by: Joseph Kenny
It is one of the most frustrating feelings in the world. Youre trying to rid yourself of your debts. Youre putting more and more of your paycheck towards your credit cards. Youre gradually paying them off. Finally, the day arrives when you clear the entire outstanding balance. The card is finally cleared. A huge weight has been lifted from your shoulders and you can go to sleep at night knowing that youve got one less worry in life.
Credit Card Company
Does your credit card company share your joy? Do they congratulate you on taking care of a pressing anxiety in your life? In fact they do the exact opposite. Its not really surprising, after all youre their customer and theyre losing your business. But who would have guessed the lengths they go to stop you closing your account. Recently my wife has been closing a couple of credit card accounts and when she zeroes out the account and calls to tell them to close it, shes sometimes insisting with them for ten minutes that she doesnt want the account any longer, she doesnt need it for emergencies, she doesnt want a lower interest rate, and she doesnt want any special offers. She just wants to close the account.
Our Personal Experience
Bad as that sort of behaviour is, its not the worst. On one of her credit cards, she had a magazine subscription. She had tried cancelling the subscription but the company involved refused to stop charging her account. So when the time finally came that she could close her account she paid them off, paid off all her other bills, and told the credit card company that she wanted to close her account. After the usual to and fro, they finally agreed to close her account for her.
Hey! We Cancelled!
Thinking all her accounts were closed we went on a trip. When we return
ed two months later, two bills were awaiting her from the company. The magazine company had not surprisingly attempted to bill her again. She thought she was free of them by closing the account they had access to. Well, the card company, without notifying her or conferring with her in any way, simply paid the magazine company, and billed my wife. When we didnt pay they that they allowed a charge from the magazine company for the next month and added a late payment charge. When we returned she owed over $100 on an account they had confirmed with her they had closed.
Were still disputing the charges but the bottom line is its pretty hard to escape the nasty clutches of credit card companies.
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