Apple Card Customer Service Woes Responsible for Goldman Sachs Regulatory Probe

The popularity of the Apple Card caused Apple partner Goldman Sachs to struggle to deal with customer service issues, according to a new report from CNBC. The problems have in part led to a Goldman Sachs investigation by the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

apple card 1 iPhone 13
Goldman Sachs was subject to more disputed transactions than it had anticipated, with customers seeking chargebacks for products and services. When a customer asks for a chargeback, Goldman Sachs must follow regulations to reach a resolution within an acceptable timeline, and apparently failed at doing that. A source that spoke to CNBC said that customers were provided with conflicting information or were subject to long wait times.

‌Apple Card‌ business created long queues that needed to be cleared out, and Goldman Sachs was unprepared. There was no streamlined process in place for resolving customer complaints.

The bank hadn't initially accounted for what insiders deemed "edge cases," or situations that break from the norm among the vast majority of transactions, they said.

"We were making the case that we have a seamless way to dispute transactions," the source said. "But we got no credit for the front end, and we had some failures on the back end."

The CFPB is now examining how Goldman Sachs handled customer refunds, billing error resolution, refunds, reporting to credit bureaus, and more. Regulators are looking into customer complaints from the past several years, many related to attempted chargebacks. Goldman Sachs has now devoted more resources to automating additional parts of the chargeback process, and it is cooperating with the CFPB inquiry.

Top Rated Comments

d-klumpp Avatar
23 months ago
Wish Apple chose anyone other than the scum at GS to back their card.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
icanhazmac Avatar
23 months ago
So Apple broke the bank? ?
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BootsWalking Avatar
23 months ago
Goldman Sachs acting against its own customers' financial interests? Didn't see that coming :rolleyes:
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
alexandr Avatar
23 months ago

I'm curious why there were so many disputed transactions. I'd imagine most transactions were done using ApplePay so that should be secure and not see too many fraudulent charges. Cardholders disputing auto billing charges for services like AppleTV+, Netflix, etc that they forgot to cancel (like after a trial period) maybe? ?‍♂️
I think that's just the normal state of today's consumerism. I had an extensive conversation with an AMEX rep regarding this, and she told me that the amount of people who are trying to abuse the protection that AMEX grants them is absolutely insane.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bladerunner88 Avatar
23 months ago
The Great Vampire Squid.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sw1tcher Avatar
23 months ago

Goldman Sachs was subject to more disputed transactions than it had anticipated, with customers seeking chargebacks for products and services.
I'm curious why there were so many disputed transactions. I'd imagine most transactions were done using ApplePay so that should be secure and not see too many fraudulent charges. Cardholders disputing auto billing charges for services like AppleTV+, Netflix, etc that they forgot to cancel (like after a trial period) maybe? ?‍♂️
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

ChatGPT for Mac

OpenAI Announces ChatGPT App for Mac, GPT-4 for Free, and More

Monday May 13, 2024 10:43 am PDT by
At its Spring Update event, OpenAI announced that it will be releasing a desktop app for the Mac, as seen in the screenshot below. The app will be rolling out to ChatGPT Plus subscribers starting today, ahead of a wider launch "in the coming weeks." "With a simple keyboard shortcut (Option + Space), you can instantly ask ChatGPT a question," OpenAI's press release says. In addition, Voice...
iOS 17

Apple Releases iOS 17.5 With Cross-Platform Tracking Detection, EU App Downloads From Websites and More

Monday May 13, 2024 10:04 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5, major updates to the iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 operating system updates that came out last September. The 17.5 updates come more than two months after the launch of iOS 17.4 and iPadOS 17.4. iOS 17.5 and iPadOS 17.5 can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. In the European Union, ...
apple tv 4k red image

Apple Releases tvOS 17.5

Monday May 13, 2024 10:01 am PDT by
Apple today released tvOS 17.5, the fifth update update to the tvOS 17 operating system that came out last September. tvOS 17.5 comes two months after the release of tvOS 17.4. tvOS 17.5 can be downloaded using the Settings app on the ‌Apple TV‌. Go to System > Software Update to get the new software. ‌Apple TV‌ owners who have automatic software updates activated will be upgraded to ...
iOS 17

Troubling iOS 17.5 Bug Reportedly Resurfacing Old Deleted Photos

Wednesday May 15, 2024 5:29 am PDT by
There are concerning reports on Reddit that Apple's latest iOS 17.5 update has introduced a bug that causes old photos that were deleted – in some cases years ago – to reappear in users' photo libraries. After updating their iPhone, one user said they were shocked to find old NSFW photos that they deleted in 2021 suddenly showing up in photos marked as recently uploaded to iCloud. Other...
CarPlay Sound Recognition

Apple Previews Three New CarPlay Features Coming With iOS 18

Wednesday May 15, 2024 9:18 am PDT by
Apple today previewed new accessibility features coming with iOS 18 later this year, and this includes some new options for CarPlay. Apple highlighted three new features coming to CarPlay: Voice Control: This feature will allow users to navigate CarPlay and control apps with just their voice. Color Filters: This feature will make the CarPlay interface visually easier to use for...
macos sonoma 4

Apple Releases macOS Sonoma 14.5 With Apple News+ Improvements

Monday May 13, 2024 10:04 am PDT by
Apple today released macOS Sonoma 14.5, the fifth update to the macOS Sonoma operating system that launched last September. macOS Sonoma 14.5 comes more than two months after the launch of macOS Sonoma 14.4. The ‌‌‌‌‌macOS Sonoma‌‌‌ 14.5 update can be downloaded for free on all eligible Macs using the Software Update section of System Settings. There's also a macOS 13.6.7...