citi CLI. is this normal procedure?

[lizabeth]

i applied online for a citi MC a few days ago and was automatically approved for $5,300.
i get the card and this morning i called to talk about getting a CLI up to $10,000 and to activate it.
i said i wanted to speak to someone regarding a CLI and doing a balance transfer and this girl
was like 'i can put in the request for your CLI'.....

she then goes on to say it will take a half hour to process. and to call back when that time is up.
i specifically said 'can you please note that i dont want my report pulled again because i literally JUST got this card a few days ago"... and she said 'i can maybe note it, but i cant guarantee it..'
so i just sighed and agreed.

is this normal procedure??? i called the backdoor number listed, and it still had me go through an automated voice. so i feel like i screwed up.

[preci0uz]

I don't think they pull your CR again.

However, when i get cluless people like her on the phone, I usually hang up and call again.

[lizabeth]

i am not enjoying CITI thus far.
i called back almost instantly to see if i could get someone else.
i called the backdoor for RETENTION and said i wanted to speak to a credit analyst.
and get ANOTHER confused woman who said 'uhhh ummm we don't really have those?"
and i said "okay i need to talk to someone about checking a CLI request and doing a BT"
she said 'i can help you with both'.

1) "you were denied your CLI" and i asked if that could be reconisdered because i need to watch my utilization. and she goes "i'm sorry..util..what?"..... so i changed the subject and asked whether she knew if they pulled a hard inquiry. she goes and asks her supervisor and says 'there is no way to tell that'...   SO FRUSTRATED by this point I went ahead and did my balance transfer which means I cant actually purchase stuff on this card because i want to keep it under 30% util.

so what the heck? can someone help me out?

a. i rarely take no for an answer, so i feel like i should call back.
b. i was never given the reason for the denial
c. does ANYONE have a LEGIT backdoor number for citi that can get me to someone who KNOWS what they are doing???  both of these women said 'umm uhhhh' like 800 times before they could answer me. dang.

[oracles]

Hi Liz

I have use the retention backdoor number for citi and it has worked well for me. Hoping it will work well in the future (knock on wood).

I would definitely call back again and speak to someone else. Sometimes it is a matter of catching the right person. Ask why it was denied and if it was a hard inquiry.

I unfortunately think it was a hard inquiry. When I was approved for a citicard and tried to get a cli at activation, it was a hard pull.

Definitely ask what was the reason for being denied and then try to reconn. Again mention util% of the card.

Hope this helps and keep us updated as to what happened.

Message Edited by oracles on 02-03-2009 11:42 AM

[Anonymous]

FWIW, I used my Citi card as a BT card for my first 8 months or so having it and they still gave me auto-CLIs.

[Scamp]

lizabeth,

Sorry you're having such trouble.

Not every CCC calls their Credit Analysts that exact title - different companies, different names, so it's never a good idea to flat-out ask to speak to one, if only for the puzzled-employee reason you encountered.

As for the other confused responses to some of the things you said, not all those who answer the Backdoor Numbers are created equal, and even though they'll generally be a cut above mainline CSR's, not all of them will know as much as we on these boards do or know every term or phrase for various things that we know.

IMHO, your best bet is to try again.  Whomever answers the call, explain to them politely what you've attempted to accomplish and find out in the last couple of calls and ask if they can help you or, if they can't, if there's a supervisor or other number you can call to get to someone who can.

Avoid talk of credit analysts, utilization, etc., if you can.  Debt-to-credit ratio is something any of them should be able to grasp, even if they've never heard it referred to as utilization, so try that instead.

Good luck.

[lizabeth]

thank you scamp,
i posed the same question on 'another' credit board and they suggested i not bother.
that the credit climate is too weird and that it would look bad of me to keep pestering them.
i always thought cards WANTED to be the one you used, and would upp your limit just so that they WOULD be your main card.

im pretty sure they pulled a hard. im not too pleased with the woman just saying 'you're denied'.
perhaps i will call back and be firm in asking for a supervisor. maybe a little later though.

[laz98]

---

@lizabeth wrote:
thank you scamp,
i posed the same question on 'another' credit board and they suggested i not bother.
that the credit climate is too weird and that it would look bad of me to keep pestering them.
i always thought cards WANTED to be the one you used, and would upp your limit just so that they WOULD be your main card.

im pretty sure they pulled a hard. im not too pleased with the woman just saying 'you're denied'.
perhaps i will call back and be firm in asking for a supervisor. maybe a little later though.

---

maybe that's how it used to be, but the economy is not the same now.  they are not just handing out CLIs to people, even those who may deserve them.  not trying to be harsh, just stating the facts.

[CHARGE_IT]

I am going to agree with another  poster. You just applied and got a limit that ninety percent of people here would love. I understand that you are looking at that number in relationship to how much you want to BT.

As another poster pointed out., CITI is one of the best banks when it comes to cli even now. I got my three month increase tonight like clockwork and I have BTs on two CITI cards.

Give a couple really good sized payment first three months and they will show you what you can do. And when you don't ask you don't get hard pulls.

Btw, when asking about utl, I always tell them that if I use more that thirty to forty PERCENT of my available credit it will hurt my credit report standing. Avoid the terms used here. The companies are using that lingo to weed out those who just want to increase utl and scores versus those who are interested in using their credit.

If this is the first place you read a term or acronym, this is where it should stay, do not use in the real world.

Good luck and please let us know when you get your first auto increase.

CI

[lizabeth]

thanks for the advice. i never did end up calling yesterday.
i am not ungrateful for the current limit.
but i wont be able to use this card AT ALL now with the BT i just put on it.
beyond the BT, i have 0% apr on purchases for a year. i was excited to utilize it.
im ALREADY at 30% util now on that card with the BT alone.
so it just seems like a worthless card if i can't use it for purchases and take advantage of my year 0%.
maybe they'll figure it out on their own.