topic Re: Synchrony Woes - And Maybe Some Revenge? in Credit Card Approvals

Synchrony Woes - And Maybe Some Revenge?

voice2hear — Mon, 13 Nov 2023 21:58:17 GMT

I've seen many posts about the stuff Synchrony pulls. I have a story of my own.

A few years ago I was working to rebuild my credit, so I was happy to get just a store card. I got one from Old Navy and from Sam's. The Old Navy had, maybe, a $200 CL on it. Didn't use it that much, so wasn't super shocked they canceled it with no warning. Irritated, but not shocked. My Sam's had a $400 CL and was used at least monthly and always paid off. I honestly thought I was a good user. Until I was trying to make a $160 purchase a couple of weeks ago and it kept declining. I checked the app and they had dropped my CL from $400 to $100 without telling me! This was after other cards had recently increased my limit!

I got the digital letter of explanation and many of the reasons they gave were true at one time, but not current (from before I started rebuilding). Add to that, the credit score they gave in the letter was nowhere near what I was seeing in my own reports (sub-600). I was livid. I called and, of course, they had zero answers. On a whim, I asked for a CLI in the app (dumb, but I didn't care) and, of course, it was denied. Here's the kicker - in the letter explaining the CLI denial, the credit score they listed was in line with what I see and was over 100 points higher than the one in the letter where they lowered my limit! Now I'm really not happy.

I decide to "show them" and in another disregard for my score or average age decide to apply for the Sam's MasterCard. A card, by the way, I was denied the first time I applied and was given the store card. Well, guess what? I was approved in seconds with a $2,500 limit. Was it a not very smart move? Maybe. Did it feel ohhhhh soooo gooood?! ABSOLUTELY!!! 😂

While I was at it, i decided to poke the bear one more time. I applied for an AmEx Gold and was immediately accepted! Something I thought I would never achieve given my credit past.

Yes, I shouldn't have applied for the new cards, but I only took a couple of points hit on my score and I am now in a much better position from a utilization standpoint and from a status standpoint.

They say the best revenge is living well. This was my virtual middle finger to a crappy company because I showed there was ZERO reason for them to do what they did. And, who knows, maybe they will cancel or reduce the CL on the MasterCard at some point. But that's fine. I'll just pull out the Gold card and immediately pay it off like I was already doing with their card.

Re: Synchrony Woes - And Maybe Some Revenge?

SouthJamaica — Mon, 13 Nov 2023 21:58:48 GMT

@voice2hear wrote:

I've seen many posts about the stuff Synchrony pulls. I have a story of my own.

A few years ago I was working to rebuild my credit, so I was happy to get just a store card. I got one from Old Navy and from Sam's. The Old Navy had, maybe, a $200 CL on it. Didn't use it that much, so wasn't super shocked they canceled it with no warning. Irritated, but not shocked. My Sam's had a $400 CL and was used at least monthly and always paid off. I honestly thought I was a good user. Until I was trying to make a $160 purchase a couple of weeks ago and it kept declining. I checked the app and they had dropped my CL from $400 to $100 without telling me! This was after other cards had recently increased my limit!

I got the digital letter of explanation and many of the reasons they gave were true at one time, but not current (from before I started rebuilding). Add to that, the credit score they gave in the letter was nowhere near what I was seeing in my own reports (sub-600). I was livid. I called and, of course, they had zero answers. On a whim, I asked for a CLI in the app (dumb, but I didn't care) and, of course, it was denied. Here's the kicker - in the letter explaining the CLI denial, the credit score they listed was in line with what I see and was over 100 points higher than the one in the letter where they lowered my limit! Now I'm really not happy.

I decide to "show them" and in another disregard for my score or average age decide to apply for the Sam's MasterCard. A card, by the way, I was denied the first time I applied and was given the store card. Well, guess what? I was approved in seconds with a $2,500 limit. Was it a not very smart move? Maybe. Did it feel ohhhhh soooo gooood?! ABSOLUTELY!!! 😂

While I was at it, i decided to poke the bear one more time. I applied for an AmEx Gold and was immediately accepted! Something I thought I would never achieve given my credit past.

Yes, I shouldn't have applied for the new cards, but I only took a couple of points hit on my score and I am now in a much better position from a utilization standpoint and from a status standpoint.

They say the best revenge is living well. This was my virtual middle finger to a crappy company because I showed there was ZERO reason for them to do what they did. And, who knows, maybe they will cancel or reduce the CL on the MasterCard at some point. But that's fine. I'll just pull out the Gold card and immediately pay it off like I was already doing with their card.

Welcome to the forum.

Congratulations on your approvals.

Re: Synchrony Woes - And Maybe Some Revenge?

M_Smart007 — Mon, 13 Nov 2023 23:18:54 GMT

Congratulations on your Approvals 🎉

Re: Synchrony Woes - And Maybe Some Revenge?

citymunky — Mon, 13 Nov 2023 23:50:19 GMT

Congrats on the AMEX Gold, its a workhorse for sure.

Re: Synchrony Woes - And Maybe Some Revenge?

JoeRockhead — Tue, 14 Nov 2023 00:57:49 GMT

Congratulations on your new approvals!

Re: Synchrony Woes - And Maybe Some Revenge?

NoMoreDebt — Tue, 14 Nov 2023 01:04:59 GMT

congrats on the approvals

Re: Synchrony Woes - And Maybe Some Revenge?

Rebuild2019 — Tue, 14 Nov 2023 02:48:33 GMT

Congratulations on your approvals 🎉🎉🎉. Especially Sam's 😀

Re: Synchrony Woes - And Maybe Some Revenge?

CreditAggie — Tue, 14 Nov 2023 04:16:41 GMT

Congratulations on your approvals!