Citi closed two of my cc accts last month that I havn't used in a long time. They said "high number of inquiries" -this followed an Appa-Rama in which Citi was an issuer that turned me down. Sometimes the Appa-lachian Trail can be a hard journey for us Appalons.---z

<<Citi closed two of my cc accts last month that I havn't used in a long time. They said "high number of inquiries" -this followed an Appa-Rama in which Citi was an issuer that turned me down. Sometimes the Appa-lachian Trail can be a hard journey for us Appalons.---z >>

same here - two months or so ago.

<< I have on EXP in the last 6 months, they are responsible for THREE of them>>

same here (ratio of citibank to non citibank inquiry)


they were very shifty in giving reasons why my account was closed. first they said number of inquiries. after i countered with a perfectly good explanation (having 4 inquries from citibank, etc...), they said it was because i didnt use my card for a while. when i countered that they didnt have good offers until now and i promise to use them, they claim i was not profitable. i protested all the way up to the "president's" office (and was declined every step of the way).

a month later having spoken to a very friendly CR, i asked if i could reopen a closed account. she said yes. but after a 10min+ hold (literally), she apologized. i asked why and she said she was at a loss. i asked if it was a general policy accounts closed less than 12 months could be reopened, and she confirmed - however i was somehow an exception. she was very helpful and yet was puzzled (and refused to tell me) about something that was on my account. she said i had the highest FICO score shes ever seen and everything about my account is in perfect standing - but her manager would not allow my account to be re-opened.

i was so close to redeeming my cash rebates. grrrr! and to this day, they still have the moxie to spam me w/ cc solitictions (the same account they closed on me!).


edit: this was also during the new mbna blitz where i opened quite a few different accounts w/ them. another reason why citibank rejected me was supposedly i was opening too many accounts w/ competitor (i countered w/ the fact that if they were more agressive w/ their offer i would gladly return to citibank - this was before their 5% new offer)

The banks are totally driven by computer models, people rarely get involved in the process of deciding that certain accounts should be closed. It would be helpful if posters would provide even more information that might help us figure out what is triggering the closures.

For example, total number of cards and limits, average account age, total limits to income ratio, any unusual account usage (in the closed accounts or others) such as frequent balance transfers, chargebacks or ???, were the closed cards opened in response to a mail solicitation or some offer posted here?

It might also be useful, when faced with a closure, to have an at hand list of "excuses" for why you have so many cards, not that it will neccessarily help to argue with a CSR if your account is flagged for some reason they won't reveal. For example:

Oh, I have the aaa card just for purchasing from Amazon, I use the xxx for groceries, my wife uses xyz card for her shopping, I use the abc card for business trips, I use the 123 card for all my online purchases because they have such a great fraud protection program, I use the a29 card for all my purchases for the PTA, my daughter uses the 987 card when she is off at college (heck, you may be single with no kids but they don't know that) blah blah blah. Why do you have high limits? Have some reasons for that, start with "I guess my creditors think I'm credit worthy and my credit usage patterns must have given them a reason for giving me the limits they did". Or (since the bank closing your account hasn't a clue what your actual usage at other banks is) tell them, I tend to bill $10-15K/mo on my xyz card for business travel so they give me an appropriate limit, I bought a $22K boat on my 123 card and paid it off when my bonus check arrived the following month. I appreciate banks that don't restict my spending needlessly.

In the end the banks are going to be more aggressive in figuring out who their profitiable customers are and who their worthless customers are and in the end if you aren't making them any money and they figure their prospects of making any money off you in the future are slim then they are right to close your account and send you packing, it's good business.

