So I made an online payment transfer to my Credit Card today

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

The BANK sent out a letter yesterday (November 2) informing me they were cutting my credit limit in HALF.

I of course didn't know this yet, today being November 3rd and the mail not arriving at 7:00am or earlier.

As usual I paid MORE than the minimum payment and then pulled up my Credit Card information to see my balance. I thought it must be a typo. I had $146.00 available credit.

WHAT? Yesterday I had $2400.00 available!

I called The Bank and spoke to an 'Agent' who informed me about the letter sent yesterday and said they, The Bank, do this because of information gathered from my credit report and to check with one of the credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Transunion, Experian).

Well I pay one of these agencies monthly, and have for over a year, to watch over my credit and inform me of changes etc.

I check my credit report monthly, I always or nearly always pay my credit cards More than the minimum and always pay before the payment is DUE

I am still getting offers of credit. I have a good to excellent credit rating because of my credit history.

5/3 Bank cut my credit in half and their agent told me it was because of what is in my credit report and my credit history.

I guess The Bank told their 'Agents' to Lie about the lowering of credit for consumers (right before the Holidays) because they didn't want to be honest and forthright and say, We're putting the Screws to our customers and the Tax Payers.

[xchrom]

1. oh it's a bizarre world right now when it comes to these banks/credit card

companies.

it's amazing this stuff hasn't set a fire with our democratic pols -- but oh no -- business as usual.

[Neecy]

2. They probably wanted you to thank them....

For not raising your rate to 29%.

We keep hearing about the credit crunch for small business, but credit for the middle class is becoming tight as well. As housing prices continue to fall less and less can refinance, plus many credit card companies are attempting to shut down credit even for those with stable incomes and good scores. It wouldn't surprise me to see the weaker banks who are seeing a high default rate get out of the credit card business altogether. The interest rate increases and reduction of available credit is the first step to this.

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

4. It's almost time to buy new checks

I might change my checking account to a different bank now. At least that part of my business they won't have.

[Paper Roses]

12. BTW, checks are much cheaper if you buy them direct.

Perhaps you know this but the check printing companies that advertise in newspapers coupon sections are much cheaper than buying them from your bank.

They can be found in a web search too. I rotate companies so I always get the artificial 'new customer' discount. I get 600 duplicate for less than my bank charges for 300 1 part checks.

Checks in the mail
Checks4you
Artistic Checks
Many others

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

24. Yeah

I was planning on doing that. I get those mail ads with check suppliers/printers in them. Much cheaper than the bank.

In fact the last time I ordered the bank sent me a different design than the one I ordered. I wanted regular plain checks.

Instead they sent Disney Bugs Bunny checks. Then took an additional $5.00 out of my account to cover the cost of printing them!

[pitohui]

53. it is cheaper not to use checks at all

i'm starting to see the problem here

you don't know if you have good or excellent credit, which are two VERY different animals, and you are really not a very sophisticated consumer -- it has been well publicized for months that BOA has serious issues and will be cutting credit lines, it is nothing personal to you, but "good" -- AKA "mediocre" credit is just not good enough anymore -- one illness, one round of unemployment and a person with a "good" credit rating can't make their payments

*IF* you truly had excellent credit, you wouldn't care that your line of credit was cut, you would simply get credit elsewhere and enjoy the new customer bonus, they're still around, i have just tested it myself and received a new customer bonus of $50 off my first amazon.com order

as far as checks, it's 2009, and this speaks to your sophistication in using the system --

you should not be using checks at all at this stage of the game, too easy to get online bill pay plus a debit card

just went through this with a friend, he was being charged a nuisance fee of $10 a month to have a checking acct, plus cost of checks, plus $3 every time he did a transfer -- this is NOT 1999 any more -- there is no reason to pay any of these fees -- i walked him through closing the acct and opening a MODERN checking acct, where there is no fee to keep a balance above $50 AND there is no charge to make billpays

he writes one physical check a year, for the amt of money saved it's worth it to stop by the post office and buy a money order for 75 cents

instead of wasting around $240 a year on fees, checks, etc.

i have set him up a savings acct that takes what he was paying in fees every months and auto-transfers it for free to his saving acct, at the end of the year he will now have a nice savings for buying christmas gifts, money that was otherwise going to chase for doing fuck all

[ET Awful]

37. There are also companies like "Message Products" that donate to charities

for each box you buy.

