Is Citi Customer Service good?

A Surprisingly Positive Experience with CitiBank's Customer Service

As someone who's had their fair share of run-ins with customer service, I was pleasantly surprised by my recent experience with Citi. I'm sharing my story in the hopes that it might provide a valuable data point for others who may be considering banking with Citi or are simply curious about their customer service.

It all started when I made a purchase on TikTok Shop a couple of months ago. I bought a pair of fancy-looking tennis shoes that seemed like a great deal, but unfortunately, they didn't fit and were of poor quality. I tried to initiate a return, but the vendor's website didn't have a clear process for doing so. I sent two emails, but didn't hear back, and was starting to think I was out of luck.

The purchase was made on my Citi Custom Cash card, which I had accidentally used instead of my intended card. I had heard mixed reviews about Citi’s customer service, so I wasn't sure what to expect. However, I decided to reach out to them and see if they could help me resolve the issue.

I was able to initiate a dispute online and sent a message to Citi’s customer service team explaining the situation. To my surprise, they responded promptly and started the dispute process. They even provided an immediate provisional credit on my account, which was a nice touch.

What really impressed me, though, was the regular updates I received from Citi about the status of my dispute. I got weekly emails letting me know that they were still waiting to hear back from the vendor and that the deadline for a response was approaching. This level of communication was unexpected, but appreciated.

In contrast, I had a similar experience with American Express, which is often touted for its excellent customer service. My wife had purchased something on TikTok Shop using our American Express Gold card, but the item didn't fit and we had to initiate a return. While the process was started in the app, we didn't receive any updates or communication from American Express for months. We're still not sure what the status of the return is.

My experience with Citi’s customer service was a pleasant surprise, and it's made me rethink my perception of the bank. While I'm sure there are many other data points that might suggest otherwise, I wanted to share my positive experience in the hopes that it might be helpful to others.

If you've had a similar experience with Citi’s customer service, I'd love to hear about it in the comments below. Do you have any tips or advice for navigating the dispute process?

Thanks for reading, and I look forward to hearing your thoughts!