Wow mshen11, that behavior is pretty striking on their part, especially with your usage patterns. I wonder if making a token purchase or two every few months would have prevented the closure.

zeego, you're right about bumpage, that's why I said with TU and EQ (but not EXP.) That's always my own worst CRA for that reason.

dweick wrote, It would be helpful if posters would provide even more information that might help us figure out what is triggering the closuresagreed. I'd suggest to SIS to either update the OP requesting this info, or start a new thread compiling this info--something "Detailed descriptions of CC account closures and the usage patters that triggered them." In the end the banks are going to be more aggressive in figuring out who their profitiable customers are and who their worthless customers are and in the end if you aren't making them any money and they figure their prospects of making any money off you in the future are slim then they are right to close your account and send you packing, it's good business. The problem with this reasoning is that it doesn't just remove a benefit from the customer--it positively harms them by issuing a mild negative on their credit report. It also generates extreme customer ill-will. Steps like reducing CLs, targeting their most generous giveaways to their most profitable customers, etc. would be a far better way to handle this profitability imperatives.


Now this is a subject for a Ron Lieber type to write about. This is certainly legitimate consumer advocate issue, and it would NOT be good PR for the likes of Citibank.

<<Wow mshen11, that behavior is pretty striking on their part, especially with your usage patterns. I wonder if making a token purchase or two every few months would have prevented the closure.>>

i have two more cards w/ them and will be testing that theory

The credit line on my Chase credit card was just lowered due to high balances on another credit card. Their system is messed up, it was just a balance that was transfered from one card to another (no additional balance). I would advise avoiding Chase when possible, they are one of the worst to deal with.

snpjen said:A general question.
Does the credit issuer has the legal obligation to notify you first before they reduce your credit line.

No.

I had terrible experience with Bank One. A year ago I applied for an Amazon Visa issued by Bank One. Meanwhile they offered me $10k CL with 0% on BT for 6 months. I did not max out the BT but took half of it or $5k (I would only ultilize upto 50% of my CL in an account). About one or two months later the 0% BT from MBNA exipred. So I transferred the balance to Chase. Because these two accounts had different closing date, for one month my credit report included such unpaid balance on both MBNA and Chase. Bank One learned my revolving balance on my credit report suddenly jumped and then lowered my CL from $10k to $5k. They did not send me a letter notifying me such CL decrease. I just learned it when I received their statement. Some would say why didn't I check the account online regularly? If I did I would know it sooner. I used to check online for all my credit card accounts. However, since the Bank One account was relatively new and once I took the advantage of 0% BT, I would not use the card for purchase until I pay off the 0% BT balance. So I assumed there would be no activities except my payment posted.

More terrible things coming up. As Bank One lowered my CL from 10k to 5k, the account was almost maxed out since I initially had 5k BT on this account. Citi then learned this and lowered my CL from 15k to 2k due to high balance on another account. I called Citi and explained to them the long story. They did not buy. They said I can always ask for credit line review every 6 months. It took me years to increase the CL on the Citi account from 1k, 2k, 5k, 7.5k, 10k, 12k, 15k, and I don't think Citi would increase my CL of the account from 2k back to 15k 6 months later.

Ok, after I paid off the Bank One account months later, I left the account idle for another few months. Then I requested CL increase online but it was refused. I also learned that they pulled a hard inquiry off my credit report. I called Bank One and asked them why they pulled my credit report without my consent. They said I was asking for CL increase. I said it was right, but was it not just a soft inquiry considered reviewed by current creditor? They said no. Such request on CL increase would lead them to pull a hard inquriy and it is stated on the agreement. I was very frustrated. I did not even bother to check the agreement. I just closed the account.

Crazytree said:I took out a big "consumer loan" to pay for a racing bike a few years back. zero late payments... nothing else changed. all my CC issuers FREAKED THE FUNK OUT and every single one of them doubled my APR.

I called and the CSRs all told me "late payments on other accounts"... basically they were all clueless. The loan must have creamed my credit score or something... but I don't see why as long as I was current.

People who ride bikes are a big credit risk.

As far as inactivity goes, I picked up the Blue from AMEX. over 3 years ago. I used it for a while until I realized the benefits sucked so I let it sit idle for probably 2.5 years (and they still sent me a card replacement!). Finally, I recently noticed the new AMEX. Blue Cash and called to transfer my account to that and did it with no problem. Was almost glad I kept the account because it was alot easier than going through the hassles of a new account. Still not sure how that move affected my credit score though.