This is not a rant, just a breakdown of some shady payment manipulation Citi, and perhaps other banks, are pulling with their system. I caught them trying to sneak interest charges on me and got gaslit by their customer support when I called them out. I used Citi Flex Pay, which is a low interest installment plan that lets you break up large purchases. My last statement balance was \~$1800, with \~$1200 of that being on the Flex plan. This means that my actual non-flex purchases were only \~$550, so to avoid interest, I just needed to pay that amount plus my current Flex installment (which came out to $749.15 total). Here is where they tried to screw me over: Instead of giving me the actual amount needed to avoid interest, they suggested I pay $578.67, labeled as "Remaining Adjusted New Balance + Flex Plan Monthly Payment." Looks reasonable, right? Wrong. That number doesn't actually clear all of my non-Flex charges. It leaves about $200 unpaid, which rolls over and starts accruing interest, exactly what I was trying to avoid. After double checking my math, I called support to see if I was doing the math wrong. This is where they straight-up lied to me. The rep swore up and down that $578.67 would cover everything except future Flex payments (it doesn't). He told me I must have done my math wrong (I didn't). He said I must not have read my statement correctly (I did). When I told him (verbatim), "If I pulled shit like this with a client, I would be fired," he doubled down. Then he offered to take my payment over the phone, as if I would trust them at this point. I just said goodbye and hung up. This is no mistake: Citi is intentionally misleading customers to trick them into paying just slightly less than what's actually needed to avoid interest. If I had not checked the numbers, I would have unknowingly left a balance that would have started accruing interest. They know most people won't do the math and will just trust the suggested payment amount. **This is how banks squeeze money out of people who think they are paying their balance in full.** The takeaway from this: If you use Citi Flex Pay (or any structured payment plan), do your own math. Don't just trust their suggested payment. To avoid interest, you must pay: (Non-Flex Portion of your last statement) + (This month's Flex installment). If you are unsure, manually check your statement and confirm where every charge is coming from. If Citi (or any other bank) tells you a different number, ask them to put it in writing. (Spoiler alert: they won’t, because they know they’re misleading you). The only way to avoid getting screwed is to double-check their math and never assume they have your best interest in mind. I’m sharing this because most people assume their bank is doing the right calculations for them, but they’re not. If you have a Citi Costco Visa or any card with Flex Pay, always verify before paying.

Hi there. Last year in April 2024 I bought small business insurance through Chubb because a client job required it. I paid the annual amount in full at the start. When the year was up in 2025, I didn't renew. They sent multiple bills and I didn't respond because my client was vacillating about continuing the project and I didn't want to spend the money if I didn't need to. Then they sent a notice saying that the policy was canceled, which I expected given I had not paid. But they kept sending bills and emails and it was annoying so eventually I replied that I was not intending to renew, I understood the policy had expired, and if I decided to re-insure, I would be in touch. All of a sudden they came back with a new amount for "earned premium" from the time the policy was canceled for non payment until the time I told them I wasn't planning to renew. Is this standard and normal? To be clear, I paid the full annual amount up front, and just didn't renew the policy by paying for a second year. Their explanation: We apologize for any confusion. There appears to have been a ceding issue on the non-payment cancellation. Therefore, the cancellation effective date is 6/4/2025. The earned premium is the premium amount from the coverage effect date of 4/2/2025 to the cancellation date since the policy cancelled due to non-payment. Can someone advise if this is normal? It's not a huge amount and I can suck it up, but it feels crooked to me because I presume if I had tried to make a claim after the first year was up without having paid, they would not have covered me.

Are there any stated income HELOCs out there? I dragged my feet on UMPQUA which auto approved up to 100k, but when I finally got around to applying, they changed their DTI from 50 to 40% and their estimated DTI for me came 38-43% so it triggered stips. I don't need a HELOC, but would like to open one just in case. Figure is popular, but requires you to draw the full applied amount for, and they charge you 5% off that (big no thanks). I have about $200k in room for 85% CLTV, but I'm ok with max limits of $100k for auto approvals. Anything full doc is not worth my time, so I don't want to go down those avenues, and I don't want anything that requires a draw at open that you get a fat charge on. Thanks!

I booked a flight from LAX to Hanoi through Priceline, flying with Cathay Pacific and transiting through Hong Kong. I had a valid visa for Vietnam, but I was denied boarding because my layover in Hong Kong was 12 hours and 25 minutes, just over the 12-hour limit for visa-free transit. This wasn’t disclosed at the time of booking, and when I asked for help at the airport, Cathay Pacific’s staff couldn’t assist me—they just told me to call their scheduling department. When I called, they initially quoted me $800 to reschedule to a later flight (11 PM), which I agreed to. After a long hold, I asked if I could take the 10 PM flight instead, and they said it would cost another $700. Frustrated but wanting to get there at the same time as my wife, I agreed. They put me on hold again, and then told me they couldn’t book it because it was too last-minute. Suddenly, the only option left was a $4,000 ticket, which I declined. Instead, they promised me a rebooking for the next day that would still arrive on Monday, which was essential for my plans. I agreed. When they finally called back, they had booked me on a flight arriving Tuesday, not Monday—not what I agreed to. And by that time, they had already charged my card. Now, I’ve lost: • My original $900 ticket (Priceline) • The $800 + $700 for rebooking • A $60 cancellation fee • They even charged me toll fees for the call I feel like I was misled, overcharged, and given incorrect information multiple times. Priceline and Cathay Pacific never warned me about the 12-hour transit rule, and Cathay Pacific kept changing the price and booking me on a flight I didn’t agree to. What are my options to get my money back? Can I dispute the charges? Do I have any legal recourse?

