October 02, 2009
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"Win / Win" or "No Deal", Pt.4
Covey's Excellent Advice: "No Deal, Bucko!".There are three conventional routes to be followed when dealing with unreasonable credit card account changes:
1) Roll with the punches: Do nothing about it and just keep using the credit card with the new terms.
2) Opt out: Inform the credit card issuer that you do not accept the new terms and that you "opt-out". Last month the Federal Reserve Board has mandated that a credit card issuer must allow consumers to opt out. Further, they have also mandated that, should the card holder decide to continue making purchases on that card, the issuer must not retroact rate hikes to existing balances. As is standard in the industry, nearly all credit card lenders will close a consumer's account immediately so that no further purchases can be made anyway. They do have the option, however, to keep the account open and start exacting the new changes to all future charges (after a 14-day notice). They win either way. The consumer may or may not win. The lender always has the prerogative to close any account anytime they wish without justification (of course they can always make something up but, the point is moot). It used to be that a lender could retroact new changes to outstanding balances until the government intervened. This might be a good choice for someone who can't get better terms elsewhere.
3) Fire your lender: Close your account abruptly. This is the most satisfying approach. Also, it's my approach and the one I recommend to anyone who is able to do this. Tell the lender that they can't fire you because you're firing them first. When applying for your next credit card, make sure there are no ties to HSBC Nevada.
Apparently, HSBC Nevada is quite notorious. There are links galore of bad reports. Here's an excerpt from 'Understanding More About HSBC NV, Who they are and why they are on ' -- " Formerly known as troubled and disgraced predatory lender Household International, the company was purchased by HSBC bank in October 2002." Still doing their predatory thing, this credit card lender will deceive us with innocent names like 'GM Card' and 'Discover Card Services'. Watch out.