Up until yesterday failing banks and their subsequent bail outs had no personal financial implications for me, other than my tax money being given to millionaires' bonus checks. But that was just great fodder for a ranting blog entry, it really didn't hurt my credit status. My interest rate didn't shoot up as so many others have and the matter seemed somewhat distant to me.
That all changed as of yesterday, when I received a letter from my bank which shall remain nameless but whose initials are B. of A. The letter came from the credit department with whom I have one of my two credit cards. Yes that's right, I only have two, not the 3 to 5 that most Americans carry. The two I carry are with major companies and I do not own a single department store, gasoline, or any other high interest type card. A year or so ago I had more cards but no balances on them and two of them were with B of A. I had heard somewhere that having several open credit cards accounts with zero activity or balances was bad for your credit rating so, I wanted to close them but, you never know when an emergency might pop up and you need some credit.
Enter B of A's marketing department. They solicit me with a valued customer type card that carries a credit limit of $15,000 with a 12% APR. Ah Ha! That one card's limit is equal to the two card's combined limit. Perfect! I can sign up for the new and improved card and close my account on the other two. Hooray!
This was about a year ago. Over the past year I have used the card twice ( purchases that were both a little less than $100) and paid the balance off at the end of the month. As with my only other card, I am very diligent about paying off any balance at the end of the month. Those of you who used to have American Express cards know all about that practice.
Anyway I digress, I was informed by letter (which by the way, was in an envelope that looks very similar to the junk mail letters we receive from credit card solicitations everyday.) that the credit limit I had sign up for was being decreased, literally cut in half! "What?!", I shouted in my living room.
I immediately called the customer service number listed to speak with an agent regarding this matter. In an unprecedented turn of events, a live person answered the phone. It took me a minute to regroup, I was prepared to go through the barrage of computer prompts, button pushes before actually getting to speak to a human being. After identifying myself and verifying my Identity, (interestingly enough their records show that I'm 2 years younger than I really am, if I were a woman I'd be flattered) She says, "How can I help you?"
I tell the nice lady about the letter and ask why this happened. I'll paraphrase: "The reason we lowered your credit limit was based on the usage of your card. It wasn't because of your credit score, it was simply because you don't use the limit you were afforded. And we here are lowering the credit limit of those who aren't using the credit. I hope that explains things for you."
"But what if an emergency arises and I do need that credit that your company solicited from me?" I ask.
"Well sir, you can always put in a request for a higher credit limit."
She's right you can do that but, if you do, it can adversely affect your credit score, the request is may take a day or two while under review, and THE REASON I ACCEPTED THE CARD IN THE FIRST PLACE WAS BECAUSE OF THE CREDIT LIMIT!!! I explained to her that I have been this banks customer in good standing for 20+ years, I explained that I've never had a late payment, over extended my limit, or even had too many credit cards with high balances. All I've done is play by the rules. Now I realize that somewhere in the many pages of small print there is a caveat that allows the credit card company to do what they have done, so they've broken no law here. However, there is also no law against a throwing a raw steak in front of a seeing eye dog helping a blind person cross the street at a busy intersection. Reasonable people just wouldn't do it.
It was very apparent that the agent wasn't going to restore my limit and I was running late for work so, I couldn't really press the matter by speaking to a supervisor. I was very polite, probably too polite but, I know that the paid by the hour telephone agent had nothing to do with some account executive's decision to screw me and several thousand others. So I just asked her to make a notation on my account that I am a very disgruntled customer. (Ooooh! That'll scare 'em.)
However, this isn't over. I'm getting my ducks in a row for the follow up call when I will speak to a supervisor and a higher up if possible. I will explain to whoever listens that 30% of a person's credit score is in direct correlation to how close their balance is to their spending limit. By the bank's action if I need to charge plane fare and hotel accommodations to attend a funeral or visit a sick friend etc. etc. . . . my credit score /rating will take a hit. With the original credit limit I signed up for, this would not be a factor unless I attended several funerals or visited a lot of sick friends.
Not to mention (but I will), the lowering of my score with the big 3 credit reporting companies and the probable raising of my interest rate on my other card.
Contacting the bank again will most likely do no good whatsoever and I may end up just having to switch banks but, not before some one in authority knows that my checking, savings, CDs, and credit card business will be going elsewhere. I know that this bank and some others are going through some tough times right now, and are in dire need of capital but, who's fault is that? ? None of the banks financial woes are any of my doing. Here's a thought: Hold those accountable who did get you into this mess. Whenever I'm short of cash I don't mug the paper boy or some other innocent to tide me over. B of A's board of directors should choose the executive they like the least, and deduct my $7,500 from his or her million dollar bonus check?
DaG out (for now)
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