Hey guys - just had a weird experience with Barclays and was wondering if anyone else had the same thing going on. I logged in to my online account, got a popup asking me for the last 4 of my social and my CVV to "activate my card." Haven't asked for any new cards or heard anything from them that a new one was coming. So, just to be safe, I called customer service to find out what was going on. During the auto-menu, there was a message that I should "activate my new card right away, and update all recurring payments to reflect my new card number." Now I was really confused. I told the CSR what was going on, she had to put me on hold twice, then finally came back saying that my account had been "upgraded." I asked her what kind of upgrade, and she said "Well, um, there aren't really changes to the account, just upgrading the card and the system." So apparently there's a new card on the way, and my existing one is still good for 30 days. Would have been nice if they'd, you know, sent me an email or secure message with a heads-up.
I'm assuming it's something like either adding an EMV chip, or just being overly cautious after the Home Depot snafu (though the only card I've used at HD lately was my Amex, and haven't heard anything from them.)
Anyone else experiencing any Barclay's weirdness today?
Starting score 3/30/13: 570s across the board
May well be that. My CL is still the same so I think it's just an administrative change. Just thought it was weird that there was no messaging in advance.
You didn't give us any details (which card, how long you've had it, CL, etc.). I'm assuming you have the Arrival+ WMC.
It's not uncommon for banks to act unilaterally. Citi upgraded almost everyone's platinum AA cards this year without sending a single letter, email, phone call, etc. People found out by logging in to see the card name had changed from WMC to WEMC.
Consumers generally are not asked to approve upgrades of this type, as it is assumed they will accept them and the T&C are the same.
Thanks for all the info - and sorry for lack of details. To clarify, I have the Rewards MC (Platinum, not World - very basic. It's the version for average credit with a 24.99% APR). I've had the card for just about 6 months. No changes to my CL or APR as part of whatever's changing.
I have noticed that the last 4 numbers of my account changed, so I'm guessing it's more of a security-based change than anything else. That said, if the new card happens to be any nicer-looking than the current one, I certainly won't complain!
I had the same thing happen and called Customer Service. I was told they are shipping new cards because of the Home Depot breach. Sure enough, the last 4 digits of the new card appears in my account profile now telling me to activate the new card.
This just happened to me last week. I called and CSR told me I was being sent a new card because of the Home Depot situation.
As a side note I was told last Friday that a letter was sent out last Wednesday which I am yet to receive.
As a side note I was told last Friday that a letter was sent out last Wednesday which I am yet to receive.
Humm....that is odd? If you didn't use it at HD at any time I wonder why they'd do that. I actually have the same exact card and I haven't had any changes to my account nor to my Barclay Visa Financing card. I've never used either of them at HD so I assume that is why, but still sounds odd that since you didn't use your's there either why would they pick and choose at random who to send new cards to? Oh well...just another Barclay mystery I guess! lol
Thanks for sharing your experiences, folks. Looks like this is indeed due to the HD breach. Agree that in my case it still feels odd, though someone else mentioned that a rep said the trigger for their account had been using it at Albertson's since either their company or system is somehow affiliated with HD's. So, maybe I used it at an HD affiliate.
In any event, I'm just hoping it gets here before I leave on vacation next Tuesday. On Thursday of last week they told me 7-10 days, hope it's at the fast end of that timeline!