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OpenAI says my prepaid credits were consumed, refuses to show any record

How OpenAI lost a paying customer over $160 it refuses to explain

community.openai.com

August 5, 2026

3 min read

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43/100

Summary

A customer experienced a sudden loss of 491.8 Codex credits, which vanished without any recorded usage. After purchasing an additional 1,000 credits for $48.40, those credits also failed to appear in the account.

Key Takeaways

A customer experienced a sudden loss of Codex credits with OpenAI, where a balance of 491.8 credits vanished without usage, and subsequent purchases of credits did not appear in their account.
OpenAI support repeatedly refused to provide itemized records of credit consumption or explanations for account behavior, stating they lacked visibility into account activity.
The customer filed a complaint with the Irish Data Protection Commission due to OpenAI's lack of transparency regarding their billing and credit usage.
The customer documented their own session logs to analyze credit consumption, revealing that the credits were used at an unexpected rate without prior warning from OpenAI.

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Community Sentiment

Negative

Positives

Some commenters are considering using consumer law to challenge credit expiration policies, which could spark broader changes in SaaS practices and protect users.
Setting up limits and auto-reload features is seen as a proactive way to minimize potential losses from expiring credits.

Concerns

Users are frustrated with credits expiring after a year, feeling it's a deceptive practice that undermines trust in AI service providers.
The lack of clarity around credit expiration policies is causing anxiety, with users likening the experience to telecom billing issues.
Comments reflect a growing sentiment that these practices are alienating customers, potentially driving them away from these platforms.