So ashamed and devastated

[Creditaddict]

I would simply say make sure you make Cell phone if that's what you ALWAYS have with you especially a bi-coastal traveler... Make that your primary, Amex very much will "many" times call if they want payment, if you are approaching limit with charge card that may be different in past or such.

Also set up an alert... I don't like to many, they get a little carried away but I do like... 1. "Payment has posted to account"  2. Payment is due in 5 days.  3. You missed a payment!!!!

Otherwise I think the issue is why FR is not giving what happened... or maybe it was in the middle 2 pages I skipped!

[TNTransplant]

---

@MontegoMack wrote:

Obviously people are thinkig that I missed the due by date and that's not the issue - as far as I was told. The issue is that the payment to AMEX did not clear because of the freeze on the account. 

My cards are paid to zero, except for one which usually carries <10% of the CL. The others are paid in full before the due date. I've NEVER had a problem with this and had no reason to believe an account would freeze or a payment be considered fraudulent. I didn't think I needed to check because I didn't think there'd be an issue. 

It was a mistake. One that I feel badly about. However, I doubt I should be considered to be irresponsible or undeserving of cards that, just one month before, I qualified and was approved for. 

I'm working on it. Thanks for the votes of confidence in the resolution of this disaster. 

---

I was reading everyone's responses here, and there does tend to be a "jumping on the bandwagon" effect at times; thanks for clarifying this.  I did wonder if the payment actually ended up being late, or if Amex shut the accounts down because of the payment not clearing with the CU.  Since the issue appears to rest upon the CU and the fact that they froze the payment, I do think it's worth a try to contact the executive office/write a letter/pitch a fit (nicely ) to see if this decision can be reconsidered.

Good luck to you - hope you get your Amex back...  

[webhopper]

So did they shut you down for "nonpayment" or for "returned payment"? I'm confused!

[MontegoMack]

Returned payment.

I submitted the payment on time.

My CU thought it was a fraudulent payment as it was the largest bill I've ever incurred and AMEX was a new account to pay out to. 

My CU didn't release the funds.

My CU froze the account.

AMEX didn't get paid until after the already closed the account. 

AMEX was closed before my due date.

[TNTransplant]

---

@MontegoMack wrote:

Returned payment.

I submitted the payment on time.

My CU thought it was a fraudulent payment as it was the largest bill I've ever incurred and AMEX was a new account to pay out to. 

My CU didn't release the funds.

My CU froze the account.

AMEX didn't get paid until after the already closed the account. 

AMEX was closed before my due date.

---

Appeal it with whomever you have to.  If they won't overturn their decision and reinstate your accounts, then you're better off without them; there are other fish in the credit pond.  You already have prime cards with nice limits with BoA and Chase - I would cultivate further relationships with these two, and also consider adding Citi and Discover to the mix in the future.  This really won't hurt you FICO-wise, as your two Amex cards should stay on your history for the next 10 years.

Again, good luck to you - hope you get this overturned.  

[CreditScholar]

---

@webhopper wrote:
So did they shut you down for "nonpayment" or for "returned payment"? I'm confused!

---

For the purposes of this situation, the difference is irrelevant. When it says payment due by this date, it means that the payment must be received by the lender (in this case Amex) by then. They don't care whether the payment came through your bank, credit union, or through a check posted in the mail. The bottom line is that they need to receive the funds by the date indicated, and they didn't. Any problem regarding returned payment is an issue between the OP and her boyfriend's credit union.

While I do feel sorry for the OP (oddly enough), HappySoda made some excellent points regarding following up on payments. It's always a good idea to check afterwards to make sure it posted. You can't rely on someone else (or a bank) to ensure this, because if things go wrong you're the one who takes the penalty. Both parties share at least partial fault here.

1. Payment was made too close to the due date

2. Poor communication between the OP and her boyfriend

3. They may not have actually have the money at the time of purchase, and was waiting for payday in order to pay Amex

4. Not following through and actually checking up with the payment. Not logging into one's online account for a few weeks is beyond comprehension, especially after how careful she had been during her rebuilding process.

In many ways this is like driving. When the light turns green you're technically free to start moving into the intersection. However when you pull out, you should still look both ways for that person speeding through after the light turns red. You can't always assume that other parties will do the correct thing, and stuff can and does happen. That's why you need to cover your butt, in both driving and in paying your bills.

[webhopper]

I agree with you creditscholar. I think this is the perfect example of a learning opportunity for the OP. There have been several times that my payments would not have been made on time if I hadn't followed up on them and realized that there was a problem. Something as simple as typing a digit wrong if you waited until the last minute could have negative consequences.

I log into my online accounts almost daily. I don't understand how someone could not realize there was a problem with their account or how they can cut it so close on payment. My amex bill was 2.8k this month... all but $8 was paid before statement cut. The $8 charge managed to sneak through.

[webhopper]

Amex csr told me they try 3 times to collect payment...so the account was frozen for 3 days and no one knew.

[afjock21]

---

@MontegoMack wrote:

I would log on here very regularly. I got great advice, tips and suggestions as to how to build my credit score and improve my credit reports. I ended up going from lousy low CL cards to an AMEX PRG, Delta Gold, Chase Freedom and a BofA signature Visa. It wasn't easy but you all made it  seem simple. All I did was follow your collective advice. 

Then, my first AMEX bill came. I charged everything I could on it and racked up about a $3100 bill. My boyfriend and I are bi-coastal (CT and CA) and instead of having him pay for the airfare, I charged it. The bill came due and he sent in the payment. Or, at least, he thought he did. 

HIs credit union thought it was a fraudulent bill, perhaps because it was larger than what he usually pays and it's a new account. They froze the payment and flagged his account for potential fraudulent use. No big deal, right? Well, AMEX didn't get paid. They FR'ed me and ended up closing the account within 24 hours for nonpayment. I was devastated. Even with a letter from the CU saying that funds were available on the date of the attempted payment and a completed FR forms and subsequent payment of the bill, I got nothing but 2 pretty cards to look at, but not to use. It hasn't hit my CRs yet, but I imagine that I'll take quite a dive on my scores.

It's been 2 weeks. I'm just now bringing myself to log on, and even admit to ANYONE what has happened. I'm crushed. I guess it's only credit. It's only AMEX. 

---

Did you tell your boyfriend, if he's still your boyfriend, that he owes you..?  BIG TIME!!

[adavis425]

While I do hope this works out for OP, I can't even imagine not checking my accounts frequently. NOBODY makes my payments for me BUT me and I still check easily 4-5 times a week. I have the above-mentioned alerts on all accounts and you just can't go wrong with a backup bank/cu account. Credit building/rebuilding requires too much work and is too tenuous to be left in someone else's hands. IMO.