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I wouldn't say changed completely, but I would say improved. I mean, to get that little credit increase or stuff changed on your account, you still have to jump through a lot of hoops.
Maybe a little, but they are still way too conservative and too tough, lack of knowlegde and BAD CS from the reps, I do have their best card with 5k limit, but it took me years and like 8 calls before i found out about EO+Rewards Dept....
No, not really, I don't think my opinion of them has changed all that much, maybe just a little, oh wait, NO!
They have been saying for about 9 months they are reviewing their policies on CLI's. Does it really take that long when in reality they have had the same policies for over a decade. They have lost twice in legal proceedings in the last 2 years. They have issued in the past many cards to people instead of simply giving CLI's. They did this so they could get the fees which are charged for having the cards. It is because of the recent legal proceedings about this which have restricted people from getting more than 2 cards with them unless it is a cobranded card. If they had really changed their spots it wouldn't have taken 9 months now in regards to their CLI policies. They have frozen CLI's on HSBC accounts from CLI's, probably in part to keep Orchard and Household members from having a higher limit which might complicate matters for thier policies. If you have a limit which is high it might mean that the card would get converted to higher tier card of theirs. If you have a lower tier card with them and your Household converts to a higher tiered card, then you would have more bargaining power for getting the lower tiered card converted. If they end up combining some of the cards to keep with their new 2 card policy, if it gets added to one of thier cards then the same result would happen. In many ways, HSBC had 3 tiers, not 2 and this made them a bit easier to deal with. (Yeah, they did have many Orchard customers who complained, but in all honesty most of these were the ones who probably were abusing credit or expecting too much too quickly. HSBC wasn't going to have that, they had policies which did truly reward the customers slowly, but they did have policies which were better and insured that eventually you given more options.) I waited to get an HSBC card until my credit was better and qualified me for a near prime card and even then the policies were still a bit restricting, but at least they were workable.
Yes, I did have problems in the past. I did learn from my past mistakes and corrected them. I even insured at some point that I returned to school so that I could improve my skills and get better jobs. In fact I will start another school in the fall to get my 4th degree, I am shooting for being over qualified and have prepared the answers to the interview questions on that topic already. Did they grow with me or many others? NO! Their two tier system was designed to keep people paying them fees and not graduate them into an in between tier which would have rewarded them. I probably wouldn't even have all the credit cards and limits I do now if Capone had been a bit more responsive to me as a customer. It was frustration and a $500 credit line which made me apply for the Marathon Visa I got with a nice limit and the Barclays card too. It was the no HSBC CLI policy which caused me to react to the Compass invitation and then try for the DIscover and Chase. If they had PC'd my regular Green Card to a rewards card and given a CLI, I would have been happy. If they had given me regular CLI's on both cards I would have been happy. I would have known that at some point I would have been a Venture card holder. Now I know that when I am eligible for a Venture card, then I will get it and claim the rewards, then it will probably go in a sock drawer. By then it won't matter because I will have an Amex card with rewards miles or whatever. I am certainly in no rush now since I have the Chase and Discover.
Why do we need to go the route of the EO? We shouldn't. In some ways I imagine the reason they have kept that office as secret as they could was to avoid what is now happening. Have they yet responed to it properly? NO. I think it was simply a few people and the internet which has made it possible for us to get this outlet easier, nothing more. I do know they were a bit annoyed when I was talking with them and I mentioned the 'boards' and what is happening. I could hear it in the ladies voice! Strategy is important for a company and I think we broke through their strategy and they haven't quite figured out what to do. Yeah, you could say that we have gotten a lot of 'Luv' lately from them, but did we really need to jump through hoops to do it? Do we really need to still continue to do so? What about those that simply rid themselves of the card? Is it a wise business policy for them to turn off customers and let them flee because they are not able to augment their strategy properly to account for these individuals? How much more business would they have if they had a 'middle tier'? They have two client types they service, nothing more. That would be like McDonalds owning a Outback Steakhouse and not having something in between, like Red Robin!
For those that say they gave them the chance and move on, my reply is why should I have to? Why can't I be in that middle tier, except for the fact it does not exist? Others mention it a different way. Thay say that they were the ones that gave them a chance. That was Merrick for me! Merrick gives me CLI's, and they also need a transition policy to change to their other tier. But at least they are honest and straighforward about it. They don't mince words! If they say they review accounts, they mean it. There is no dount about it, when I started using the card more they gave me CLI's. In fact, it is the second highest limit I have! Do I want my security funds back, *exclamation deleted* yeah I do! Do I want to not pay an annual fee, same exclamation! But, they were honest from the beginning! They have always been honest, even if it is frustrating, it is honesty! None of this, 'you're limit is kept up to date,' bullhocky or other such nonsense from Capone. If my limit were up to date, why did Compass give me $8000?
