Yes, Virginia, Capitol One Sucks (And Other Credit Notes)
It's been a while since I've written about my favorite topic, credit cards, and an incident today involving a friend of a friend spurred me to action. sidhedevil details the issue here.
It sounds to me like a pre-approved
credit offer which was then withdrawn to make sure they
could get extra fees out of him. Banks do this all the
time, because they don't actually make any money off
people who pay their cards--they have to ding them for
fees and the like to make profit.
Capital One is notorious for bombarding people with
unsolicited credit offers, then pulling this exact
stunt.
My advice:
*Check the terms and conditions of the card
agreement. They usually specify that they can make
changes like this any time without notice, but it
never hurts to find a loophole.
*Get his credit score to see exactly where
he's at, and if he has enough pull to get a better
deal elsewhere.
*I would advise him to either pay the balance off in full as
fast as possible, or call up Capital One and threaten
to transfer the balance to another card. They might
raise his credit limit again just to keep his
business.
*Have him get the highest-level rep on the phone he
can and tell them that he's contacted the Better
Business Bureau and complaint sites like
ConsumerAffairs.Com (wink wink) and will inform them
of this bad business practice if they don't fix
things.
*Cancel that card as soon as humanly possible. Capital
One is the worst of the worst, on many levels.
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2006/09/capital_one_blitz.html
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/credit_cards/capital_one.htm
The key to negotiating with companies like Capital One is to bluff them into thinking you will transfer your card balance. Because so many Americans are already deep in debt, it's difficult to get new customers for plastic, so card companies fight like hell to ensure they can hold the ones they've got in thrall. If you can convince the rep that you found a card with a different company, they may lower your APR or raise your available credit just to keep you on their roster.
Credit cards are basically the tool of the devil. It was reporting on these things that got me doing what I do today, and I am happy to take a shot at them anywhere I can.
For more information:
Things to know about credit, part 1.
Things to know about credit, part 2.
"Escape From The Plastic Prison," my credit primer.
It sounds to me like a pre-approved
credit offer which was then withdrawn to make sure they
could get extra fees out of him. Banks do this all the
time, because they don't actually make any money off
people who pay their cards--they have to ding them for
fees and the like to make profit.
Capital One is notorious for bombarding people with
unsolicited credit offers, then pulling this exact
stunt.
My advice:
*Check the terms and conditions of the card
agreement. They usually specify that they can make
changes like this any time without notice, but it
never hurts to find a loophole.
*Get his credit score to see exactly where
he's at, and if he has enough pull to get a better
deal elsewhere.
*I would advise him to either pay the balance off in full as
fast as possible, or call up Capital One and threaten
to transfer the balance to another card. They might
raise his credit limit again just to keep his
business.
*Have him get the highest-level rep on the phone he
can and tell them that he's contacted the Better
Business Bureau and complaint sites like
ConsumerAffairs.Com (wink wink) and will inform them
of this bad business practice if they don't fix
things.
*Cancel that card as soon as humanly possible. Capital
One is the worst of the worst, on many levels.
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2006/09/capital_one_blitz.html
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/credit_cards/capital_one.htm
The key to negotiating with companies like Capital One is to bluff them into thinking you will transfer your card balance. Because so many Americans are already deep in debt, it's difficult to get new customers for plastic, so card companies fight like hell to ensure they can hold the ones they've got in thrall. If you can convince the rep that you found a card with a different company, they may lower your APR or raise your available credit just to keep you on their roster.
Credit cards are basically the tool of the devil. It was reporting on these things that got me doing what I do today, and I am happy to take a shot at them anywhere I can.
For more information:
Things to know about credit, part 1.
Things to know about credit, part 2.
"Escape From The Plastic Prison," my credit primer.