrote:
I am actually out of the country right now so that might be why...

When I applied for my Double Cash (which used to be a Diamond Preferred) they had to call me back as well. The return phone call was within five minutes of hanging up, and the account approval took place on-the-spot.

It's possible that once you're back in the US and have the glitches worked out with your mobile (?) provider you might be able to get them to reopen the application and try your number again, but since they do the callback for fraud prevention and your number failed you might have to reapply.

In either case it sounds like once the phone issue is resolved you'll be approved.

UncleB · ‎04-27-2019

@Anonymous wrote:
Credit Card companies prefer landlines vs cellphone numbers.

This used to be the case, but it's changing.

Specifically, Chase flat-out says they prefer a mobile phone, and there have been people with Synchrony accounts who only had a land line who reported issues because the Synch rep needed to send them a text message for confirmation and they were unable to receive it.

At one time folks who only had a mobile were at a disadvantage, but these days with so many people only having mobile it's generally not an issue. Today the phone number problems we most often hear about on here are related to VoIP providers... it's common for people who only have a VoIP number to have issues.

Anonymous · ‎04-27-2019

Yeah VoIP numbers are the problem... Don’t use Google Voice or other VoIP numbers if you don’t want to get locked out of Synchrony accounts...