I just closed my Cap One Plat MC! Good riddance! All they offered was to credit back half of my next annual fee to be charged next month and increase my CL by a measly $500. But the kicker is that they would do none of these things until next February and ONLY IF I used the card in the meantime to make 5 purchases per month! Ha, I said no thank you - please close my account and send me a letter. I don't need your 9.9% fixed, $5K CL with $39 fee. I can do better now!
Niceguy, Congrats! Working up the nerve to do that but may have to hold on to mine as it dates back 7 years. It did come in handy as I applied for my 7th cc of the week. Best regards, Mirage
I dropped Cap 1 in September and I don't regret it one little bit. I must have been a really lousy customer too because they've done nothing to try and get me back. When I called to cancel my card, the automated system did it without connecting me to a live operator. If you're subprime, I think they're probably the best to rebuild your credit. Once you hit prime though, they pretty much suck.
I closed my Capital One account as well last December. The automated system closed my account as well without being transferred to a rep either. I had the account for 4 years. Used it regularly, balance transferred and was never late or over the limit. At the time of closing, I had cards from Amex, Chase, Bank of America and JCB. It didn't take long for them to start sending me pre-approvals from everything under the sun. K-mart Platinum, No hassle Platinum w/ 4.9% APR, TJ Maxx Platinum, etc. They continue to send them very regularly. Just wait. They'll start bombarding you too. LOL I doubt I will ever open another account with them. Even though I started subprime, my credit is excellent now and it was when I left them. I think it is stupid for these companies (Providian included) to let customers who have drastically improved their credit situation, just close their accounts without trying to keep them. A customer shouldn't have to reapply for a card and lose their previous history. They really need to learn from these mistakes. It's already a strike that Capital One doesn't report limits. Why would I want them to pull another 3 inquires to receive a card with a new history? It's just not worth in IMO.
Not stupid, actually they are smart. Being subprime lenders, they know that whatever they book you as (prime or subprime) will determine the price a competitor will offer to pay in the event of a sale. For example, Providian sold their best accounts to Chase, and pocketed billions because of it. The reason is that Chase looked not the at the current credit reports, but at book value, that is, did providian sign this customer up as prime or subprime. If it is the former, Chase will pay handsomely for it. If subprime, no one wants it. Then when Chase buys the account, it will pull a current credit report, see?
Re: Re: Bye Bye Cap One! I understand what you are saying and agree to a point, but I believe that customers who have moved into the prime arena from subprime should be rewarded as such. The accounts should be changed to a prime status. While they made money off some accounts, they didn't make anything on others ( and could have) because many people have closed their accounts due to not getting the terms they deserve. If Providian had upgraded my account to prime and sold it to Chase, they would have made money. Instead, they let me close it and they made nothing. If I were still subprime material, they could have kept my account and made money. However, I am not subprime any longer and wasn't for a very long time before closing my accounts. I wanted to keep them open for the age. My FICO scores are in the mid 700's and I have no blemishes on my record. If Capital One and/or Providian would adjust the accounts appropriately, there would be no losers. They complete regular account reviews and know which customers are now prime material. Instead of changing the terms when requested, they refuse and state they can't. As soon as you close your account, they shower you with pre-approvals to open a prime account with a new history. I recieve pre-approvals from Providian and Capital One on a constant basis every week. Capital One is notorious for sending pre-approvals with the notation that you could receive a minimum of $300 as a credit line. The ones I receive specifically state that I will recieve a minimum of $7,500 and a maximum of $30,000 (yes, $30,0000 not the $20,000 that they claim is their max) as a credit line (which is as shock for them- LOL). This proves they KNOW who should really be prime material. Instead they play games. I know they have books to keep separating prime & subprime customers, but there should be a process in place to transfer accounts when appropriate. Why would you risk losing a customer who uses their card heavily, pays many times more than the minimum & is never late? I'm no rocket scientist, but it just doesn't make sense to me. I understand they are in the business to make money and if a customer is satisfied with their account terms then great, but if you have a customer you KNOW is now prime and they call to cancel their account, you would think the company would offer some sort of retention effort. Maybe an upgrade should be offered only at that point, but to do nothing is unacceptable and NOT smart.
