Orchard Rant

[Tuscani]

I debated posting this thread considering I have had nothing but good things to say about Orchard. Like many sub-prime cards, the atrocious fees are nothing out of the norm. It's fair to say that any or all of the following fees are to be expected:

- Annual Fee

- Monthly Fee

- Processing Fee

- Over the limit Fee

- Late payment Fee

- CLI Fee

- BT Fee

Now, with that said I feel Orchard has recently crossed the line. My brother decided to close his Orchard card a few months ago since he now has several prime cards. No need to pay a $49 annual fee that Orchard won't waive. This month he gets an alert that a late payment has been added to his reports. Since he is an educated brother of a credit freak, how could this be??

He calls me in panic insisting that he closed the account (keep in mind the card has had a $0 balance for several months). Sure enough, the late is from HSBC. He called HSBC looking for answers. Unbenounced to him, Orchard charged a closed account fee but never billed him (so he says). Maybe one of those "lost in the mail" deals. The monies owed are $2.50 for the closed account fee and a $29 late payment fee. Orchard waived the late fee and agreed to delete the derog from his reports. But he still had to pay the $2.50.

Always remember to read your terms for hidden fees like this!

- Tusc

[Anonymous]

Jeepers! One of my first cards for establishing credit was Orchard that was opened back in 1999 and I still have just for the history but don't use. I've never had to pay any fees and they cli automatically throughout the years. What type of Orchard card was this?

[Neblett]

This is exactly why I HATE Orchard, and they are at the bottom of my list to pay/PFD. They get their money DEAD LAST.

They wouldn't let me close my account, and they kept charging me late fees, and when the late fees took me over my limit, they charged me monthly over-the-limit fees, until I just ignored it long enough that they charged it off and stopped adding fees. I asked them, and they said that was the only way they would stop adding those fees.

Hate 'em.

[Anonymous]

Neblett,

Wow. I plan on closing mine out sometime next year but for now I keep it just for the history since it was one of my first starter cards so many years ago. I've never had any problems with them and they've been super nice to me so I hope they don't give me any drama when I do close it out.  What do you mean when you say they wouldn't let you close it out?

[Anonymous]

Orchard puts out a rather broad spectrum of cards from the "stinkeroos" that charge Statement Viewing and Envelope Opening fees to some decently respectable near-prime cards with $29 annual fees. So Orchard is definitely an example of "YMMV".

[SoulSmilen]

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TheNewWorldMan wrote:
Orchard puts out a rather broad spectrum of cards from the "stinkeroos" that charge Statement Viewing and Envelope Opening fees to some decently respectable near-prime cards with $29 annual fees. So Orchard is definitely an example of "YMMV".

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Yup, all I have is the $29 annual fee.

[Anonymous]

There's a place for companies like Orchard, and I don't mean federal prison.

Oh wait, here it is.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Divine_Comedy#The_Circles_of_Hell

Ninth Circle. Traitors, distinguished from the "merely" fraudulent in that their acts involve betraying one in a special relationship to the betrayer, are frozen in a lake of ice known as Cocytus.

[Anonymous]

i was approved for the platnium card with them

[smallfry]

Thanks for the heads up Tuscani. I imagine once you close the card you can't log in to see the closing fee if there was one. Slick.

[SmartCookie]

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TheNewWorldMan wrote:
Orchard puts out a rather broad spectrum of cards from the "stinkeroos" that charge Statement Viewing and Envelope Opening fees to some decently respectable near-prime cards with $29 annual fees. So Orchard is definitely an example of "YMMV".

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After reading this, I'd be scared to test drive.