my best interest my a**
Ok, so up until today, the whole mortgage/credit/economy issue hasn’t touched me. I don’t have stocks, I don’t have a mortgage and I won’t need a loan for anything big (house? what?) for a few years. Well, today I was touched.
I have banked at my bank for over 10 years and have had a credit card with them for about 4. I am a banks best friend when it comes to credit cards… I keep a high balance but always pay more than the minimum. Not so great for my bank account, but good for them. Well, today I saw that the bank had doubled my interest rate. Without telling me. I got right on the phone with an interest rate specialist and that is when I had to laugh. Apparently they had “sent me” a notice saying that I had to either A. stop using the card and keep my same interest rate or B. continue using the card and have my interest rate bumped up to 20%. Hmm… those are some nice options.
Further discussion with the representative involved him telling me that the bank is “just watching out for your interest here, to help you pay off your debt.” Um… Since when does a bank, who is getting monthly checks from me, want to help someone pay off their debt? It is in their best interest that I keep my balance, in order to keep getting checks. I’m not gonna claim bankruptcy, I’m not gonna stop paying off the balance, they have nothing to worry about with me.
You know what I think? I think that although my bank didn’t go down in this whole economy downfall crap, they decided to buy a company that did, and now I am being punished for it. It seems mighty convenient that all of a sudden, 4 years into having this card, now they care about me and my debt issues. If they cared so much, don’t you think they would lower the interest rate? Or maybe, not make it higher? How does doubling my interest rate help me? Sure they “sent me” something giving me the options… must have gotten lost in the mail.
Oh, and the guy didn’t reverse the extra high finance charge. I work, I pay my bills, I am just trying to get by here. Ugh.
5 comments
You should transfer your balance to another company!
the problem is, I like my bank. they have been good to me. And right now I don’t think that I could find anywhere that would give me a lower rate then what i have now… so sad. I tried being strong and i tried to get my way, but bank people scare me.
http://www.creditcardguide.com/
call B of Hell and tell them you are moving your balance, and moving your savings and checking to Wells Fargo, i guarantee they will lower the Finance Charge.
Do all those things above and then slowly step away from your charge card – they are evil and must be stopped!
The credit card industry wants you feel hopeless and get stuck in the payment rut forever – they have huge departments that do nothing but think of ways to trap us – believe me – I used to work for a marketing agency who’s primary goals was to “secure high spending account holders who will carry a balance.”
Don’t let them win girl! Fight the power!
try your local credit union. they have charters so you have to live or work in a certain county or for a list of companies, but a lot of credit unions have pretty low interest rates on credit cards. definitely better than 20%! before the whole credit-crisis happened i tried to renegotiate a better rate with Capital One & they would only go as low as 15%. my credit union is 10% and no balance transfer fees ever!
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