Providian is great for their aggressive increases but I may be stuck. I've got 5599 in credit in 17 months and "Gold Priveleges" but not a Gold card. Talked to retention who couldn't improve my card: then I spent 45 minutes w/a retention supervisor who tried to upgrade me to an actual Gold card with no success. She told me that because I've had Gold priveleges and I have a high enough line of credit... the computer thinks I have a Gold card (but I don't). If this is the case I can't upgrade to Gold... which means I can't upgrade to Platinum... which means I'm stuck. Strange twist to this: I used www.planetfeedback.com to send a complaint to Providian... several days later I noticed I got a 1000 increase (Jan 2001) when I'd just been given 1000 (Dec 2000). ODD! About a week later I got a letter from a special division that answers these complaints. They explained that there are no current "upgrades" available for my account: no grace, no gold, no reduction in rates (I have 16.9 which is lower that the Gold card's intro 19.9). But they did say they'd put my requests in my profile and they gave me 1000 more in credit. Any suggestions or insights? The supervisor told me politely that in essence I have a Gold card so what's the big deal? The only upside was learning about planetfeedback.com!
RE: Stuck in Providian Classic Providian has a few strange quirks in its upgrade policy. As far as I can tell, they don't upgrade on request. Eventually, they will send you an upgrade offer. When I got mine last year, four years after I opened the account, Providian offered the gold preapproved on the same terms as the classic with a $1000 increase. When I accepted the offer, I got a letter saying I was not eligible for the upgrade because they had just given me a line increase. I was told by three levels of hierarchy that nothing could be done about this until finally I reached someone who said he would advocate for me with the credit department and call back the next day. Then I got it approved. If you persist it might work but I think you need to get past the people who can only give you what the computer authorizes.
RE: Stuck in Providian Classic Could a person go directly from Classic to Platinum? Or if that's impossible, maybe it's impossible to go from Gold to Platinum as well.
RE: Stuck in Providian Classic I just had my $1500 balance transfered to Nextcard. The balance on my Classic is now $0. I feel that I am now in a position to "bargain" with Providian. Will let you know how it turns out. Maybe the key is tranfering their balance to another card! Shake things up a bit. chet
RE: Stuck in Providian Classic Wait several months, reduce your balance to 0 then threaten to close the account (and mean it . They will probably upgrade you. Probably your problem is that your card is too new (BTW, when did you get it?) I had mine upgraded to gold just before first aniversary (I called) and then to Gold Premier one month after (they called)
You need to change the agent b I was offered an upgrade from classic with "gold privileges" to the actual gold card + $1000 increase. I accepted. After 45 days of waiting and having received a classic card (which I assumed I got b/c my original card needed renewing), I called and said that Providian needed to send me an actual physical gold card just as they promised. Well, they sent me another classic and, after I complained some more, yet another classic. So, finally I spoke to an account manager who actually knew his job and he said that the problem is that a different agent bank issues the classic and the gold, and my acocunt needed to be changed from the "classic" to "gold" agent bank. He said that it was even noted in my account that that was the problem, and he didn't understand why no one actually initiated the paperwork for the change. He said not all supervisors are adequately trained for their jobs. Anyway, I got the change to the gold agent bank and got the gold card a week later. Even then, Providian didn't even have the decency to ship the card express. But I did complain long enough about it that I got my annual fee waived. I know that technically it doesn't matter if you have a classic with gold priviledges (as long as Providian keeps those records) but I wanted to SEE the gold card in my hand - as that would be undeniable proof to Providian that I did have gold benefits. Also it helps in disputes with merchants. I bought shoes from JC Penney with the Providian gold and two months later they fell apart. I just walked into the store with my receipt and flashed the card, explained my gold benefits and got a full refund - no questions asked.
RE: You need to change the age THANKS MARCI! I'll call them today. MY card is currently Blue and I did talk with someone several months ago who "sent me a Gold card" but I got blue as well. This agent thought I actually Had the gold card but just didn't have the color changed in my physical card. I also see a pattern of the 120 day rule (we'll only do BIG things every 120 days). Annual fee waivers and % decreases seem to be small requests. But it seems if I take 1000 increase every 4 months (b/c I request it!) then I'm barred from changing to Gold... that's a BIG request I guess. Oh, I've been told you absolutely progress through the card colors: Classic Blue, Gold, Gold Premiere, Platinum. I've been told in 2-3 months (By a retention rep) that she might be able to jump me to a new 14.9 Platinum package they're coming out with. They're tired of losing good customers who switch cards but they don't really have better packages yet. Looks like Providian is going a bit more Prime! Thanks for all the help! Found this site 2 days ago and it's been invaluable
RE: You need to change the age Two days ago! I've seen your name so many times, it seems like forever.
RE: Stuck in Providian Classic Dunno exactly. For me, it gave me an APR reduction and some line increase. Anyway, it's the last step before platinum, and they'd better give that to me in the next 6 months if they want me to keep the account
How long were you with Providi Before you were offered a Gold card? I've been with them for nearly 3 years--over the limit once because of finance charges, no late pays-- and I've never received a Gold upgrade. I just got off the phone with a rep and a supervisor, and both are telling me that I have to wait to receive a Gold offer. Neither could tell me what criteria I am failing to meet in order to receive this upgrade. I'm getting annoyed because others on this board are getting grace periods and I can't seem to get these suckers to budge. I'm expecting a call from an account manager, and I will likely close this account if I don't get a satisfactory answer.
RE: You need to change the age I'll take that as a compliment!! I think I found this site on Friday... but I've been online about 20 hours or so this weekend looking for very specific info/hints on dealing with some issues. Since I kept seeing people waiting 6 mos to a year for better terms (and I'd gotten some good pointers from some posts) I decided to "give back" a bit!!! I think Providian is easy to upgrade dramatically if you systematically work them!!! And I initially asked them very specific questions about how to make my account better. I actually asked them what I could ask for, how often, etc and then I'd push it and ask for a supervisor... "can't you do better?" etc etc.
RE: How long were you with Pro Carrot, I opened the account in 1999. Like you, I have never received an offer for a gold card or even the Providian Mastercard. The way I got the upgrade was through arguing for an interest rate reduction. I was promised a reduction, but when I saw that the interest rate was not changed after 6 weeks, I complained to a supervisor who noted that the formal request had not been submitted for the reduction and to appease me, she gave me the rate reduction and a gold upgrade + $1000. Maybe Providian has certain accounts internally "coded" to be blacklisted from the promotional offers. I agree that it seems unfair to have the account for years without receiving preapproval for a Mastercard when people with 6 month histories get flooded with them. But, hey, Providian is an unethical bank in many ways and it is to my benefit that my banking relationship with them is limited. A customer shouldn't have to watch his/her back every billing cycle like I do to prevent abuse just for the benefit of having the card. My only goal with Providian is to get as high a credit limit with them as possible to attract more "prime" banks with balance transfer options. Once I reach my "prime" goals, I'm closing the account - regardless of whether it drops my credit score or not. Marci
Upgrading Try calling and asking again. Recently they've changed criteria. Bump to a supervisor if necessary. Try this phone # Tell them how frustrated you are and ask for the gold 1-800-215-7318. if all else fails, use www.planetfeedback.com. Prov takes it seriously. Make sure to put your name and identifying info so they can actually look up your account. I used it for a gripe and, though I didn't get gold, I did get 1000 more credit. Try it as a last resort! They responded within 2 weeks by mail (they increased my credit the day they got the email, I just didn't know it.
