Earlier this year, JP Morgan Chase surprised customers with a new fee and an increased minimum required monthly payment. For cardholders who carried large balances month to month, Chase began charging a $10 monthly fee and increasing the minimum payment from 2% to 5% of the balance. The change was announced last November for about 300,000 customers and took effect in January. (See our previous coverage and visitor comments.)
Andrew Cuomo, the New York Attorney General received so many complaints about the surprise move, he required the company to refund the income collected from these fees, totaling $4.4 million, back to customers. Even though the order came from the Attorney General’s office, the official statement from Chase cites customers’ concerns as the reasons for the policy reversal.
The idea that credit card companies can change the terms of their agreements with customers at any time and that customers do not have the same power short of canceling the card provides a strong argument for never carrying a balance from one month to the next, charging only what you can pay off with income before the payment is due. Realizing that we don’t live in a perfect world, this isn’t always possible. But watch for notices in the mail from your credit card company which sometimes these notices arrive in unlabeled envelopes. They can contain information pertaining to changes in your agreement which, if you pay attention, you may decide are not worth continuing your relationship with the company.
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{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
It’s nice to see that some are getting feed up with this crap. I agree with your notion that this is even one more reason not to carry balances from month to month. It’s also yet another reason why you should not rely on credit cards as an emergency fund. No one can change the terms on cold, hard case (well… let’s not get into this one…)!
It’s really annoying that these notices come in unmarked envelopes. I’m sure I’ve received rate change notifications before, but most of them have ended up in my junk mail shredder.
I don’t see anything wrong w/ what Chase did.
They are offering a flexible line of credit.
As for the random fees they just tacked on ohwellz. Their customers should have looked for a new source of credit afterwards instead of complaining to mommy.
I got hit by this and hated it. Glad they’re fixing it.
I will never use my Chase credit card again. I have been banking with Wasington Mutual for over 11 years. I have never been late, pay over the minimum due each month and always thought highly of their service. I went on the website today and found that the $7000.00 of credit that I had was reduced to less than $200. Great reward for a great customer.(NOT) . I will no longer be using this card even though one of their representatives said to me a month ago that I had nothing to fear. That was a lot of Hog Wash. It stinks even more now. I will pay a little more than what is due and the card has been destroyed. I hope they go under, but then again I am sure they will be bailed out while the average person pays the price for corporate America’s screw ups!!!!!! In the end we all know who benefits.
Chase is the worst. They raised my interest rate from 10% to 29.9% for no reason. I used to pay my balances in full, or occasionally 80% of the monthly statement. Never went anywhere near my limit. My credit score is in the mid 700’s.
I won’t charge any more on their cards. Everyone should consider doing the same.
Nice how they take the government bailout money and screw the American people. Great gig if you can get it.
My husband died in March 08. I had never been late and had perfect record with Chase. When he died I got 2 months behind and they called me every day harassing me, even though I told them I would pay them off when I got my insurance money. They are the worst company to ever deal with. I had another credit card, and after I explained my situation to them, I never heard from them again.