Just before the Congressional CARD act went into effect, I grabbed ahold of my credit card company and got them to make some changes before year end (back in December 2009).

They were quietly increasing interest rates, at the time, on new purchases. They were also sticking it to me on PURCHASES I HAD ALREADY MADE! They did it to avoid getting snagged when the CARD act goes into effect.

Well, I called them and argued with them and didn’t give up!

I didn’t care that my credit score got trainwrecked the past 16 months. My credit score had dropped around 120 pts. Some of it was because of THEIR behavior w/respect to cutting my credit limit on a current balance. For example, I had a $22K limit with a $7K balance. They dropped my limit to $7.5K which made it look like I was at my credit max and reported it to the credit reporting agencies!

This is why I always recommend staying on top of your credit scores and if you don’t get what you want, ask to speak to a Supervisor. Wait on hold for an hour, if necessary. Call back if they hang up. You can even mention you have a hardship. Tell them if they don’t adjust the rate, you’ll be forced to roll it all up into your impending bankruptcy filing.

Since I carry double digit balances on my cards due to business expenses and other incidentals, I figured this saved me over $3,000-4,000 in interest charges next year!

AMEX Biz Platinum – 19.24% (had a missed payment due to my oversight!) –> 9.24% FIXED!

First they refused – then I said, look at my payment history! Do you want to risk losing me to someone else who’ll consolidate.

AMEX Gold – 12.24% –> 10.50% FIXED!

Discover – 15.92 –> 11.92% ADJUSTABLE (7.99% nominal + Prime)
They refused, then asked me if I wanted a special payment program where they’d drop the rate to 9.99% for one year, but suspend the card and report such to the credit reporting agencies.
No! Put me on the phone with a supervisor!

Visa – 12.99% –> 7.92% ADJUSTABLE (4.99% + Prime)

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