Benefit to APR reductions if you don't pay interest?

[K-in-Boston]

I've asked for some APR reductions and many of them were granted.  As stated already, just ask if there are any APR offers available for your account.  The CSRs get the question all day long - they won't give you the 3rd degree.  You can even ask on chat or through a secure message.  As for the benefit, it's better to have a lower APR just in case you ever need it.  And like getting credit cards themselves, your odds are much better of receiving credit in general or lower rates when you don't need them.  If you pay in full every month and never max out your card, you're in a much better position to ask for a percent or two lower than when you're sitting at 95% util and you've been making minimum payments for a year.

[galahad15]

I have a slightly different perspective than some of the posters here on hypothetically paying minimal interest charges on extremely-low APR cards. My line of thought goes along the lines of: a theoretical "perfect" credit card would (IMO), in addition to having a good rewards program and extra benefits like lost luggage ins., trip cancellation, etc., also ideally have a fixed-rate APR of 4.XX% - 5.XX%. In other words IME, you can't have a true perfect / ideal cc if you don't also have an ultra-low APR; it's part and parcel of the whole comprehensive package of all of the card benefits to be had. As someone so astutely mentioned in a past post on the forum, "the low APR is the [a] reward, in and of itself". To reiterate: an ultra low APR can be one possible form of a type of reward. The closest I have come to a "holy grail" of sorts in terms of good rewards + benefits + exceptionally-low APRs are my BEFCU VISA and PACU MC. If I have to pay say around $30 in interest charges a year to get a card as described above, I'd simply rather pay minimal interest on a small balance, than pay a ginormous AF of $350 - $550 or more. JMHO and YMMV. To each his/her own though, it's all good lol...

[Anonymous]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

---

@Anonymous wrote:

---

@Anonymous wrote:

---

---

There is some potential harm (whether it actually matters is a different story).   Every time you interact with a rep, from the issuers viewpoint you are costing money.   We know at least some issuers keep track of all conttacts, so it's at least possible that if you aren't profitable, requesting decreases too much would make you be viewed less favorably for things you really do want.

---

Interesting perspective.  If one isn't paying interest, though, an APR reduction wouldn't make someone any less profitable would it?

Since I've never requested an APR reduction, could someone that has explain how the process works?  Do they ask you why you want the reduction?  Are there any questions that go along with it?  On what basis do you think they grant or deny your request? 

---

lurker is saying that the cost of you actually taking up the time of the CSR is lowering profitability. Banks and other companies do track this cost center, and will ask customers that are more expensive than they're worth to take their business elsewhere.

---

Right, interactions with humans cost money.   With CLIs its often possible to request them via an automated process online, so the perceived cost is low.   I beleive (and I may be wrong as I have never done it) that it's much less usual to request APR reductions via an automated process.

The "cost" of a call can be much more expensive than you might think, which is why a lot of places at least initially moved to chat (where the rep can multi-task) or email, where you don't have to worry about peak load.   

[happypill]

Like some of the others here I never carry a balance.  It would be a waste of my own time to spend any effort trying to get any reduction; and there is the really small possibility that asking would trigger some kind of FR or just agitate some lender for when I need to ask them for something that is actually valuable.

I do see the strategic value in keeping on card with a low APR for emergencies - and that's the only card where I actually know what the APR is.  Beyond that, there is opportunity cost in seeking out cards with low APRs.  Why pay with inquiries, reduced AAoA and possibly hitting internal lender limits for low APR when it isn't worth anything?  Plain and simple, lenders can offer greater rewards on cards with higher APRs because they can make money off that.  I'm happy to collect the rewards while others fund my rewards by paying interest.

[wasCB14]

---

@Anonymous wrote:
Right, interactions with humans cost money.   With CLIs its often possible to request them via an automated process online, so the perceived cost is low.   I beleive (and I may be wrong as I have never done it) that it's much less usual to request APR reductions via an automated process.

The "cost" of a call can be much more expensive than you might think, which is why a lot of places at least initially moved to chat (where the rep can multi-task) or email, where you don't have to worry about peak load.   

---

On a somewhat related note...

I contacted Amex about 10k missing MR points from a Platinum promotion I was targeted for, enrolled in properly, and yet never received due to some problem at their end. I expected it would just be a quick call and that the front-line CSR would see there was some problem and give me the points.

The front-line CSR had to consult someone in the Rewards department, and then they had to open an "investigation". At some point, even if they find my evidence insufficient and deny the claim for extra points, the cost of employee time may exceed the cost of the airline miles I'd eventually redeem the MRs for.

I've paid two AFs on Platinum without complaint. Had I asked for 10k points as retention, I think it would have been a simpler process than getting the points they went out of their way to offer me.

[Anonymous]

---

@happypill wrote:

Like some of the others here I never carry a balance.  It would be a waste of my own time to spend any effort trying to get any reduction; and there is the really small possibility that asking would trigger some kind of FR or just agitate some lender for when I need to ask them for something that is actually valuable.

I do see the strategic value in keeping on card with a low APR for emergencies - and that's the only card where I actually know what the APR is.  Beyond that, there is opportunity cost in seeking out cards with low APRs.  Why pay with inquiries, reduced AAoA and possibly hitting internal lender limits for low APR when it isn't worth anything?  Plain and simple, lenders can offer greater rewards on cards with higher APRs because they can make money off that.  I'm happy to collect the rewards while others fund my rewards by paying interest.

---

Agreed, doesn't seem to be worth it to pursue things that aren't necessary, it is not like chasing lower APR is actually free.

[MakingProgress]

---

---

Agreed, doesn't seem to be worth it to pursue things that aren't necessary, it is not like chasing lower APR is actually free.

---

But if you need to talk to a CSR about something else that would be  great time to ask about a lower APR. 

[Anonymous]

---

@MakingProgress wrote:

Agreed, doesn't seem to be worth it to pursue things that aren't necessary, it is not like chasing lower APR is actually free.

---

But if you need to talk to a CSR about something else that would be  great time to ask about a lower APR. 

---

+1

[Scupra]

Temporarily heals the itch

[Anonymous]

---

@galahad15 wrote:

I have a slightly different perspective than some of the posters here on hypothetically paying minimal interest charges on extremely-low APR cards. My line of thought goes along the lines of: a theoretical "perfect" credit card would (IMO), in addition to having a good rewards program and extra benefits like lost luggage ins., trip cancellation, etc., also ideally have a fixed-rate APR of 4.XX% - 5.XX%. In other words IME, you can't have a true perfect / ideal cc if you don't also have an ultra-low APR; it's part and parcel of the whole comprehensive package of all of the card benefits to be had. As someone so astutely mentioned in a past post on the forum, "the low APR is the [a] reward, in and of itself". To reiterate: an ultra low APR can be one possible form of a type of reward. The closest I have come to a "holy grail" of sorts in terms of good rewards + benefits + exceptionally-low APRs are my BEFCU VISA and PACU MC. If I have to pay say around $30 in interest charges a year to get a card as described above, I'd simply rather pay minimal interest on a small balance, than pay a ginormous AF of $350 - $550 or more. JMHO and YMMV. To each his/her own though, it's all good lol...

---

I see what you are saying here, but isn't that argument more or less moot if you PIF (and never pay any interest)?