Hi all, I closed my Household Bank card today. This is not the division of HHB advertised on CreditNet now, but the "Bankcard Services" division of HHB, which, in my opinion, does not have the prestige of the Household Bankcard advertised here. But for those at the beginning stages of rebuilding credit who may be interested in this card, here is some information: The credit card is sub-prime and is listed as Orchard on my Transunion report. The payment address is to "Bankcard Services". I opened it unsecured with a $59 annual fee and 19.40% APR. The credit limit was $300. In the year I had the card, I could NEVER negotiate one single term on the card. I payed $25 for a manually adjusted $100 limit increase. The amount I payed was based soley on the income I gave them. Things that ticked me off about this card: Most of my interactions with customer service (including supervisors) was dismal. They either did not have the power to grant better terms or simply did not care to try to please me. Maybe both. I learned quickly to pay online (www. householdcard.com) or mail my payment the day I received my statement. By US mail - it takes AT LEAST 10 days to post and the banking day for Household Bank ENDS at the "late" time of 6:00AM inthe morning. The phone number for the card is long distance - that is if you are a regular cardholder. For the privileged few who are "preferred" customers, the phone number is toll free. When I closed the account, I was told to call the "Customer Relations" department (surprisingly, this was toll free, too) and they tried to keep me by offering a $200 credit line increase without budging on the APR or annual fee. When I told the rep that all of my other cards had no annual fee, gold/platinum privileges and APRS averaging 13.9%, he just said "OK - I'll close your account". He didn't even try to be competitive. Anyway, for those who need an unsecured card, this is at least better than what I've read of 1st Premier or Cross Country Bank. Just remember that this is not the "prime" Household Bank division. Just watch your back. The "preferred" phone number to Customer Service is 1-800-216-1013. The phone number to retention/"Customer Relations" is 1-800-597-1122. Marci
Marci, I too have a card from "Bankcard Services" but mine was/is from UCNB and HHB bought them out back in November 2000 or so. Now my experience has always been okay with the old UCNB--just "okay"-but then again I never really needed anything from customer service. The number for them was and still is toll free by the way. In over 3 years I think I've called them 10 times and that was either for a change of address or to have my demagnitized card replaced. But thinks to you people here and a friend who told me about this site, I'm getting more educated! It NEVER crossed my mind that I could/should call the banks and demand better terms as my life got better!
Yeah. My primary banks are cap 1, and citibank now, aria was decent in customer support too. You deserve and should get: 1. Toll free unlimited phone access 2. A CSR rep in less than 5 minutes of time. 3. Courteous reps that will work with you. Both of those companies, and aria (when i had it) fit the bill. Online payment of bill, a MUST. Writing checks is nearly pointless with credit cards now. Its good you got here, start working them! Dont settle for anything but the best customer support, you're paying them to service you, and they know it!