Do I wish Capone was different? Yes! Have they changed? NO, I can't see it yet if they have. Are they a victim of circumstance? OH YEAH! Thank goodness for the internet! Thank you to the person who first posted the number or EO email! You did us all a favor!
Well put bernhardtra.
However, this isn't simply about a non-existent middle tier. For me, it's truly about a company being so difficult to reason with through normal channels such that common sense and good business relationships cannot prevail.
Take my story:
Applied for a Plat MC in Oct '11 with a score in the low 600s and a limit of $1000. Used it a lot and paid in full every month. By March 2012, I am being approved for the Chase Ink and Amex Plum with much higher limits as my score had rapidly improved. At the same time, I was denied a Spark because of bogus reasons that I couldn't speak to anyone about. This is a BIG problem to me. I sent in a packet of info for a recon. They tri-pulled me AGAIN in May 2012 and approved me....and with a lower limit than the Ink (and my score was lower when I was approved with the Ink!)...nevermind the Plum. Oh that Plat MC? No CLI's and stonewalled at every attempt....even though I had just been approved for the Spark! Over the Summer of 2012, repeated failure at getting a higher limit or PC on that Plat card. Finally get bumped to $1500 in early fall. Big Whoop. By this time, I have a PenFed and Cash + as well with $19,000 in combined limits between those two. Finally, I contact the EO and I got that Plat MC moved to $5000. FINALLY. Normal channels? Zilch! Nada! And mind you, my scores have been in the upper 700s since late spring 2012!!
So, I move from low tier to upper tier in less than a year with an array of prime cards (one of which is the Spark with Capital One!! with constant $10,000 per month in PIF usage from my first statement in June til now!) and their system is completely incapable of repsonding and adapting over that entire timeframe! Come on! Ridiculous protocol! Rotten, stubborn corporate culture! I shouldn't have to sneak behind the proverbial back curtain to the EO to get action I needed. It's not like I went from bad to great credit in one month and was demanding action before they could even notice what happened. I have had a plethora of soft pull checks on my credit reports from them over the past 18 months. So they were not in the dark.
Oh and I am not even getting into the bitter dispute that I won with them through consumerfinance dot gov in a matter of 10 days after they sent me in circles for 4 months. Ugh.
@jake619 wrote:
@eviLution wrote:
Capital One has it's purpose and that's to help out people with bad credit get back on their feet with only a simple annual fee.
Half of last year all I had was prepaid debit cards from AccountNow and now I got almost 5k worth of credit to use. Thanks Capital OneThat's only half the story. Their prime customers are generally happy with their cards. The trouble I see is how the subprime treatment is for most a dead-end street. To get out of this tier most must apply-up and then close the rebuilder card.
Exactly, I've never had a subprime card. I'm very happy with Capital One. They treat me very well.
My opinion hasn't changed that much, but it wasn't bad to begin with. Over the years, Capital One has been one of the most innovative card issuers out there, probably only 2nd to Amex. They created the balance transfer, the concept of tiered interest rates for different credit levels and were one of the first to deliberately target the subprime market. The reason they are able to issue cards to people with subprime profiles is because they use a strict data-driven system for issuing credit and responding to requests. They are able to issue loans (credit cards) to a group of people who are likely not to repay, but still avoid the huge losses that b of a, wells, citi, etc. took in the subprime market. But the cost of this is a very rigid customer service system. I knew that going in and without them, I think my rebuilding journey would have been YEARS longer.
The 2008 recession created a new class of borrower: people who had great credit up until then, took a bath and are now rebuilding. They differ from the traditional subprime group in that they had circumstantial default as opposed to behavioral default. This group presents a challenge to credit issuers, because they have subprime profiles, but expect prime benefits/treatment. Chase has addressed this through recon. Citi has chosen, by and large, to avoid this group. Discover has actively targeted them with prime cards, but lower limits. Amex hasn't pursued them, but has become more liberal in their underwriting.
It seems clear that this group caught Capital One by surprise. These customers got their cards during initial rebuilding, but closed them as soon as their scores began to recover. At first, this didn't impact them and they simply ignored it. Lately, they have recognized that this is a valuable group and are beginning to look at ways to retain the "good" ones. They are doing this the way they always have: through experimentation. In this case, the experimentation is being driven through the executive office. They get a prescreened group of consumers (who found the number/email and are aggressively seeking improvement) and they make different offers to different groups. So some get nothing, others get a small increase, others get the fee waived once, others get the fee waived permanently. Some get a big increase, others get better rewards and some get all three. Then, I'm guessing, they are going to watch these groups to see how they behave. The solutions that yield profitable customers will be applied more broadly in a year or two, while those that don't will disappear.
