topic Re: Lost in translation...I need some help with this, please. in Credit Cards

Cap 1 interest increase

gamecockmd — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 04:00:48 GMT

"Due to extraordinary changes in the economic environment", Cap 1 increased my fixed interest rate from 13.9% (mediocre to begin with) to a variable rate 14.65% + Prime rate! No lates on my credit report in 5 yrs, pay off card monthly, EQ=749 (always my lowest agency). If I hadn't had this card for 20yrs, I would cancel but it's my oldest account.

I apparently am not the only one hit by this.

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/credit_cards/capital_one.htm

Be aware if you are looking to get a Cap 1 card...

Re: Cap 1 interest increase

Anonymous — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 04:28:13 GMT

Nope, you are not the only one. They incresed interest to me from about 14% to 23.9%. It's even more than my initial interest when I applied for this card some years ago. The best way how to resist this behavior is to pay all balance off and use the card for very small charges every month and PIF the balance. I carried balance over on this particular card and I was using it heavily so they made about 3% on all of my purchases and cashed interest as well. Now they won't make anything or really very little. And if they close the account on their own I won't cry for it.

Re: Cap 1 interest increase

Anonymous — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 04:28:44 GMT

Happening to LOTS of us. But if you've had their card for 20 yrs. you must have seen this before. I've had mine for 7 and 8 yrs and went through it when they did large scale rate jacks 2 or 3 years ago. My rates went up to 19 and 21 % then....I called 6 months later and they were reduced to 12 and 13%...then further to 9 and 11%.

This week they went up to 17.9%

I'm sock drawering mine for a while now as I never pay AF on them. Hopefully Cap One will be open to renegotiating rates again in a few months.

Re: Cap 1 interest increase

Anonymous — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 16:19:07 GMT

"Due to extraordinary changes in the economic environment"... So people are having a hard time paying bills, and their big idea is to make it harder for people to pay them back?! They may as well have started the letters with, "Times are tough, and will only get tougher thanks to Capital One!"

My Husband and I each have Capital One and received the same notice. I recently paid mine off and once I got that letter, I decided not to use it anymore.

Message Edited by rdenise76 on 03-04-2009 08:19 AM

Re: Cap 1 interest increase

Anonymous — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 17:17:54 GMT

I got mine yesterday. They jacked me up to 23% variable. I've drawered the card and I'll be calling Capital One Direct Banking and telling them that in response to their letter, and due to the economy, I will be withdrawing my Money Market (which has dwindled in interest and is now useless) and placing it in my local credit union. Then I will write a letter citing every reason they gave me for my ratejack as the excuse for my closing the account. I might even use quotes and a footnote giving them credit for the words.

It probably won't accomplish anything, but I'll feel 100% better.

Re: Cap 1 interest increase

Anonymous — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 17:26:23 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
"Due to extraordinary changes in the economic environment"... So people are having a hard time paying bills, and their big idea is to make it harder for people to pay them back?! They may as well have started the letters with, "Times are tough, and will only get tougher thanks to Capital One!"

I do not understand the hate. They are giving most users month to become aware of the changes, and pay down their balances and to pursue other cheaper lines of credit to transfer to if they have to.

I am sorry, yes their changes are somewhat draconian, but what actaully do you expect?

It does not cost you anything to keep the account open. And who knows when the markets will cycle back anyway.

Re: Cap 1 interest increase

Anonymous — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 18:33:19 GMT

On my March 09 statement I noticed that they LOWERED my interest rate from 15.9% to 11.9%.

Who knows why these banks do the things that they do

Lost in translation...I need some help with this, please.

Anonymous — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 19:09:05 GMT

Here is what Cap One wrote on their ratejack brochure, and I need help with interpretation:

Purchase and Balance Transfer (APR):

A promotional rate equal to your existing non-introductory Purchase APR though your January 2010 billing period.Beginning within two billing periods after that, a variable rate equal to 22.9% as of 1/28/2009. This APR may vary monthly and will be determined by adding 19.65% to the Prime rate.
Please note that the rate on purchase balances and balances transferred at the purchase rate will NOT expire until at least Januar 2010.
Any introductory or promotional rates on your account will not increase until they expire.
Special Transfer rates are NOT impacted by this change.

*Effective with your first billing period that begins after April 17, 2009, your existing Purchase rate will be treated as a promotional purchase rate that won't expire until 2010.

There are times when I'm almost grasping what they're saying, but then I'm lost again. Can anyone help to translate into terms a lay person can understand? (And stop laughing at me -- I'm aware that I'm a dolt!!!)

Re: Lost in translation...I need some help with this, please.

gamecockmd — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 01:23:18 GMT

I think it means you are being notified now that your rate goes up in January 2010. Your new rate will be 19.65 + prime rate (which if calculated now would be 22.9%). Your rate will fluctuate based on month to month changes of the prime rate. I ASSUME the part about the promotional rate taking effect 4/17/2009 means that if you are late with your payment after that date then your interest will go to the new default rate (you know, the insanely high one). At least , that's how I'd interpret what they said...

Re: Lost in translation...I need some help with this, please.

Anonymous — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 04:01:33 GMT

My target only card has cheaper intrest rate, then my Cap 1. Who would have thunk a prime lender being beaten by a sub prime lender.

Re: Lost in translation...I need some help with this, please.

Anonymous — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 23:19:11 GMT

@gamecockmd wrote:

I think it means you are being notified now that your rate goes up in January 2010. Your new rate will be 19.65 + prime rate (which if calculated now would be 22.9%). Your rate will fluctuate based on month to month changes of the prime rate. I ASSUME the part about the promotional rate taking effect 4/17/2009 means that if you are late with your payment after that date then your interest will go to the new default rate (you know, the insanely high one). At least , that's how I'd interpret what they said...

