program cheating or a glitch
I thought the 3 fold draw was automatic and think it should be (Fritz draws automatically); however, in my opportunities to draw since discovering this rule, I have found that it is not a big deal.
You can't get a draw, automatic or claimed by just one person repeating moves. The position of both player's pieces has to be the same.
Neither player can claim the draw on chess.com without the other player having the same option.
It sounds like you are saying that if I make a 3rd move that creates a third repetition, I cannot claim the draw.
Here is an example(Ignore the fact that there is insuficent material to mate):
You click the Draw button. If there is a legal reason for it, then it will be automatically accepted. Otherwise, your opponent will have to accept the draw.
I've seen people mention that the draw button text changes to 'Claim Draw'. But I don't know if this is true.
It does change in online chess, definitely.