I have these checks from them right now:

http://www.messageproducts.com/shop/product.aspx?ProductID=8MDPPCHK%28Base%29&CategoryName=CKANM-MP%28Base%29&SubcategoryName=Wildlife-CKANM-MP%28Base%29&CategoryCode=



They're pretty cool, they're also printed on recycled paper with vegetable inks :).

[Paper Roses]

3. It never ends, does it! I'm waiting for the same thing to happen.

I have B OF A, interest rate is still the same but I know that will not last. I have made arrangements with my local bank for a new card and if B of A messes with my interest rate or start charging me a fee I will switch quicker than a flash. My local bank knows and has already OK'd this.

Their rate is higher than my current B of A but still lower than the raised figures I see quoted by others. I do not want another card but we all need one in case of emergency.

Why do they penalize those with good payment records? Do they think we will not get angry and try to find another alternative? Short sighted on their part. They already make a chunk of change from what they charge the merchants. Now to make people pay huge interest, fees, and cut credit lines. It stinks. No polite way to put it.

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

5. yep

see my reply to #2

[Barack_America]

6. BofA did this to me several months ago. I too check my credit score regularly...

Nothing had changed.

BofA also closed a line of credit without telling me and then sent me checks to use towards that line of credit...after they had closed it!

They got an earful from me for that one.

I also just opened another credit card (considering my main cards are BofA and Citi, one of which will surely go under). So my credit is clearly not bad.

[ET Awful]

7. If you have used close to 50% of your available credit across numerous cards

many banks, even before the current BS, would have cut limits (I was seeing this happen years ago).

Paying on time is only a small part of what banks or card issuers look at. If, as it looks like from your post, your original limit was $4800, you used $2254 and you have other cards with similar utilization, it wouldn't be that unusual for banks to take adverse action.

Is it good? No, but it's not unusual.

AMEX did this to a LOT of people over the past year (I personally know of someone who had credit lines totalling over $100,000 with Amex cut to $15,000 despite perfect payment history and a very high income).

The agent can only tell you that because they are limited by banking and credit reporting regulations as to what they can say.

Does it suck? Sure. I've had the same thing happen with my Cabela's Visa, they cut my limit from $8,000 down to $4,800 right after I took advantage of a balance transfer offer, leaving me with $90 of available credit.

BUT, I look at it like this. . . I'm not entitled to that extra $3,200 of available credit. It was never my money to begin with.

I'll get a LOT more upset if they raise my rate on money I've already borrowed (which is far more harmful in the long run).

It's tough, but if you're still getting offers of credit, that means your credit is still sound. Dump them, go with a credit union and you'll most likely never face the issue again.

[Mopar151]

9. Does the principle of good faith hold water these days?

'Cuz I have a card which jacked me to 26%, along with raising the minimum payment and becoming a cornucopia of $39.95 'fees".
Now that I'm unemployed for a while, the balance has gone exponential! And they keep calling, with dire warnings about putting me in "chargeoff" - if this is'nt extortion, it's extortion's cousin, Earl.

[ET Awful]

10. Now THAT is the type of stuff that really pisses me off.

The rate-jacking and fees is what really screws you.

Unfortunately, the doctrine of "good faith and fair dealing" is rarely applicable to credit cards, at least not in any real way.

When Amex slashed limits on the person I referred to it almost shut down his business because he relied on the Amex (which was paid pretty much in full every month unless there was an office equipment purchase they might carry for two months). It was used for ordering stock, travel and lodging, etc. But Amex was able to almost shut his business down.

So, after they screwed him, he went to a small local bank, got a line of credit, along with a Visa from them and has had no problems since.

I think the main risk comes from dealing with large banks. I've always had better luck dealing with small local banks, or (even better) credit unions.

Out of curiosity, what bank rate-jacked you? I'm going to take a wild guess and say Chase or Capital One (who is notorious for it).

[Mopar151]

13. State Farm n/t

[ET Awful]

31. Really?

Wow, that surprises me. State Farm has always treated me really well.

I'll have to keep an eye on them, thanks for the heads up.

