For background, I've never had any kind of card issued by Synchrony Bank. In general I don't like store cards and have none in my portfolio. But I need a couple of sets of new tires, and America's Tire (Discount Tire) is offering 0% interest on tire purchases if you open a Synchrony Car Care card. I got pre-qualified on their site and am considering applying.
But I've read about all the recent Synchrony card abrupt closures. I don't want that to happen to me! Would you recommend applying for a Synchrony card today? My use of the card would be pretty limited.
I'm one of the ones that had SynchB close all my accounts without warning and that was with never ever being late on any payment ever. I will never do business with them again.
We app'd for a Lowe's card 2 weeks ago, so for me, yes. That said, I wouldn't app for another one on my profile, and we probably won't get another one on DW's profile. It seems the massive shutdowns have been people with a lot of cards and exposure, so I'm not getting any more than the 2 cards I have. We have some home repairs and remodeling coming up, so getting the Lowe's card made sense.
I won't put ourselves in the position that a Sync shutdown would hurt us though, and I certainly can't blame anyone that has got shutdown for never doing business with them again.
I have two Synchrony accounts. One with Amazon and one with Verizon. After seeing the Synchrony closures on here I did not apply for the Sam’s Club card that I wanted. So I guess I wouldn’t apply today.
There's not much in their portfolio that I find attractive enough to risk getting burned the way I've seen happen to many people here. I almost apped for a PayPal MC but decided not to when they added foreign transaction fees.
The only card of theirs now that I might go for is the Verizon card, but solely so I could pay my phone bill with a card while enjoying the autopay discount, since that's the only credit card that qualifies. I have other stuff I'd rather get first, though.
I'm similar to you, @ridgebackpilot. Never had a Synchrony card. Dislike store cards and got rid of most of that type (included co-branded cards) except for my Costco card. While I think there is "more to the story" in some of the mass closings, I also distrust Synchrony's lending model based on how I've seen them treat other customers. (Approving large limits relative to profile and then mass shutdowns of the accounts seems irresponsible and poorly executed, IMO.)
Still, if I would benefit from a short-term offer such as two sets of tires at 0% APR, I probably wouldn't rule them out. But I would pay it off as agreed and promptly close that account at consumer request.
I believe the main cards they offer that have made me think twice have been the Lowe's card and the Verizon Visa, since I use Verizon. Lender diversity is always important to prevent any single one from having too large of an impact to our profile. Due to their history with other customers, if I ever got a long-term Synchrony card I would probably limit it to just one or two selected cards.
I would not open a store card, quickly they add up and become hard to manage; in addition, they provide no use other than at that specific store that offers it.
Check if your local credit union has a loan offer for you, either 0% APR or a low one. I think that is a better approach and might work better for your credit (paying an installment loan) than paying a credit card.
