Important info on closing CREDIT CARD accounts

[HRpartsNstuff]

Just a little FYI if anyone closes an account & has autopay options (so it's paid on time every month):

Just found out after a LOT of aggrevation, just because you payoff a credit card & CLOSE the account, doesn't mean the auto-pay is shut off! You would think closed means closed, but nope! I had 4 cards I used for the business & got a 2nd mortgage to payoff all of them, and they are getting credit balances on them from continued autopay options. 2 of them I could go online & cancel that option. The other 2 wouldn't even give me online access to stop it. I had to call in & get them to turn it off. Unbelievable!

Not only do they charge outrageous interest, late fees, over limit fees, they also keep taking your money until you figure out they are doing it! What a scam! Also, some of the accounts still show the avail credit amount & appear open (online) but are really closed. All that money & can't make the phone call updates on the account match the online info on the account. Wow. Paid off my Dell account & closed it, and they were nice enough to stop withdrawing the payments The cc's ain't getting anymore of my business.

 

[V6RACER]

Just a little FYI if anyone closes an account & has autopay options (so it's paid on time every month):

Just found out after a LOT of aggrevation, just because you payoff a credit card & CLOSE the account, doesn't mean the auto-pay is shut off! You would think closed means closed, but nope! I had 4 cards I used for the business & got a 2nd mortgage to payoff all of them, and they are getting credit balances on them from continued autopay options. 2 of them I could go online & cancel that option. The other 2 wouldn't even give me online access to stop it. I had to call in & get them to turn it off. Unbelievable!

Not only do they charge outrageous interest, late fees, over limit fees, they also keep taking your money until you figure out they are doing it! What a scam! Also, some of the accounts still show the avail credit amount & appear open (online) but are really closed. All that money & can't make the phone call updates on the account match the online info on the account. Wow. Paid off my Dell account & closed it, and they were nice enough to stop withdrawing the payments The cc's ain't getting anymore of my business.

That's why I don't have any credit cards. I only have a debit card. If I don't have the money I don't get it. I have no control when it comes to someone giving me money.. It is such a racket and in the end I am much happier without them. Get them cancelled and pay yourself the interest.

 

[whitehot84]

Can you say leaches????????

 

[phillyturbosix]

Capital One has to be the worst IMO. Canceled it over 2 years ago. At first it was ok because of the low start up intrest rate then the intrest goes thru the roof just when your not looking.. but to this day.. every month I get a zero balance statement in the mail. I've called and called and they say they can't figure out why "the computer" spits it out every month. These credit card companys are so screwed up. I think they are just hoping I'll use it again. Even tryed chopping it up into tiny pieces and sending it to them. I keep one CC for when I travel and emergencys but that's it anymore. Damn them and their high intrest rates!

 

[Jerryl]

Capital One has to be the worst IMO ..........

Yep.

......... Damn them and their high intrest rates!

Yeah currently, the CC companies do not have any issues charging 20 - 27%. Watch the fine print!

 

[turbopete]

And check your credit report FOR FREE!

Once a year at www.annualcreditreport.com
If you want your FICO score it costs extra.

 

[NastyGn]

I ran across this a few years ago when reading the agreement on an auto pay form. I found out you are signing your rights away to stop the auto pay. I also found out when you do this with your checking account for power companies and other utilities the same thing applies. You don't have the right to shut it off. The vendor must agree to stop.

If you like the auto pay thing check with your bank. I have electronic checking and can click a box when using them and the bank will cut a check to them every month to the company or vendor. This I can shut off anytime I want.

I know it's a pain but fine print needs to be looked at, I have to admidt I don't always do so but the auto pay thing I did look into and read.

Good information to share Paul.

Just another note of information, people who use debit cards. The agreement between the vendors and debit cards are different than credit cards. Not all vendors do this but as an example if you use your debit card at the pump at a gas station the second you swap your card in the gas pump $50 to $75 dollars will be frozen in your bank accound for about 3 or 4 days. This happens even if your only get $10 dollars of gas. They freeze the money until the paper work catchs up. If you happen to keep your bank account low and for some reason or another use your debit card several times at a gas station with in a day or two you could be locking up say up to $150 and start bouncing checks even if the money is there. One of the guys at work found this out the hard way.

Take Care

 

[turbojimmy]

I had the same problem with Amex. Had a recurring fee continue to get billed to an old account. They kept sending me bills until I contacted the vendor and told them to knock it off. I couldn't figure out what it was for a while. I figured since the account was closed I shouldn't be getting bills. Not the case.

Jim

 

[boosthappy]

I speak from experience. When you close a credit card, demand that the card company sends you a letter that states "THE ACCOUNT WAS CLOSED BY YOUR REQUEST AS OF <DATE> AND THE ACCOUNT HAS ZERO BALANCE."

Years ago, when I moved to AZ, I closed a credit card. About two months later, a travel agency in the bay area attempting to charge one of their customers for some plane tickets, mistakenly entered the wrong number during that charge. The number they entered happened to be my closed account (the expiration dates must have matched). Instead of denying the charge, the Credit card company simply re-opened my account! Since I had closed the account, I did not inform them that I had moved (did not get any statements), so when they could not find me, it went to collections.

Needless to say, it took me 3 months, countless phone calls and emails, and a file that is two inches thick to straighten that one out.

A simple letter stating "ACCOUNT CLOSED WITH ZERO BALANCE" would have saved me all that hassle.

Lesson learned.