[Mopar151]

55. Exactly.

The credit card operation appears to be seperate - The local State Farm agents can't even take a payment. And, BTW, the insurance side is meaner and more expensive than in the past (Since they lost their socks & underwear on the Gulf Coast)

[ET Awful]

66. I was taking about the bank. I've been using them for a few years for a Visa and have had

no problems. I'll have to keep an eye on them.

If you want a tip for a bank/Visa program that has EXCELLENT customer service, although I'd probably never shop at their stores . . .

Nordstrom Bank.

Their bank customer service is a match for their store customer service which is legendary :).

[Shell Beau]

26. AMEX called my aunt (who always pays way past

the minimum before it is due) before her bill was due on a Sunday morning. They wanted to let her know that her bill was about to be due. This is unacceptable. She hadn't even received the bill in the mail. I guess they get the people who they know pay timely when times are tough. Way to push away customers.

[Robb]

8. Banks are rolling in their credit lines *everywhere*.

I'm quite concerned as to what it means they think is going to happen.

[SoCalDem]

17. They "know" what's going to happen

They know that the huge amounts of credit they extended, were unrealistic, and that many more people will default, whether they declare bankruptcy or not. You cannot get blood from a stone.

What needs to happen , is a law passed to force them to "write off" debts that are a result of extreme interest-on-interest debt.

With the computing power available these days, it would be easy as pie to determine if the original amount charged (plus a reasonable amount of interest) has been paid (sometimes many times over), and then to wipe that debt clean..along with canceling the account, so people can be free of them. Banks need to grow up and accept the fact that for decades, THEY had extended credit, unwisely, to many people who never should have had credit cards to start with, and who have little or no capability to ever pay them off.

[gkhouston]

18. Very true. It used to be they bumped your credit limit UP ridiculously.

They kept bumping me up and up when I was in grad school, for no apparent reason. I reached a point where my credit limit on one card was 25% of my annual income -- not hard to do for a grad student :-), but I thought it was an insane credit practice.

At another point in my life, I called to ask them to bump me up $500 because it was a very active month and I thought I would be getting very close to my credit limit, although I still intended to pay in full when the bill came. They increased my limit by $4000. Within a year, they'd increased the limit again by an additional $2000, for no apparent reason. I rarely charged more than $500 a month to that card, and almost always paid it off immediately.

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

11. Email I sent to The Bank

This morning I spoke to one of your representatives regarding the available credit on my 5/3 credit card. I had made an online transfer of funds from my checking to my credit - before the due date - as I always do, and noticed my Credit Card Limit had been cut nearly in 1/2.

The representative said this was due to what the Bank found in my Credit Report and Credit History.

I belong to Equifax and have for over one year. I have not been delinquent on any Card or payment to any lender. I have a Credit Score of 682. I check my Credit Report monthly.

Why did 5/3 Bank cut my Credit Card Limit nearly in Half?

Again, WHY DID 5/3 BANK CUT MY CREDIT CARD LIMIT IN 1/2?




I'll be waiting for their new reason.

[ET Awful]

33. You won't get any more elaboration.

They've already given you all the information they're required to by law.

As I said below the Equifax score means nothing to them (especially if they get their scoring info from Transunion or Experian), you need to get your actual FICO scores which will cost you money (go to myfico.com and you can get two of them, but I don't think they offer the Experian score any more).

As an example, my "Equifax" score is 720, my actual FICO using the information from Equifax is 640.

Even if your FICO was 682, most banks would consider that high risk these days. Most banks (that aren't "sub-prime") would require a 680 just to get your foot in the door, and you'd be paying their highest tier of interest.

With my Cabelas Visa, when they cut my limit, I spoke with the undewriting deparment who told me that under their new underwriting criteria I wouldn't qualify for ANY limit if I were to apply to day, they now require at least a 680 and that will only get you a $1,000 line of credit.

The fact is that you can scream at them 'til you're blue in the face. The current credit situation, underwriting criteria, etc. are what determines it. The person reading your e-mail or talking to you on the phone knows NOTHING about why your limit was cut. That is handled by computer in most cases. It compares your actual FICO score against their pre-set underwriting criteria. If you don't meet their requirements, your limit is cut, APR is increased, etc.

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

50. Well 5/3 Bank

is one of the banks at risk of failing too.

The message back from The Bank is the letter sent via postal mail has the details.

