I got a doozy of a phone call this weekend..from a friend of a friend.
She recently remarried after several years as a single mom. While she was a single mom, she had managed to rent a small home for her and her daughter- who recently graduated from high school.. and mom had earned her MASTERS degree in social services.
When she called me, she was quite upset and wanted some answers.
Her new husband (bless his frugal heart) did not want to start their new marriage out full of debt...which she had accumulated plenty of during her graduate years as a single mom...to the tune of $30k in just credit card debt.
So, he took his savings and paid that credit card debt in full...
soon as he did, SHE received a notice from her CC company (BofA) to call right away. Seems BofA wanted to know HOW IN THE WORLD she was able to pay off her debt so quickly....
So she explained her recent MBA graduation and subsequent job...and her new marriage...and how they had come to the decision to pay off the debt...
BofA's response...after putting her on hold to talk to "the supervisor" the rep came back with "well, we have no choice but to CLOSE your credit account with us"..
Poor girl was all upset at this...wanted me to explain WHY they would do this...she had been a LOYAL customer all during her single years when she didnt have squat...and now that she was married and had a good income they do this to her.....and WHAT SHE COULD DO ABOUT IT.
So I told her my thoughts...but before I share them here, I thought I would see what everyone else would have said...
What would you have said to her???
I will post my response to her tomorrow night...
What would YOU have said???
May 5th, 2008 at 04:03 am
May 5th, 2008 at 05:53 am 1209966818
I would have said, "thank G&d BofA showed themselves as the slime buckets they are now, rather than later."
What could she do about it? She doesn't have to do anything about it. If she needs a credit card, all she has to do is wait a couple of weeks for the next offer to come in through the mail.
FWIW - her husband's a keeper!
May 5th, 2008 at 10:56 am 1209985000
May 5th, 2008 at 11:51 am 1209988263
May 5th, 2008 at 12:37 pm 1209991025
May 5th, 2008 at 01:00 pm 1209992405
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May 5th, 2008 at 04:00 pm 1210003236
May 5th, 2008 at 04:30 pm 1210005020
We just got a letter from one of our cards saying they are closing our account due to inactivity..fine by us. Though it did raise a point that we aught to use the one long term card we planned to keep (for emergency use) just to make sure it is not closed.
May 5th, 2008 at 05:02 pm 1210006932
Love the responses..keep em coming!!
May 5th, 2008 at 05:06 pm 1210007199
She should have said: "You can't "fire" me (as a customer) . . . . . I QUIT !!! ;-)
May 5th, 2008 at 05:13 pm 1210007600
BoA can go suck a lemon.
May 5th, 2008 at 06:22 pm 1210011730
I will never do business with BofA after hearing this story.
May 5th, 2008 at 06:51 pm 1210013481
I would've said, "No big deal, if you need a card, there are tons out there. Get one that gives you money back!"
May 5th, 2008 at 10:00 pm 1210024858
May 6th, 2008 at 01:46 am 1210038408
May 6th, 2008 at 03:31 am 1210044696
My first question to her was why this was so important to her?? Did she have an emotional connection specifically to BofA. Her answer was YES, that had been her credit card for almost 13 yeaers and she was highly offended that they cancelled her account. She took it personally ESPECIALLY since the first time in her credit life, she felt like she was valuable.
I told her several reasons that BofA might have made the decision, most of which, had NOTHING to do with her personally. BofA is looking out for thier profits...NOT for her loyalty.
I suggested that she look into a LOCAL bank or credit union to do her business with..either would be very happy for her loyalty and would take care of her patronage long term..
Finally, I told her to be grateful for learning just how important her business was with this company...given her life circumstances, it is more valuable to her to know NOW where her business is appreciated so that she will hopefully NEVER have to go through something like this again...GOOD RIDDANCE to the bank that didnt want her unless she carried a balance and was "profitable'
So, today she went to a local bank and opened an account. They were SO HAPPY to have her business that they gave her a special rate...and a new credit card account that she will use ONLY for emergencies.
She said she had never looked at her accounts like this...and was very happy to do business with a community bank/credit union that was thrilled to have her business and would value her patronage.
May 6th, 2008 at 11:17 pm 1210115847
May 7th, 2008 at 04:12 pm 1210176721
May 9th, 2008 at 02:53 pm 1210344827
I would have said things that I should not say. And the advice you gave her is what I would have said - I love, love, love my local CU.
May 9th, 2008 at 10:48 pm 1210373314
First of all, how is that any of their business by what means she was able to pay off her card that quickly? That is between her and the IRS. Nobody else is entitled to that answer, certainly not a credit card company.
As for closing her account due to anticipating less profit, I don't know... I pay my balances in full every month, collect cashback, and nobody "canceled" me yet.
And, people who carry debt and than clear it up with a "windfall" are those who are most likely to run it up again. Credit card companies should know that. (I am not saying your friend would do that, just saying that from a CC company's prospective, the odds would be in their favor).
May 13th, 2008 at 11:14 pm 1210720486
I kind of understand the "personal" connection. I kept my AMEX for few years even though I had to pay membership. That was the only CC I could transfer from Japan to the U.S. and that gave me a credit history here. I remember my DH and I got denied by Southwest credit card. Hey, they were giving out T-shirt at LAX to people who applied. Since we didn't need the card anyway, and didn't care, I didn't even think about it. But if I were in need of CC, then, it would have been a different feeling.
At the end, I cancelled the AMEX. There are too many membership free CC out there. I'm sure your friend is now happy with better service.
May 16th, 2008 at 01:32 am 1210901540