Downgrading Chase Sapphire Reserve before second annual fee?

[Anonymous]

So just curious how downgrading works with the 12 month product change wait with credit cards, specifically the CSR.  Will I be able to avoid the second annual fee and be allowed to downgrade before it hits?

Also if I am hit with the annual fee will Chase prorate and refund the remaining if I downgrade afterwards?

Thanks!

[-Cal-]

My wife just went through this scenario. AF posted on 12/1, Spending bonus reset on 12/28, I had her spend $300 on travel the day it reset, a few days later we saw the travel credit, On 1/2 I had her call and downgrade to the FU. The first thing the rep was concerned about was us not missing out on redeeming that travel credit. The full AF was removed. 

[Anonymous]

Great, perfect reply!  Thats everything I needed to know!  I have read articles about gaming the system by using the travel credit and then proceeding to cancel, but I was a bit reluctant to ask about it here since it does seem a little questionable haha

[-Cal-]

IIRC, if you cancel 30 days after your AF posts you will be responsible for AF. If you downgrade you will be charged prorated AF depending on how long you wait to downgrade. 

[Anonymous]

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@-Cal- wrote:

IIRC, if you cancel 30 days after your AF posts you will be responsible for AF. If you downgrade you will be charged prorated AF depending on how long you wait to downgrade. 

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Gotcha, Ill be downgrading so should be all good.

[UpperNwGuy]

Are you downgrading to the Sapphire Preferred or to the plain Sapphire?

[Anonymous]

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@UpperNwGuy wrote:

Are you downgrading to the Sapphire Preferred or to the plain Sapphire?

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I plan to downgrade/product change to the Chase Freedom.

[simplynoir]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@UpperNwGuy wrote:

Are you downgrading to the Sapphire Preferred or to the plain Sapphire?

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I plan to downgrade/product change to the Chase Freedom.

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Don't you have to go CSR -> regular Sapphire -> Freedom to accomplish that? Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

[Anonymous]

There are quite a few articles and videos out there that mention downgrading from AF sapphires to freedom cards and I haven’t seen any that have suggested you need to go to the no AF sapphire first. As well, from Cals post it sounds like his wife went straight to the freedom unlimited.

[simplynoir]

It might be perhaps because when I downgraded my GF's CSP to a second Freedom card last year she might have had to jump some small hoops since she technically already had a Freedom card in her lineup. I can definitely recall not being able to do a straight change of CSP to Freedom though.