Regardless, I'm moving my checking account and paying them only the minimum on the credit card every month.

They make out in the long run but so be it, I don't need them or their card anyway.

The current situation with the banks really sucks for everyone except the bankers. One day I'm getting offers from American Express (the green card) and then the local bank is cutting my credit limit.

I have other lines of credit available so it's not as if this leaves me hanging.

Thanks for your input ET Awful.

[ET Awful]

51. I HIGHLY recommend finding a credit union to join . . .

Best service, no fee checking, no underhanded tactics with their credit products, etc.

Well worth it.

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

71. hey thanks

[CreekDog]

14. Chase just raised my Amazon Card APR to 24.99% (29.99% for cash advances)

I used to use it for things like gas and whatnot to get the points on Amazon, but with the APR so high, as well as the late fee, along with the weirdly shifting grace periods, I have basically stopped using it since one little mistake (like paying a bill too early!) could land me with a $39 late fee and now much higher finance charges.

Oh and I have 800+ credit scores and rarely carry a balance, although when I go on vacation it might take me 2-3 months to pay it down. Well that won't happen on my Chase card anymore, since my Credit Union is charging 13%.

[Divine Discontent]

30. reading your story, wow, rec to your post! they don't want you as a customer then, do they?

paying a bill early is a BAD thing? only in credit card world, right?

[DebbyKa]

15. 682 ain't good.

Credit Range

This chart is kind of the same outdated thinking about credit score that you've got.

While I don't agree with what the credit card companies are doing lately, a 682 isn't anywhere close to excellent. Anything less than 720 is likely a target for the credit card companies.

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

22. Equifax Credit Score

Their site claims my score is one Most Lenders would consider good.

Also that a 700 Score puts you in the range of 5% risk to creditors.

You may be right, I don't know anything about it.

I get my Statements and pay my Bill, often a considerable percentage over the minimum due.

I just feel like The Bank pulled a fast one and screwed me over.

I've joined the - FU We Who Have All The Money and Power Have Screwed You When You Weren't Looking - club.

[ET Awful]

32. Any score but FICO is worthless. Banks don't pay attention to any other scoring.

Equifax, TU, and Experian all have their own scoring, but it's really meaningless in the overall scheme of things other than as a means to get you to pay them money.

The only score that means anything to any lender is FICO. It is a closely guarded formula, and no score from any other source will accurately approximate it.

You could have a 700 Equifax score and only have a 500 FICO (I've seen it happen).

FICO is the only score that has any purpose insofar as your creditors are concerned. EVEN if they get the info from Equifax, the score they are using is FICO, not an Equifax score (which is a totally different formula).

I highly recommend going to creditboards.com and reading up on some of this stuff, you'll find lots of good info.

[FBaggins]

39. Your post is not quite correct.

All three of the major credit reporting services use FICO. The scores between the three (and the gap you cite is unusually high) vary more due to differences in data than in scoring forumula.

[ET Awful]

40. My post is entirely correct

Perhaps I should have stated it more clearly though.

EVERY bureau can provide a FICO score to a bank, they usually will not provide it to a consumer. They have each, however, developed their own scoring system.

The score that a consumer can purchase from each of the three is NOT a FICO score in most cases.

They will be marketed as "PLUS" scores, "Vantage" scores, etc. These are not FICO scores and should not be confused with them.

There is, indeed, a difference between your scores with each bureau, however, that has no bearing on the accuracy of my post.

Many people will refer to non-FICO scores as FAKO scores because they are just that, fake, and they are not used by any lender. You can usually tell it's fake by the range of scores available. Some of these FAKO scores have a maximum of 990. A FICO score maxes out at 850.

There will often be a disparity of anywhere from 10 to 100 points in either direction between an actual FICO score and any given FAKO score. What you get from one of those monthly monitoring services is not FICO.

I'll quote Wiki on this (for lack of another quickly found link):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Credit_score#United_States

"There are different methods of calculating credit scores. FICO, the most widely known type of credit score, is a credit score developed by FICO, previously known as Fair Isaac Corporation. It is used by many mortgage lenders that use a risk-based system to determine the possibility that the borrower may default on financial obligations to the mortgage lender. The credit bureaus all have their own credit scores: Equifax's ScorePower, Experian's PLUS score, and TransUnion's credit score, and each also sells the VantageScore credit score. In addition, many large lenders, including the major credit card issuers, have developed their own proprietary scoring models."

