Well, guess what advertisement was in my statement this month? You guessed it :_))))) Ok: 1-888-527-3014 to enroll. If you have no balance on your Cap1 I'd enroll now and get the full disclosure sent to you so you can really review it... The ad says: .89 per 100... so if you owe 200, it's 1.78 and no hidden fees. No balance, no cost. "Capital One's Payment Protection program pays the minimum monthly payment you own on your eligible balance if you or your secondary cardholder loses a job involuntarily or one of you becomes temporarily disabled due to an accident or illness. Plus, in the event of death or permanent disability of you or your secondary cardholder, Payment Protection will apy off the eligible balance of your card, up to 10,000." Their also say "your minimum monthly payment will be paid=including the monthly charge for Payment Protection" "Late and overlimit fees may be waived" "You can use your Capital One card even while benefit payments are being paid" Ok... not bad. Remember you can balance transfer to Cap1 from Citiblank with no fees... So I guess the real questions are: What's "eligible balance"? Does the minimum stay at 3% or do they adjust it to 2%? How will it/not affect your relationship with Cap1? How long do you have to be enrolled to become eligible for benefits??? wow. .89 per 100 is a lot. If you use the scenario of the total 5k we were discussing... your estimated interest at 8.9 fixed is just at 35 a month... and your Payment Protection is 44.50 per month SO: Jan: 5000 + int 35 + PP 44.50 = 5079.50 - 150 pmt - 44.50 PP Pmt = 4885 I wonder if they add interest to the PP charge... anyway, not a bad deal. Just wondering how you could do it... I wonder if you have to have it a min of 3 mos or something with a balance to do it... or if they grandfather in money eligible... otherwise, it'd be a good program so I'm wondering where's the catch...
I would normally totall agree with you... but she has a heads-up that there will be involuntary unemployment in her future... so she's being responsible and planning to protect her credit. Most of the plans seems to cost about the same amount. I'm just trying to help her compare the benefits to help her decide which company/ies to use during this period. Citi seems to retaliate for higher balances/ min payments. Fleet too. Cap1 does not punish for either high utilization or minimum payments... if you have a good history they acutally encourage that behavior (higher profitability) so Cap1 may be a good choice for her during this future period of restricted income
Marie, Thanks. 1. I enrolled in this in March 1999 - and so by September I will have had 3.5 years cardmember history in the protection program. 2. By September, my total CC balance should be $2000 or less. This will just make the service more expensive - UNLESS - I take it upon myself to pay (or set aside) the service fee ($17.80 on a $2000 balance) and pay that all at once, when I opt out of the payment protection service. Yeah, George, I pay more for it than waht it's worth - but it protects my credit - and the other credit that I will use in the future (i.e. Citibank). And, Cap One will not be a card I want to use for purchases. I plan on using the AmEx cards and my Citi USA for purchases (always paid in full) for the rest of my life. 3. It last for at least 12 months, but hopefully I wouldn't be jobless for 12 months! 4. I have a sneaking suspicion that BTs may not be "eligible balances". :-( Time for a C2it/PayDirect type service that Cap One posts as a purchase... 5. I have the original insurance document packet at home; I'll dig it out and study it carefully. Thanks, Marie! Hopefully, all of this is moot and I'll have a salary long before September.
I have sold this - "eligible balance" is the amount on your card at the time you become unemployed. You will have to prove the date, and the unemployment status, and you have to be eiligible for unemployment benefits from your state. They do add interest to the PP charges. If you continue to use your card after activating the PP, it will not pay that portion of the minimum payment - you will be responsible for those charges. The "you can continue to use the card" statement is sales talk - makes it sound more attractive than it is. My big question on this is what happens to your credit report? Are you reported to the CRA's as being unemployed? I have this plan on all cards with balances, if the plan offers coverage for unpaid personal leave (because of my Mom), but, I swear, I would be scared to use it without knowing whether or not it would be reported and how it would affect my credit standing generally. There is so much no one tells you about using this. Of course, if I had to use it, I'm sure I would anyway. Whatever happens has to beat defaulting on the account.
They keep offering it to me when I call and my cards are 2 months old. Also, I wonder if you know that you are about to become unemployed BEFORE you sign up, if its valid.. Kind of like a pre-existing condition...
No it doesn't matter, unless you have already become unemployed. Rule number one when getting insurance - do not tell them anything they aren't asking about. Only answer questions you are asked. Conversation is fine (if you are on the phone) but DO NOT volunteer any information.
