Today, 10/27/03, my husband and I discovered a charge we didn't recognize, $89.95 to Essentials in CT, on our recent Citibank credit card statement.
We called the 800 number listed and Jo Lynn (ID#10944) said they had billed us for a Citibank service that we had agreed to. At no point have we agreed to any such service by phone or mail - we do not conduct ANY business through phone or mail solicitation. The service person agreed to remove our charge and suggested we call Citibank to further investigate how the charge appeared.
Citibank agreed that they used Essentials as a telesolicitor but claimed that Citibank only charged $69.95 for the service so that the mistake came from Essentials. They asked us if we had requested a transcript of the phone call that Essentials claimed we made to agreed to the charge, so I called Essentials back to request a copy of the alleged phone call transcription.
Through investigating this complaint site, I found that there could be a link between TV/internet purchases and Essentials frauds. The same day that the Essentials' charge appeared on our bill (10/06/03) we were charged for a ligitimate purchase we made from the first TV vendor we have ever used (SMI*SMI Sales (770-664-1375) in GA). I suspect a connection between these charges because of similar claims by others made on the complaint site. I am also concerned about Citibank's involvement with and apparent endorsement of Essentials.
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