The proprietary scores referred to are usually another version of FICO referred to as "Credit Card enhanced FICO". There are also other FICO calculations based on the type of credit applied for that show your risk for that type of loan, such as Auto-Enhanced, etc. Rather than being developed in house as Wiki suggests, these are usually commissioned from Fair Isaac by each lender to meet their criteria.

Doubt me? Feel free to call any bank or any monthly subscription service for that matter, and ask them. Or, go to creditboards.com and ask the folks there.

[FBaggins]

45. Nope

The score that a consumer can purchase from each of the three is NOT a FICO score in most cases

That's simply incorrect. You can get other "scores" (often for free), but the ones you pay for are the FICO scores.

A couple examples below

www.equifax.com/fico-credit-score

https://www.transunioncs.com/TCSWeb/createacct/personalInformation1.do

"FICO" is not a gold standard universal calculation either. There have been different versions over the years.

I've received them as a lender for over two decades. We'll get three different scores from the three largest credit reporting agencies... all are "FICO" scores. There are minor differences in methodology, but the bulk of the difference is data driven.


Another citation:

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2003555361_pfcreditscore04.html

"The nation's three largest credit-reporting agencies — Equifax, TransUnion and Experian — use FICO software to calculate credit scores. They then sell the scores to lenders that underwrite car loans, credit cards and mortgages."

[ET Awful]

46. Did you read what you quoted or not?

They sell the scores to LENDERS, not consumers.

As I said, the score you get with a monthly subscription service is NOT a FICO score, never has been.

You want an example?

My actual FICO score for TU right now is 690, as obtained from MyFico.com which does, indeed sell FICO scores directly to consumers (they used to provide all three, but Experian ceased cooperating, so now only TU and EQ).

As obtained from TU's subscription service? The score on the same date was 717.

The FACT is that lenders use FICO or some variation thereof. Consumers have to pay to get FICO, and do NOT get it as part of a typical monthly subscription credit monitoring service. The reason you don't get it with these cheap subscription services is pretty obvious . . . each time a bureau gives you a FICO score, they pay a fee to Fair Isaac.

Hell, until the late 90's, you couldn't get your score at all as a consumer for any price and it was a violation of a lenders contract with the bureaus to share that information with you.

[FBaggins]

48. Sorry...

I responded in #47 and then got an error and pasted it onto the wrong post.

The FACT is that lenders use FICO or some variation thereof. Consumers have to pay to get FICO, and do NOT get it as part of a typical monthly subscription credit monitoring service.

Well... two out of three isn't bad. Your final point is incorrect.

reason you don't get it with these cheap subscription services is pretty obvious . . . each time a bureau gives you a FICO score, they pay a fee to Fair Isaac.

And when MyFICO provides you with your scores, they pay a fee to the three credit bureaus for their data.

[ET Awful]

49. That's correct, MyFICO does pay a fee, BUT . . .

MyFICO is not a monthly subscription.

[FBaggins]

52. Also incorrect

Both options (myfico or one of the big three) offer both one-time services and ongoing monitoring.

[ET Awful]

54. Good lord . . .

The monthly subscription from any of the big 3 does not include FICO scores. Monitoring does not equal FICO scores, it means monitoring for delinquencies, new applications, public records filings, etc.

MyFico used to offer a service that allowed a monthly FICO score, but they charged $19.95, they appear to have started that up again, but only for one bureau (not sure of the rate). Also, when I last used their monthly service (which was 2nd 1/4 of 2008), the subscription did NOT give you a new score every month, it merely alerted you when there'd been a change.

Do you want to keep going around in circles or do you want to just stop now?

[FBaggins]

56. I'd be happy to stop...

..as soon as you recognize how ridiculous you're looking.

I've given you multiple links. I'm not sure what else short of a knock on the head I can give you.

The monthly subscription from any of the big 3 does not include FICO scores

Simply incorrect. They offer both options.

http://www.equifax.com/3in1-monitoring-with-4-fico-scores/

Monitoring does not equal FICO scores,

"It monitors all three of your nationwide credit reports and alerts you within 24 hours of key changes. It also comes with 4 Score Power® reports so that you can keep an eye on your FICO® score throughout the year. "

MyFico used to offer a service that allowed a monthly FICO score, but they charged $19.95, they appear to have started that up again

Your backhanded admission of error is noted.

