Has anyone gotten a notice from their

**jamie79** · 12-22-2008, 10:34 PM

c.c? We did in the mail today. We have one c.c with U.S.A.A. Basically what it said was they were going with a set interest rate. starting FEB.1, 2009. The reasoning behind this move is the tough economic times and the bank bailout situation. It says that you do not have to participate in the interest rate rise ( if yours were to rise) BUT that if you do not participate in it then amoung other things your acct could be closed. Now the interest rate they are saying is one percent above what we are paying now so its not like they are increasing it alot but it just makes me more determined to pay the sucker off. It may take me all of 2009 to do it as it has an $8,200 balance but it was almost $15,000 this yr so I think I can do it if I get really frugal.

**HandyMom** · 12-22-2008, 11:25 PM

That's pretty nasty to do to people! I hope they don't try that with me or I'll cancel my credit card. I canceled the one card I had before this one because they tried to all of a sudden, after 15 years, add a yearly fee to the card. They had already raised the interest which I never paid anyway but it was the last straw when they did the yearly fee.

**luvhilndr** · 12-23-2008, 12:16 PM

We received a notice from Citibank (the very same bank that got all that bailout money) stating they were increasing our interest rate. We were at 8.9%, and the new minimum rate would be 14.9%. We had recently paid off a balance on that card, and am I ever glad we did. I sent them a letter telling them that the interest rate increase was unacceptable given our history with them and to cancel the card immediately. It was a matter of principle and I have to say that it felt so good!

**ladykemma2** · 12-23-2008, 12:40 PM

yes, my usaa letter is bringing my interest rate from 4.9% to 9%. i am going to snowball the $3400 debt quickly and charge no more. i will keep for travel and that's it. I'm mad. to heck with them.

**RetiredVeryEarly** · 12-24-2008, 01:41 AM

I got that notice from one of my CC companies as well. It doesn't affect me since we always pay our balance in full each month. And we have them all set up to pay automatically so that we can't screw up and forget to pay on time. I think I heard there was something legal in the works, though, that companies could charge you higher interest on future purchases but they can't change the rate on your current balance since they had already agreed to charge you something lower. That is assuming you don't screw up in any way (late, over the limit, etc.) because then they can gouge you to the max.

We are keen on using our credit cards because our main one gives us lots of cash back, about $100 a year, and the other ones mostly give frequent flier miles. We sign up every now and then for a new card we don't need because they give 15 or 20 thousand miles when you do. But of course the poor sods out there who pay a lot of interest and fees are paying for all the things we get free from our CC companies. And we don't get any cards that have a yearly fee.

**staciah** · 12-24-2008, 06:44 AM

Originally Posted by luvhilndr

We received a notice from Citibank (the very same bank that got all that bailout money) stating they were increasing our interest rate. We were at 8.9%, and the new minimum rate would be 14.9%. We had recently paid off a balance on that card, and am I ever glad we did. I sent them a letter telling them that the interest rate increase was unacceptable given our history with them and to cancel the card immediately. It was a matter of principle and I have to say that it felt so good!

Good job!! we are with the same card but haven't received any notice yet but we will be doing the same thing if we do.

**Jilly50** · 12-25-2008, 07:42 PM

Check your credit cards very closely. they are sneaky. I once paid off the entire balance on mine. Next month I received a bill!!??...I called and they said it was "interest". On what I asked. I have a ZERO balance. They gave me a long complicated story about how interest was figured etc. They did remove it when I asked them to. They are not honest and they ARE in it to make money. You have to watch them.

**Tightwad Mom** · 12-25-2008, 07:52 PM

Something else to watch for us the due dates. We've noticed our due date has moved up 6 days than what it used to be. If someone doesn't watch it closely and just assumes their due date is the same each month, they're going to incur a late charge.

**craftypam** · 12-27-2008, 08:39 AM

Originally Posted by luvhilndr

we received a notice from citibank (the very same bank that got all that bailout money) stating they were increasing our interest rate. We were at 8.9%, and the new minimum rate would be 14.9%. We had recently paid off a balance on that card, and am i ever glad we did. I sent them a letter telling them that the interest rate increase was unacceptable given our history with them and to cancel the card immediately. it was a matter of principle and i have to say that it felt so good!

good for you!!!!!!!!!!

**luvhilndr** · 12-27-2008, 12:18 PM

Originally Posted by staciah

Good job!! we are with the same card but haven't received any notice yet but we will be doing the same thing if we do.

The notice was a small flyer tucked in with November's statement. It stated that the rate change would be effective in December whether or not we receive a statement. So you might want to double-check that they haven't slipped the increase in on you.

Although we no longer had a balance, and don't plan on ever carrying one again, the increase in the interest rate really annoyed me. Writing that letter felt so good!

**pat in east texas** · 12-27-2008, 12:33 PM

The notice that we got raised our credit limit. We don't carry a balance and are very careful to pay before the due date and check to see that it's been posted.

**guest002** · 12-27-2008, 01:13 PM

On the USAA CC was your interest rate before tied to the prime rate? If so if you don't mind me asking was it Prime + ?. Mine is Prime + zero right now. If they raise it then I'm going to have to scramble like mad to pay that off ASAP.

**knitnmom** · 12-27-2008, 04:03 PM

That is exactly why I just want to get rid our our cc debt asap. We have not received a notice like that, but I'm watching for it.

**frugalbabe** · 12-28-2008, 10:59 AM

I have a USAA card as well and we went from 6.25 to 9.0 I currently have a $3,600 balance (I know I know) this is my #1 goal this year is to get that thing shredded by tax time. We have excellent credit and this is how we are thanked?!?