Dear Claudienne,

I am seeking your help in resolving an issue with a financial institution concerning credit card debt.

On May 2, 2025 I visited First Caribbean International Bank – May Pen Branch (CIBC Caribbean) and received a credit card. I pinned the credit card but did not activate it.

Although I activated the credit card on September 18, 2025, I also received an SMS from the bank on the same date stating that due to the non-payment of my credit card bill, I had been blocked from using it.

I went to the May Pen branch of the bank the following day, September 19, 2025, and made a report concerning the use of the credit card without it being activated by me.

On realising the impossibility of those credit purchases being done by me, the May Pen branch of CIBC Caribbean then notified the card centre that I had not made the credit card purchases.

On a regular basis since then, I have been receiving SMS messages from various departments, emails and telephone calls from representatives of the bank and the credit card centre urging me to resolve the credit card payment issue.

They have claimed the following:

# I have not refuted those transactions within the vendors’ time frame. Therefore, I must pay.

# Goods were sent to my address and were never returned.

# Notifications of transactions were sent to my personal email.

In response to that email from from the card centre, I sent an email stating the following information:

# I never visited or lived in Canada, nor did I have any interest or shared interest in that address: 1533 Marshcourt Drive, Pickering, Ontario, Canada.

#The email address shown to me is not mine.

# I do not have any membership in those clubs/companies. For example,
Instacart. I have never used their platform and have never authorised any transactions through it.

# I did not do any credit credit purchases during the time specified.

# I did not authorise anyone to make any purchase(s) on my behalf.

# I did not give anyone my credit card to use.

# The credit card was activated on September 18, 2025. Therefore, it could not have been used by me.

# I could not have refuted any of those transactions since I have not received any of the usual notifications when a credit card purchase has been made.

I again visited the May Pen branch of the bank and requested an update on their investigation into the matter. I have also sent an email to the card centre in Barbados. A request was sent to me via an email and a telephone call, stating that I should complete a police record. I went to the police station in May Pen, Clarendon on February 23, 2026 and reported the matter. I was told by a detective constable that the matter does not requirve a police record since it is a clear case of scamming (I have shown the police printed copies of all emails and transactions sent to me).

Fast-forward to March 2026, when I began to receive telephone calls and emails from a debt collection agency stating that I must pay the total sum of money in full by April 8, 2026.

I visited the bank again today, April 7, 2026, and spoke to the branch manager. He indicated that since the branch had helped to file the dispute, the investigation would have to proceed. He said that a police report would be needed in order for the bank to pause the instructions it had given the debt collection agency.

I have also given a statement to the police on the matter.

I hereby request your assistance in resolving this matter urgently,.

DB

Dear DB

Tell Claudienne contacted CIBC Caribbean and was sent the following email:

“Further to our correspondence dated April 09, 2026, please note that whilst we are unable to share specific details with you, we re-engaged our client and have since resolved the matter after finally receiving and processing long-awaited documentation from her, which was crucial to our investigation process while also ensuring mandatory adherence to industry and visa protocols.”

You have sent the Tell Claudienne the email that CIBC Caribbean sent you on April 17, 2026.

The email reads as follows:

“We acknowledge receipt of recent correspondence from Ms. Claudienne Ewards of The Jamaica Observer’s public service column, Tell Claudienne, concerning a credit card dispute raised by you.

Our investigation revealed that despite our disputes team contacting you on numerous occasions both verbally and in writing to obtain the required police report to progress our investigation into the cited matter, while also ensuring mandatory adherence to industry and visa protocols, you only provided the requested document on Wednesday, April 15, 2026.

We again thank you for providing the above-mentioned documentation which we have since processed and reimbursed your credit card account for the full amounts disputed by you. This reimbursement will reflect on your credit card account within three to five business days and will be documented on your statement that will be generated on May 07, 2026.

In addition, we have since taken the required steps to recall your account from our recovery partner.

We use this opportunity to remind you of the mechanisms below implemented by the bank to assist clients with the management of their cards.

All transactions conducted on your card are instantly accessible via our online banking or mobile app platform, hence no need to wait until your statement is generated.

We urge you to enable transaction alerts for your card(s) which facilitates instant notification for all transactions.

To complement the above-mentioned measures, we urge you to utilise our online banking or mobile app platform to monitor and review your transactions at least weekly, which will certainly facilitate early detection and reporting of any unusual or unauthorised activity.

In keeping with the Credit Cardholder Agreement, always swiftly adhere to all instructions and requests given and made by the bank, respectively. This action will facilitate faster processing of all matters.

Once more, thanks for giving us the opportunity to serve you.”

We wish you all the best.

Have a problem with a store, utility, or company? Telephone 876-936-9436 or CELL/whatsapp # 876-484-1349 or write to: Tell Claudienne c/o Sunday Finance, Jamaica Observer, 40-42 1/2 Beechwood Avenue, Kingston 5; or e-mail: edwardsc@jamaicaobserver.com. Please include a contact phone number.