[ET Awful]

57. You may continue talking to yourself then, I'm through with you. n/t

[FBaggins]

59. Lol!

If I were in your shoes I would have dropped out with the first correction.

But some people take a little more embarassment than others.

Be well!

For the record... the reason you were corrected was because you were parroting the marketing BS from vendors that want to sell people their monitoring service and pretend that there's simply no way to get what you need without paying them.

MyFico at least delivers the actual scores (many don't), but they are by no means the only such option.

[ET Awful]

62. Ummmm . . . I'm the one that said that the scores they OVERCHARGE people for

are usually not FICO . . . you tried to mislead people into thinking they were the same thing.

Anyone with any modicum of intelligence will realize that.

Bye bye now.

[FBaggins]

64. Yep

And you were wrong.

Except for the "overcharge" part. Both MyFico and Equifax (etc) charge too much for a service most people don't need.

Frankly... there's no reason to GET your score. You just need to know the actual data (delinquencies, etc), what factors influence the score... and whether your reported information is accurate.

As for "moducum of intelligence"... one of us read a conspiracy-lite website that tries to con you into paying for a service you don't really need (and obviously caught you)... the other one of us has been in the business for over two decades and actually knows what he's talking about.

I'll let others decide who to believe.

[ET Awful]

65. LMAO . . . "conspiracy" You have NO clue what you're talking about do you?

"crediboards.com" is a discussion board of normal every day people who have questions and get answers from other normal every day people.

Tell you what, when you learn what you're talking about, come back.

Fine something on that site that even remotely resembles a "conspiracy" or "conspiracy-lite" as you put it. Please. Come back and show us when you find it.

[FBaggins]

67. ""crediboards.com" is a discussion board of normal every day people "

And nutcases who blame everyone else for their problems... and are convinced that "they" are out to get them... And vendors posing as regular people looking to hawk their wares...And a bunch of people with no actual knowledge who share that lack of knowledge (as do you here) with others pretending they know what they're talking about.



Here's a hint: "Normal everyday people" don't always wait until they have the correct answer before replying as if they do. Evidence? Your posts here.

[ET Awful]

68. There are NO vendors there. . . they are banned instantly.

Welcome to ignore.

You actually strike me as the OTHER type that shows up there . . . the one who work for collection agencies and try to tell everyone there that nothing they hear is correct. . .

Well done, it's been over 2 years since anyone made my ignore list.

BTW - to anyone interested, using information obtained from that site, I was able to track down a LOT of information, cite relevant law, get false information removed, and increase my score significantly in a matter of 2-3 months instead of years. There is a wealth of good information to be had for anyone who wants to look.

[FBaggins]

70. Yeah... right.

They can just sense (through the Force no doubt) when someone recommending a service is a realy person and when it's a vendor.

Welcome to ignore.

Lol... I should care? Are you more reliable on ignoring someone than on not replying any more (as you've said how many times here) ?

You actually strike me as the OTHER type that shows up there . . . the one who work for collection agencies and try to tell everyone there that nothing they hear is correct. .

Riiight. Obviously this is a group you have some history with. But no, I merely corrected false information on your part that would have resulted in people paying for something they don't need.

[FBaggins]

47. I did... did you?

The others were links directly to two of the three telling you what they will provide you.

My actual FICO score for TU right now is 690, as obtained from MyFico.com which does, indeed sell FICO scores directly to consumers (they used to provide all three, but Experian ceased cooperating, so now only TU and EQ).

As obtained from TU's subscription service? The score on the same date was 717.

If true, this likely just reflects the difference between one reporting day and another. Your score can easily change that much depending only on when the report was run.

As I said, the score you get with a monthly subscription service is NOT a FICO score, never has been.

And yet I gave you two links where you could go directly to the credit companies telling you they'll sell you the FICO score. MyFico is really just a consolidator reselling what you can get on your own. Many people consider them to be a scam. I just think it's overkill... but you can buy the exact same service (tracking all three FICO scores) thorough Equifax.

http://www.equifax.com/freereportandcreditscore/t1/?CMP=KNC-Google&HBX_PK=get_credit_report&HBX_OU=50&gclid=CMqr2ofJ8Z0CFcNB5godq3tPMg

[Greyhound]

16. How else do you think they're going to cover their gambling losses?

The bankster bailout money went straight to their parasite owners and they still have billions in bad loans on their books to account for.

