The peace of mind that credit card companies have been offering are going away.
Under a settlement with regulators, Capital One will refund $150 million to 2.5 million customers and also pay $60 million in penalties. A statement issued by capital one said the refund will in most cases be under $100.
Federal regulators charged that Capital One engaged in deceptive marketing tactics to pressure or mislead some consumers into buying payment-protection plans and credit-monitoring services when they activated their credit cards.
Bank of America quit pitching its Credit Protection Plus and Credit Protection Deluxe products in August and no longer offers the plans to new customers. The bank plans to exit that business next year. Existing customers will be given an additional six months of protection free, said Tara Burke, spokeswoman for Bank of America.
American Express stopped offering its Account Protector program — a debt-cancellation product — earlier this year and will discontinue the plan on Dec. 31
Chase said it stopped offering its Chase Payment Protector plans to new enrollments in October 2011 but continues to serve existing customers. Customers can cancel at any time.
WHY ?
Marketing/consumer research director at CreditCards.com, said one troubling issue with the protection plans involved hard-sell, fear-driven phone pitches that painted a picture of "Hey, you can lose your job." " Yet, dishing out $10 or more a month for coverage does not mean that your entire credit card bill would be paid. Typically, a credit-protection service would cover the required minimum monthly payment for a set time, maybe 18 months or two years.
Consumers need to take responsibility for their cards — not buy a low-return insurance plan, Woolsey said. "It can give you a false sense of security."
I did not see any of this hard sell with my prime cards but Creditone 1stpremier and Capone I can say I experienced this 1st hand
also the redundancy of the automated system (when getting your free report from a CRA when you were denied credit) of the importance of buying your credit score..
I did not buy it they way I seen it I was already paying in some cases AF and Interest why pay for more ? On a plan that wont cover me for the balance or if I am fired? Some of the plans will only cove you if State unemployment awards you unemployment
has anyone ever bought this ? did anyone read the what we cover part ? i hate when a company slips somthing like that in fine print but a phone rep wont tell you that when you talk to them only that it will cover you when you lose your job...
if you bought it from Capone expect a refund in form of a statment credit (my guess) if your'er still a card holder or a check if you closed the account
"This is another example of people not taking responsiblity for their own actions."
+ 1
I learned that i dont have a balance(on anything) unless i have the cash to pay it off in full just incase somthing like this were to happen
i should add i still dont have a home loan, but as soon as i have enough to cover 10 years of payments in CASH and the credit for a loan.... (HAHA) I Would like to be 700 plus on the three CRA
"Complete repayment, plus interest, to two million consumers: Capital One will pay approximately $140 million to all of the estimated two million consumers who either initially enrolled in a product on or after August 1, 2010, or who tried to cancel a product on or after August 1, 2010, but were persuaded to keep the product after speaking with a call center representative. In addition to the amount paid for the product, cardmembers will receive a refund of the associated finance charges, any over-the-limit fees resulting "
i would guess capone to be contacting you i was part of a class action vs Target years back and i recived check in the mail
i did find this but its based on UK side of the world ..i dont trust it... it looks MAJOR sketch