Dirty Credit Card Company Tricks
I know, I know…the “Great Credit Card Debate” isn’t supposed to start until tomorrow…but this is just too much temptation for me to resist! It seems Lynnae over at BeingFrugal.net has a major and valid complaint against that credit card company I so love to hate: Citibank. They not only slapped her around with a fee (for paying early, no less!) but rate-jacked her to boot.
My hatred of Citibank goes way way back… a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…in the fall of 1991 when I was an unemployed college freshman and they so kindly gave me a credit card at the student interest rate (which is of course the highest rate to start with according to creditcards.com). Hey, I was only 18; what did I know? I didn’t even know how little I knew…I was that clueless LOL I finally paid that evil credit card in 1999 or 2000…or was it 2001 when I had to clean up my credit report to buy this house? In my mind, Citibank is firmly entrenched on the Dark Side of the Force!
If you read the comments for Lynnae’s post, you’ll see Citibank isn’t the only credit card company that does this! I recounted my *wonderful* experience with American Express playing “Move the Due Date” with me last summer as they realized I was paying it down and meant business. I am happy to report that I haven’t been rate-jacked recently… although it wouldn’t surprise me if Citibank pulled that with me back in my young and clueless days.
Lynnae, I know you read this, and I know you have been undecided as to whether or not you should cut those credit cards up and get them out of your life permanently…Please, take my advice: KILL THEM ALL!!!! Cut them bad boys up and don’t look back…because they still have more dirty tricks up their sleeve! If you can’t get this episode from showing up on your credit report (even though it was Citibank’s fault!) your other credit cards might pull out their nastiest trick of all: universal default. Credit card companies are NOT your friends… and if they were who ever need enemies with “friends” like them?
Everyone else, stay tuned tomorrow for the official credit card debate with Madison from My Dollar Plan 