[ddeclue]

19. You're better off without them. Pay it the rest of the way off and keep the interest for yourself.

[SacredCow]

20. Chase slashed my limit and bumped the APR to 29.99%.....

Like you, I always paid more than the minimum (2 to 4 times more, in fact), and have a good credit rating.

I told them where they could shove their card, pulled some money out of my savings, paid the amount in full and had them cancel the account.

[ET Awful]

35. Little story about Chase . . . .

A couple of years back, I had two Chase cards (one MC, one Visa). One day, I went into a store to use the MC and it was rejected. I called them up, they said that the card had been closed, but after I talked to someone higher up, they said it was an error and re-opened the accounts the same day. One week later, the cards were closed again and they weren't willing to do anything to re-open them (they never gave me a reason).

Last year, I decided on a whim to re-apply with Chase. They opened a Visa with a limit of $10,000, which really surprised me, as I was thinking that if they opened one, it would be for $2,500 or something more modest. Two weeks later, I had two enevelopes in the mail from Chase. One was the Card, the other was a letter thanking me for letting Chase be my credit card issuer, but closing my account.

So, they opened my account, closed it within 24 hours, and I got both envelopes on the same day.

Lesson learned: Chase sucks donkey balls.

[SacredCow]

63. Wow... That's Effed up!!!

I never got a Chase card voluntarily... Originally, the card was a WaMu card (never had a problem with them) but Chase bought them out.

[ET Awful]

69. That happened to my GF too, Chase bought WaMu and she got the shaft n/t

[progressivebydesign]

61. My Chase story is so different, so I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop.

My husband and I both have Chase cards. We both, sadly, carry a full balance on them. One month, I totally spaced and forgot to pay his card... they sent a note saying "you forgot to pay, please mail a check asap." One month, both of our cards had zero payment due. I called to see what had happened, and they gave both cards the option of missing a payment with no penalty, because they knew that people were struggling.

This month, my bank (the meanest fuckers in the world, Key Bank) set off a domino roll of bank charges by doing the "take debits first, then add in deposits" thereby (LITERALLY) charging us $1,000.00 in bank fees in ONE MONTH. So, my payment to Chase was returned to them. I wrote to Chase about it.. they removed $90.00 in fees for the incident, and asked me to remake the payment.

They've treated me very well as I struggle with the money issues right now. No doubt, they'll raise my interest rate.. but I plan to pay them off on the new few months. Citibank's biz card I have also treats me well.

But I'm not naive enough to believe that I will spared any of this credit limit slashing, or rate increases.

[ladywnch]

21. welcome to the club. its a sad little group that is growing by leaps and bounds

BOA first did it to me and every other bank has now followed suit. I had perfect credit and because I refused to allow BOA to double my "fixed" interest rate (not a promotional or special rate) they cut my credit line to $500 above my current limit and then did the same thing to the other card I had with them which wasn't even being discussed. Once that got reported through the credit bureau all my other cards followed their lead.

By the end of first quarter next year ALL our credit cards will be paid off and accounts closed with prejudice.

Funny thing is one of the accounts, HSBC who cut my credit line from $5,800 to $300 had been sending my emails saying essentinally, 'come on use your credit!!! come on back, we miss your business....' I closed the account.

I'll send back any future credit office in ashes using their return envelopes. We'll keep one card each through our local bank for emergencies but no others.

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

23. cut my credit line from $5,800 to $300

Wow!

What Fukrs.

However I wouldn't send them ashes, for any reason. They might take that as a threat.

[ladywnch]

25. several others were cut more than that.

I used the same tactic of sending ashes to the Republican National Committee when they would stop sending me renewal notices for a membership I never had. I also enclosed a note stating that if they didn't cease and desist I would send the next ash envelope attached to a brick so they would have to pay the extra postage. Six phone calls didn't work, but that seems to have done the trick.

[cbdo2007]

27. This is a good thing. You should pay off and get rid of all of your credit cards.

They did you a favor.