I don't take what businesses do personally, so was content to close my Capital One card after a year and move on. The fact that the executive office route took about 10 minutes and yielded a card with a 5k limit, 1.5% cash back and no annual fees has caused me to retain the card and use it when I travel overseas (as a backup to CSP). I think Capital One provides a valuable service to those trying to rebuild. If treating us like numbers and being inflexible allows them to profitably provide that service, I'll pay that cost. If they can find a way to retain their customers and smoothly transition them to better products as the profile improves, I'm more likely to remain with them long term. But either way, I'm glad they exist.
@Cdnew: that was a most excellent and interesting post, thank you for the insight.
@Cdnewmanpac wrote:My opinion hasn't changed that much, but it wasn't bad to begin with. Over the years, Capital One has been one of the most innovative card issuers out there, probably only 2nd to Amex. They created the balance transfer, the concept of tiered interest rates for different credit levels and were one of the first to deliberately target the subprime market. The reason they are able to issue cards to people with subprime profiles is because they use a strict data-driven system for issuing credit and responding to requests. They are able to issue loans (credit cards) to a group of people who are likely not to repay, but still avoid the huge losses that b of a, wells, citi, etc. took in the subprime market. But the cost of this is a very rigid customer service system. I knew that going in and without them, I think my rebuilding journey would have been YEARS longer.
The 2008 recession created a new class of borrower: people who had great credit up until then, took a bath and are now rebuilding. They differ from the traditional subprime group in that they had circumstantial default as opposed to behavioral default. This group presents a challenge to credit issuers, because they have subprime profiles, but expect prime benefits/treatment. Chase has addressed this through recon. Citi has chosen, by and large, to avoid this group. Discover has actively targeted them with prime cards, but lower limits. Amex hasn't pursued them, but has become more liberal in their underwriting.
It seems clear that this group caught Capital One by surprise. These customers got their cards during initial rebuilding, but closed them as soon as their scores began to recover. At first, this didn't impact them and they simply ignored it. Lately, they have recognized that this is a valuable group and are beginning to look at ways to retain the "good" ones. They are doing this the way they always have: through experimentation. In this case, the experimentation is being driven through the executive office. They get a prescreened group of consumers (who found the number/email and are aggressively seeking improvement) and they make different offers to different groups. So some get nothing, others get a small increase, others get the fee waived once, others get the fee waived permanently. Some get a big increase, others get better rewards and some get all three. Then, I'm guessing, they are going to watch these groups to see how they behave. The solutions that yield profitable customers will be applied more broadly in a year or two, while those that don't will disappear.
I don't take what businesses do personally, so was content to close my Capital One card after a year and move on. The fact that the executive office route took about 10 minutes and yielded a card with a 5k limit, 1.5% cash back and no annual fees has caused me to retain the card and use it when I travel overseas (as a backup to CSP). I think Capital One provides a valuable service to those trying to rebuild. If treating us like numbers and being inflexible allows them to profitably provide that service, I'll pay that cost. If they can find a way to retain their customers and smoothly transition them to better products as the profile improves, I'm more likely to remain with them long term. But either way, I'm glad they exist.
I think that this is an excellent analysis. Thanks for giving such a detailed perspective.
Personally, I don't have many complaints with Cap1. I believe that they are a very good choice for someone who is seeking to rebuild his/her credit. There aren't many issuers who will approve someone with a shaky history, and give them a card that earns cash rewards for a $39 AF. I was able to make more money from the card during my rebuild than I paid in fees. You can't say that about the likes of First Premier!
As I've mentioned in other threads, I was able to get an old, plain vanilla Platinum Visa upgraded to a Venture Signature, and without having to go through the EO. My DD is an AU my cash rewards rebuilder and is using that to help establish her credit. I'm sitting back and seeing what happens with Cap1's policies this year; I'm curious to see if they offer an auto increase on the $750 limit. If not, I'll try going the EO route in the fall when the AF comes around again. In the meantime, my DD is using it for gas/groceries, which is more than covering the AF.
Now, should people have to go the EO route? Ideally, no. But, as you mentioned above, Cap1 appears to be experimenting, and I wouldn't be surprised if they do tweak their risk model sometime this year. Only time will tell.