Orchard Secured Card Graduation

[misfit928]

I currently have the secured card by Orchard for 3 years now and was just curious. Has anyone with this card had any recent success with graduating to unsecured?

[Anonymous]

Given the recent CLI success, you may wanna try the backdoor number.

[kelli1970]

No success...  I just had a round of communication with these people about a month ago... I was informed that there is no graduation outside of closing the account and then applying for an unsecured card, I was also informed the only way for a CLI was to send them more $$$.  I have 3 cards with other companies that are unsecured - doesn't matter.  You also can not have more than one card in the HSBC family.  I feel like I'm stuck because this is my oldest card at almost 5 years so I need it for length of credit history.  Please anyone who gets a different answer let us know!

[john398]

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@kelli1970 wrote:

No success...  I just had a round of communication with these people about a month ago... I was informed that there is no graduation outside of closing the account and then applying for an unsecured card, I was also informed the only way for a CLI was to send them more $$$.  I have 3 cards with other companies that are unsecured - doesn't matter.  You also can not have more than one card in the HSBC family.  I feel like I'm stuck because this is my oldest card at almost 5 years so I need it for length of credit history.  Please anyone who gets a different answer let us know!

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I am confused when you said you cannoty have more than one card from the HSBC family, I had 4 cards, an Orchard secured card, a Best Buy Store Cad, and Best Buy Reward Zone MasterCard and a HSBC Discover Card

[iainlbc]

@kelli1970 and OP

I was informed that there is no graduation outside of closing the account and then applying for an unsecured card, I was also informed the only way for a CLI was to send them more $$$.  I have 3 cards with other companies that are unsecured - doesn't matter.

I have the same experience with them. I have tried calling the customer service # on the card, as well as backdoor for a CLI.  I was told to apply for the unsecured card and the only way to CLI my secured card was sending more money.

I am in the same boat, this is a 5 year old card (my oldest). Kelli you are not stuck too bad becuase the history will stay reported by the CRA's for 10 years, but after that it will drop off. I am debating closing this card. 

I feel like a legitimate threat to close might garner different results, but it still seems pretty unlikely. Its a shame they don't throw their good customers a bone...

[Wolf3]

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@iainlbc wrote:

@kelli1970 and OP

I was informed that there is no graduation outside of closing the account and then applying for an unsecured card, I was also informed the only way for a CLI was to send them more $$$.  I have 3 cards with other companies that are unsecured - doesn't matter.

I have the same experience with them. I have tried calling the customer service # on the card, as well as backdoor for a CLI.  I was told to apply for the unsecured card and the only way to CLI my secured card was sending more money.

I am in the same boat, this is a 5 year old card (my oldest). Kelli you are not stuck too bad becuase the history will stay reported by the CRA's for 10 years, but after that it will drop off. I am debating closing this card. 

I feel like a legitimate threat to close might garner different results, but it still seems pretty unlikely. Its a shame they don't throw their good customers a bone...

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I am pretty happy with the bone they threw me last week.   Already collecting rewards.

http://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Cards/Was-planning-to-close-my-HSBC-secured-card-But/td-p/927...

[kelli1970]

I responded to a preapproved offer from HSBC and was denied solely because I already had a card from them, even though it was Orchard.  BB, RZ, Discover and others are apparently different than their main branded card...

[iainlbc]

Nice. thats awesome. I think I will give the backdoor # a call and legitimately ask to close. What limit was your secured card when you called in wolf? WHat was your usage like with them (PIF every month?) How many years had you had the secured card?

Cheers!

[kelli1970]

I've had mine almost 5 years with a $200 CL, never late, I have a few small things auto-paid with this card, use it for gas now & then, sometimes carry a small balance.  Starter card, I thought it would grow with me...

[Anonymous]

Bumping for an update.

I also have a secured card with Orchard and I called last year to request a graduation and I was only told that I was not eligible at the time; but not that graduations were no longer offered. My CL is $2000 and I have been with them for over 3 years now, I have never been late, keep balance low. I've keep my account in perfect standing, so I really don't want to close the account. I am thinking about calling the backdoor number and threaten to close the account if they don't graduate it to an unsecured account and see what luck I will have with that.

Any help is greatly appreciated.