[NNN0LHI]

28. Here is my credit scores and out of the blue Citi canceled out a $15,000 line of credit I never used

Credit Bureau Credit Score Rating
Equifax 795
Excellent Score
Experian 804
Excellent Score
TransUnion 794
Excellent Score


And it was some damn line of credit that they were pushing on me a few years ago. I didn't call them, they called me to get me to open it. Then after I accepted it they yanked it away. Imagine if I had been relying on that? There appears to be no rhyme or reason to this stuff but I don't think they are doing this to just certain people. They are doing it to everyone.

Don

[Torn_Scorned_Ignored]

29. That's what they do

offer it, give it, take it away. They increase your line of credit one day and the next they cut you off at the knees.

I know what you mean about pushing it though not in that particular sense.

I have a plastic grocery bag hanging on a door knob full of offers for credit.

I don't have a shredder so I've been ripping them in half and putting them in

the bag to one day shred or burn. The bag must weigh as much as a gallon of milk.

[FarCenter]

58. The reason that banks are cutting unused credit lines is that they have to maintain reserves

Even though a customer has not drawn down a credit line, the bank has to maintain some reserves in case the customer does draw on it.

This affects their various "bank ratios" that are watched by the regulators.

So rather than attempting to raise equity, a bank like Citigroup can improve its balance sheet by reducing unused lines of credit.

[PVnRT]

34. I'm surprised the bank apologists and rabid anti-credit card people aren't here yet

It's just not a credit card thread without some asshole lecturing the poster about how they "shouldn't use credit cards" and how they NEVER use credit, always cash and how it's ALL YOUR FAULT.

[ET Awful]

36. The only thing I say is . . .

Don't take it personally when it happens, because usually it's just a freakin' across the board screwing, not a one on one screwing.

That, and don't blame the rep you talk to, they have no control over the underwriting policy, the person you're talking to is just a phone jockey trying to keep their own head above water.

[PVnRT]

41. I would agree with that

It's not the lackey on the phone's fault, and the company is simply fucking everyone they possibly can.

It's the moralizing and lecturing about using credit at all around here that pisses me off.

[ET Awful]

42. Well, if people would stop listening to dumbasses like Dave Ramsey . . .

they might actually learn something.

[FBaggins]

38. They're being truthful... but deceptive.

Chances are that they're reigning in credit card lending and have adjusted their credit standards for each level of credit limit. Your credit score/report may not have changed at all, but their standard HAS.

So it's "true" to say that they based their decision on "information gathered from your credit report", but that doesn't mean that anything new and/or bad has happened with your credit.

They should be honest enough to tell you that their lending standards have changed... not try to imply any blame on your part. They're telling you that they are less interested in doing business with you than they were yesterday. You get to decide whether that makes you less willing to do business with them.

[lunatica]

43. The credit card companies are ruining everyone's credit rating

It may be time to stop playing the game.

I think the credit card companies are going bust and they're desperate so they're dragging everyone down with them. They fear a run on the credit limits which is why they're lowering them. Try making any out of the ordinary purchases and see how fast they decline it.

They're not interested in their customers. It's all about what they can salvage before the credit bubble bursts.

[ET Awful]

44. You bring up a good point about credit ratings . . .

These limit decreases can screw people in more ways than just lacking available credit.

1/3 of your standard FICO score (approximately) is based on your utilization of available credit.

For instance, if you have a credit line of 4800 and you use around 2400 (using the OP as an example), your utilization is around 50%, not great, but not horrible. However, if they then cut your limit to 2400, you are not using close to 100% of your available credit.

This can drastically decrease your FICO score which limits your ability to get new credit if you need it, despite having perfect payment history.

[FarCenter]

60. A rough rule of thumb is that banks charge off credit card balances equal to the unemployment rate

So if a bank has a credit card portfolio of $10 million of balances, and the unemployment rate is 10% for the year, they will wind up charging off as uncollectable about $1 million in that year.

Of course, they make that up by charging the rest of the people with outstanding balances 20% or higher interest.

But as the unemployment increases, and as charge-offs build, the banks require better and better credit scores in order to keep charge-offs from ballooning.

Indeed, the issuers with the toughest credit policies can afford to offer their best customers the better with respect to fees and interest rates.

[TxRider]

72. That's why I paid mine off in full and closed all my CC accounts.