Hi everyone, my 77 year old dad is visiting me in May. It's his first time in the US. He has a COPD condition and we recently came to know from his doctor that he needs supplemental oxygen. He had to do a bunch of tests (spirometry, Hypoxic challenge) to qualify for it. The thing is once he is here and it's time To go back, the airline needs him to redo the tests that he's already done. I talked to INF and it looks like they only cover an onset of a pre existing condition. But, this counts as ongoing care. Can anyone recommend an insurance that will be helpful in this case? Thank you so much.

I got an email today regarding an upcoming Progressive insurance payment of $455. I spat my drink and went to look up my policy and to my surpriced, Progressive added a Random dude to my Policy. I have no idea who he is at all. I called Progressive support line and they said they automatically added him because they "Think" he lived in my House. I was pissed and told them i did not consent or even call them to add him. They told me that i agree to their terms and condition bla bla. I got literally no heads up or any phone calls what so ever. They claimed the mailed me about the new change. I rarely check insurance docs as they are either bills i already paid or policy info. To make it worse, this dude has 2 Serious ticketsand an at fault accident. I been a loyal member for over a decade. 0 accidents, 0 tickets. They told me to call them on Monday to fix this "easy" mistake. I was gonna wait till Monday but i couldn't let this mistake fly so i cancelled my policy. I drive my car like once every few months anyways.

I was rear-ended on the freeway (not merging, just came to a stop in traffic and the guy behind me... didn't stop). We exchanged info, I got an estimate from a bodyshop, he opened a claim with his insurance (a Progressive subsidiary). I also alerted my insurance that there had been an accident but did not open a claim. Now I got a message from Progressive asking me to answer questions about the accident. I know them asking for an account of the accident or even coming out to see my car is standard - but they require me to agree to arbitration and a bunch of other terms before even seeing what the questions are. I have no confirmation that the other driver filed the claim assuming fault for the accident so agreeing to all of Progressive's terms seems wrong before having more information. I would be fine emailing photos, my info, and an account of the accident to an agent but the other driver says he doesn't have the info of the agent assigned to the claim. Is it all automated to the point where there is no person that I can communicate with outside of this form?

My dog (cocker) is just over 2 years old, I was with Waggle before but they just keep increasing the price each year and I have never needed them for anything. No claim, no nothing & the only vet she ever needed I paid out of pocket. So decided to cancel and look at other options. I doubt I'll get lucky but is any insurance like an NHS service where I can just pay a monthly fee then everything is covered? Like how us as a human went into a hospital and It's free as we pay for it monthly I spoke to my vet who said insurance works like reimbursement where I would have to outright pay example £10,000 then claim it back from my insurance but I don't have £10,000 just sitting in my bank so how would it work otherwise? (first time doggo owner so sorry if these seem stupid asking)

Really frustrated with navigating car insurance right now. I'm in Chicago suburbs, 2020 camry, and even though I have a much safer car than my previous nissan, this policy is a ton more expensive. My current 6 month progressive policy: 50k 100k 50k, medical payments 2k, uninsured 15k w 250d, comprehensive w 750d, collision w 1000d, and roadside. This costs $563, but with "discounts" or whatever i'm only paying 443 (though i've paid 82 for 6 months so it's Actually 493). It's renewing in 2 weeks and suddenly they want $1055, for 6mo. That's almost doubled WTF? I called, the person pulled strings and said it'd be $483 - just kidding that's if i changed my current policy. If i requote for one through feb it's $981, because I don't have an e-sign (and one other) discount anymore? And that would have saved me $400?? Make that make sense. She tried to see what it'd be if we minimized everything, 25k/50k/20k coverage with literally nothing else still would cost of $500 for 6 months. An independent insurance agent quoted progressive with my current (50k/100k/50k) coverage at $780. These are wildly different numbers. Any discounts available to me saved like 5 bucks. 1k over 6 months for car insurance is insane. I'm still learning to navigate insurance hellscapes. My biggest concern is hitting deer (i travel a lot) or objects on the road (there's always garbage i'm dodging on the highways), so i want at least comprehensive (or is it collision?) and roadside assistance bc I never learned how to do basic car repairs. 2k in medical payments will cover a band-aid at the ER, maybe, so i'm fine getting rid of that and minimizing underinsured (unless that's a bad idea?) and upping deductibles to 750 or 1k if it saves some money. I don't want to be throwing money away because of the appeal to fear that "something might happen" but also don't want to be underinsured and financially screwed if I hit a bumper or someone t-bones my car. Any advice appreciated.

I was rear ended last week. The dude gave me his info, and we both talked with my insurance company and decided to file a claim through his insurance (State Farm). During the phone call he talked about damages to our vehicles. Earlier this week, state farm called and said he denied his car making contact with my car, and they are investigating this. I have some pics of my cars damage, some pics of his insurance info and his id taken at the scene. What’s my best move here? It just seems kinda absurd because why would he give me his insurance info and let me take a picture of his id if there was no contact? Also, his car has no damage because he has a metal front bumper. My cars rear bumper cracked.