Cancelled! The Troubling World of Credit Cards
By Benjamin Blascoe
It is always quite a shameful experience when one’s credit card gets declined at the register. Often times there is a long line and when you’re finally told you have been declined, everyone gives you that ‘oh poor you’ face as you scramble for alternative means of payment. Then the luxury of calling your given credit company sets in, usually for a flustered debacle of a debate that could last hours.
The only thing I wonder is why it is perfectly legal for credit card Companies to cancel without any notice, reason or seemingly a purpose. When one calls customer service to get some answers – often times, there are no answers to be had besides the fact that your card has simply been cancelled.
Mary Pilon of the Wall Street Journal wrote a similar article and there she highlighted the experience of one Mar Harowitz. After a long and relaxing day at the spa (a birthday present to herself), Harowitz found herself amidst a credit card battle – cancelled without her knowledge. This came of surprise for Harowitz because she has perfect credit.
She is definitely not an isolated case. According to the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, an issuer is allowed to cancel an account due to inactivity, default or delinquency, notification without cardholder’s knowledge. Sometimes a notice is required after the cancellation but many say what is the use?
There will be some new regulation passed in late august of this year, and I look forward to seeing if it addresses these unwarranted cancellations – although the outlook is grim.
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