U.S. News
$7 Subway sandwich cost Georgia woman over $7,000 due to app issues
By Jake Beardslee · November 21, 2023
In brief…
- Charge didn't show up until days later when she checked credit card statement
- Bank initially denied dispute claim without specifying reason
- Took over a month of calls and visits to get temporary refund credited
- Woman swears off restaurant rewards apps going forward
A weekly stop for an Italian sub turned into a financial nightmare for one Georgia woman last month. Vera Conner was hit with a $7,112.98 charge for her usual order from a College Park Subway restaurant on October 23 due to what appears to be a glitch with the loyalty app payment system.
Conner told NBC News that when she was inputting her phone number to earn Subway rewards points, the screen must have switched and turned the phone number into an exorbitant tip amount. “I thought this number looks familiar — it was the last six numbers of my phone number. Who would leave a tip like that?” she said.
The shocking charge didn’t show up until days later when Conner checked her Bank of America credit card statement. What she expected would be an “easy fix” turned into a monthlong struggle to remove the charge, with the bank initially denying her dispute claim without specifying a reason.
After repeated calls and even a visit to the Subway location, Conner finally received notification this week of a “temporary credit” for the full disputed amount. While relieved, she told reporters she’s sworn off restaurant rewards programs going forward due to the hassle involved.
“You hear all the time that you should use your credit card instead of your debit card so that these things don’t happen,” Conner said. “I’m even getting mad at the bank because I’m like how did they not think $7,000 was suspicious at Subway?”