Thanks for your response. I got the same impression as you did. However, I was confused when they threw in 1/28/2009. That just screams RETROACTIVE to me. It doesn't matter because I PIF'd them as soon as they jacked me, but I'd still like to know what it means in case I ever come across it again, y'know? I can't even bring myself to type that default rate they wrote on the brochure. It's so high that it's silly. Thank goodness I've never been late.

Re: Lost in translation...I need some help with this, please.

einsteinpi — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 06:53:49 GMT

I paid off and closed my C1 card in January before all of this happened (glad I did), but my mother recently received the same notice (hers was to 17.9%). The wording on her letter was she could close the card and keep her current interest rate until it was paid off, or that she could keep it open, and that her current rate would be an introductary rate until April 2010.

Her friends have received similar letters, but the dates are always a bit different.

It's her only credit card (shes 59, makes 100k+, 800+ FICO, doesn't use credit often), so she's a bit annoyed, since she's a pretty good customer. They gave her a standard speel on the phone when she called, she then paid her entire balance (I'd already told her not to close the card, but to sock drawer it). So I've been helping her look at options - think she's settled on a Simmons 7.25% fixed rate (for any balances she wants to carry), plus a Citi Driver's Edge (for cash back/points).

It's a shame about Capital One - they were a company that was willing to give people with no credit or a short history a start with a card and let it grow with them. They also had a few cards with some decent deals for more established customers. They generated a fair amount of goodwill with that. Lastly, they had some good marketing for years, which made them a household name. It's all been trashed with these shenanigans. What a poor business strategy - their executives just pissed away their entire long-term credit biz for short-term gains. I now know about 20, established, excellent customers that will never do business with them again - and you'd better believe their families and friends will be spreading the gospel.

Re: Lost in translation...I need some help with this, please.

Anonymous — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 19:47:51 GMT

OK, so I'm not so mad at them anymore. I PIF and they just gave me a nice CLI. This also takes care of their annual fee putting me over the limit last year, so that doesn't show on my reports now. They're still staying in the sock drawer until next month, though.

Re: Lost in translation...I need some help with this, please.

gamecockmd — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 20:34:42 GMT

PIF every month and avoid all finance charges all together and the APR won't matter. Still, it's the principle of the thing...

Re: Cap 1 interest increase

Anonymous — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 21:31:12 GMT

They actually lower my rate from 16.55% (last December) to 14.80% (in Feb). With shytty CL, I don't use that card much anymore.

Re: Cap 1 interest increase

Creditaddict — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 21:46:35 GMT

they increased my parents from fixed 7.9 to 14.9. My parents have had the card for over 10 years and have a 16k credit line, I would consider them very prime borrowers, so no one is safe.

Re: Cap 1 interest increase

montanadem — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 07:53:00 GMT

I finally spoke to Suzy in Texas after being transferred to several other countries and they made no apologies about the increase of interest rate. Mine went from 3.9 to 13.9 overnite, well starting end of April. So here is the executive offices for Cap One and I was surprised to find them in SLC, UT. Cap One, PO Box 30285, SLC, UT 84130-0285. I asked Suzy if I charged $4.50 every month and paid off $4.50 each month if they could close my account and she said no. I asked her how much she thought it would cost her to keep my account open each month between billing, postage, tracking and the auto updates on my fico and she figured about $20.00 so I figure we will play this game until I get my interest rate back. I cannot vocalize how angry I am that I have been a good payer with a high fico and it means nothing at all. Hey, to quote Suzy at Cap One, that's just the way it is.

Re: Cap 1 interest increase

gamecockmd — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 11:32:53 GMT

@montanadem wrote:
I asked Suzy if I charged $4.50 every month and paid off $4.50 each month if they could close my account and she said no. I asked her how much she thought it would cost her to keep my account open each month between billing, postage, tracking and the auto updates on my fico and she figured about $20.00 so I figure we will play this game until I get my interest rate back. I cannot vocalize how angry I am that I have been a good payer with a high fico and it means nothing at all. Hey, to quote Suzy at Cap One, that's just the way it is.

Re: Cap 1 interest increase

score_building — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 09:17:54 GMT

@montanadem wrote:
I finally spoke to Suzy in Texas after being transferred to several other countries and they made no apologies about the increase of interest rate. Mine went from 3.9 to 13.9 overnite, well starting end of April. So here is the executive offices for Cap One and I was surprised to find them in SLC, UT. Cap One, PO Box 30285, SLC, UT 84130-0285. I asked Suzy if I charged $4.50 every month and paid off $4.50 each month if they could close my account and she said no. I asked her how much she thought it would cost her to keep my account open each month between billing, postage, tracking and the auto updates on my fico and she figured about $20.00 so I figure we will play this game until I get my interest rate back. I cannot vocalize how angry I am that I have been a good payer with a high fico and it means nothing at all. Hey, to quote Suzy at Cap One, that's just the way it is.

a few years back cap1 did the same thing and it seems that many of us who waited it out (SD the card) ultimately received reductions after several months. also, it helps to be minduful of your 'audience' when speaking to a front line representative, you may've threw her uncomfortably off script -to be honest, that doesn't really help in terms of receiving accurate or even well conceived f/b.

you seem to have a better sense of the costs involved maintaining your acct anyway than a csr could tell you off the cuff. simply wanting some basic questions to be addressed is understandable but not much added value in 'showing all your cards' to a ccc who has already taken AA on your account, ymmv.

Message Edited by score_building on 03-13-2009 02:17 AM

Re: Cap 1 interest increase

Anonymous — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 19:12:05 GMT

My apr was 4.9 now its going up to 17.9