Barclaycard wont close my account.

[Anonymous]

I applied for a Barclaycard Arrival Plus mastercard and was approved.  I registered online and everything went fine and then I tried to make my first purchase and it was declined.  I called the 1800 number and they were rude. I answered the public identity verification questions correclty but they said it was wrong (I know the answer to those questions since it's about me).  Anyways, they want a copy of my drivers license, social security card, and a utility bill.  Im not desperate for credit and simply wanted a decent travel card...I told them to close it since Im not going to mail sensitive information like that when I dont even know their security policies on how my information would be handled.  They told me they cannot close my account while it is on hold and that they will continue to charge me an annual fee as well.  I escalated to a supervisor who was friendly but not much help.  I just filed a CFPB complaint but mainly wanted to share my experience here and see if anyone else has been treated similarly.  

With all the great competition out there - there's no point in doing business with a company like this.  

[Cred4All]

Although I can understand at times a card company / lender needing to verify your identity (And I'm all for verification), it goes to a whole new level the moment someone asks for a SS card copy to be snail mailed, faxed, or emailed to anyone... anywhere...  ever.  That to me is the red tape that would also make me walk.

That being said, Op I've never had to file a complaint before so I'm not sure of how those result in the end, perhaps someone else can chime in, however would it be worth a shot to just appease them and send in a utility bill and something else to show a good faith effort?  I'm not sure why any company would indiciate they will continue charging a fee if a cancellation was requested, unless contractually the moment you applied you were obligated to that said fee upon 'approval.'

Couple threads similar to the OP's on here from last year indicating the same type of practice:

https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Card-Applications/Why-is-Barclay-such-a-pain/td-p/4999595

https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Card-Applications/BARCLAYS-SECURITY-VERIFICATION/td-p/498729...

[Anonymous]

Think that's bad, try applying for a new driver's license if you want the federally compliant one.  What a cluster!  Spent over an hour at the BMV last Saturday morning.  

I have 2 observations...I closed my Barclay Frontier Airlines account online very readily, but it was an existing account and they knew it was me.  In your case, what if someone was trying to "pull a fast one" of some sort and was imitating you.  Seems like the safest thing for everyone's sake would be to close it preemptively, but perhaps if they can't verify it's you, they can't let that unidentified person make changes on the account.  Frustrating for sure, but not necessarily a bad thing.  Send a certified letter asking them to close it and be done with it.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I applied for a Barclaycard Arrival Plus mastercard and was approved.  I registered online and everything went fine and then I tried to make my first purchase and it was declined.  I called the 1800 number and they were rude. I answered the public identity verification questions correclty but they said it was wrong (I know the answer to those questions since it's about me).  Anyways, they want a copy of my drivers license, social security card, and a utility bill.  Im not desperate for credit and simply wanted a decent travel card...I told them to close it since Im not going to mail sensitive information like that when I dont even know their security policies on how my information would be handled.  They told me they cannot close my account while it is on hold and that they will continue to charge me an annual fee as well.  I escalated to a supervisor who was friendly but not much help.  I just filed a CFPB complaint but mainly wanted to share my experience here and see if anyone else has been treated similarly.  

With all the great competition out there - there's no point in doing business with a company like this.  

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Cant you check your sercurity questions after logging in?  I would double check those and call back again.  

[Anonymous]

Security questions(mother's maiden name, favorite food ect...) are not the same as identity verification questions.

ID verification comes from your credit report and other public records. It can be a hassle to answer these if you are a Jr, III and such. I currently can't get verified by the trustedID(or whatever) EQ is offering for free minotoring for this very reason.

[gdale6]

I would settle it by getting their fax number and sending them what they want along with a close the account sentence if that is really what you want. Welcome to the board

[Anonymous]

They wont accept it through anything but snail mail.  Thanks, ill update you guys on CFPB resolution.

[Anonymous]

I will try this suggestion, thanks.  There is no way I'd send them the other sensitive info like that - they're dreaming.  Especially when you read about older threads and this happening and seeing how that department tells customers they havent received the documents when tracking states otherwise.  Serious security issues.

[Anonymous]

Exactly!  They can ask for it all they want, but it's also my right to close the account which they are refusing.  I dont disagree with the security measures - what irked me was the fact that the representative was smug in saying they'll continue to charge me an annual fee in the meantime until I send those documents...that's sort of blackmail.  I think they wont change this practice until they get fined.

[Shadowfactor]

You would need to review the cardmember terms and conditions to see if they will actually charge you the annual fee.

Most front end CSR’s are misinformed when it comes to most things.

Most prime banks allow customers to back out of the terms and conditions which would include the AF being charged before the card has been activated and a charge made.

But of course this is complicated because of them not being able to verify you properly.

The best course of action would be to call back and ask to talk to a supervisor. Explain the situation to them.
I find it hard that Barclays would only accept regular mail for verification documents. The person you talked to was probably misinformed or just being a **bleep**.

HUCA and ask for a supervisor