Sometimes you run across a credit card company that is not very helpful with addressing wrongs that have been done to you.
This could range from unreasonable fees to being double charged for items to any number of other issues. I’m sure you can think of one or two scenarios yourself.
The first step is to contact the customer service of the credit card company. Their number is usually printed on the back of your credit card.
Keep notes of who you talk to, what was said and the date and time of the call(s).
If things are not going well, ask to talk to a supervisor. Good customer service centers always have supervisors you can talk to.
If the agent refuses, that may be the first sign that this company is not good at handling customer problems.
You can try looking up the corporate office for credit card companies as well.
If all of this fails to provide the help that you need, then it is time to go a little further.
This is also where the detailed records that you previously kept will come in handy.
The more documentation you can provide either to customer service managers or government agencies is going to aid your case.
Organize the data in a clear and concise way that illustrates what happened and how your attempts at using the ‘normal’ channels for help failed.
1. Use the US government website to lodge your complaint (see below)
2. Use your State’s Attorney General Office as well as the State Attorney General’s office of the State the company’s corporate office is in. (see example further down the page)
Here is a web page for a US government website where you can file a complaint against any credit card issuer that has crossed the line as far as what is right and morally acceptable.
https://help.consumerfinance.gov/app/creditcard/ask
You can log a complaint against credit card companies there and you can also get a tracking number.
They have a large section of categories for complaints that (at the time of this writing) include:
Advertising and Marketing
Application processing delays
APR or interest rate (some companies are quite ridiculous in what they charge)
Arbitration
Balance Transfers
Balance Transfer Fees
Bankruptcy
Billing Disputes
Billing Statements
Cash Advance
Cash Advance Fee
Closing/ Cancelling Account
Collection Debt Dispute
Collection Practices
Convenience Checks
Credit Determination
Credit Card Payment / Debt Protection
Credit Line Increase / Decrease
Credit Reporting
Customer Service / Customer Relations
Delinquent Accounts
Forbearance / Workout Plans
Identity Theft / Fraud / Embezzlement
Late Fees
Overlimit Fees
Other Fees
Payoff Process
Rewards
Sale of Accounts
Transaction Issues
Unsolicited Issuance of Credit Card
Even if your complaint does not fall into this rather extensive list, you can leave your complaint anyway.
Sometimes you need a third party to intervene on your behalf.
When customer service is stubborn and unhelpful and you cannot get injustices corrected, perhaps you do need such help.
Remember, credit card companies are there to provide a service and they make a lot of money off people like you and me.
If there is a problem, they should definitely take care of it. If not, perhaps you can transfer your balance to another credit card company? Hopefully, that will be one that provides better service.
What I said here is stated in general and does not apply specifically to any individual credit card company.
In addition, the attorney general for every state has a consumer protection role and function. They will often write a letter to the company that gets A LOT MORE attention than your personal complaint to the company.
You should exhaust other options first and only turn to the attorney general when you feel there is little other option.
Each state has its own Attorney General. As an example, here is some information for the Attorney General of The State of Virginia:
the State of Virginia can be found here: http://www.oag.state.va.us/Consumer%20Protection/index.html
The site states: ” Individual complaints play an important role in notifying the Attorney General about possibly deceptive or otherwise illegal practices taking place in Virginia, which can lead to enforcement actions or legislative initiatives; however, the Attorney General’s office is not the central clearinghouse for consumer complaints in Virginia. The Virginia Office of Consumer Affairs (“OCA”), one of our client agencies within the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, serves this role. “
In an issue unrelated to credit cards, I was having trouble with a heating and cooling company.
They even told me that their owner was on vacation when I asked to talk to him. That same owner later told me that he was not on vacation.
So his employee lied to me.
Anyway, they ignored my calls for help until I contacted the Attorney Generals of two different states.
This was because I lived in a different state than their office was in.
I got very prompt service after that and their top worker came out to fix my problem. He discovered additional problems as well and admitted that his workers had not done a good job.
He also admitted that he did not inspect this job the way he inspects other jobs.
The moral of the story is that it sometimes pays to contact the attorney general when you are having a problem.
If you think the information on this page will be helpful to others – share it:
{ 12 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi Dave,
Very useful article post. Yeah, sometime I’m getting stuck when sued by credit card company. Thanks for the information, bookmarked.
Twitter: davesnape
Hi Jonathan,
I have no idea what you are talking about when you say you are being sued by credit card companies. Those loans are made on a ‘signature’ basis without any collateral whatsoever. What specifically are you talking about please?
Yes, the information here is really helpful. I already shred it with my friends. Thank you for sharing too..
Twitter: davesnape
Unfortunately, that does seem to be true, doesn’t it?
Sometimes it is not enough to be polite and nice to claim what you want. Many employees in such companies treat you as if you are annoying and they are rude to you.You should be strict with them, insist on what you ask.
Very useful article Dave thank you.
Elena Anne recently posted..Echinacea Benefits And Common Cold: How It Helps And What Are The Possible Side Effects
Twitter: davesnape
Hi Elena, Yes, documentation is the key. I dislike dealing with such people / companies too. I wish we lived in a world where ALL people did the right things and acted the right way. Fortunately, there are STILL good people in the world and that makes life worth living! Thanks for dropping by Elena. Thanks for your comment.
Even before I begain reading this article, the header caption of the scissors cutting the credit card cause me to remember what my father always used to tell me repeatedly. He would always preach about the perils of using credit. He would continually take any opportunity to warn me about using credit to spend money I didn’t actually have. I used to think he was obsessive, but once I tarnished my credit rating I appreciated his teachings and became more disciplined about using credit.
Twitter: davesnape
Hi Jennifer, this is so true. it would be great if more people had a father similar to yours. There truly is danger there. And it is danger worth avoiding
If you have the capability it’s always best to record your conversation when you call to talk to the credit card company, that way if it does go bad it is all recorded so you can take it to the supervisor or Attorney General depending on how high you want to take it. I’m not sure of the law but I think you have to inform them when you are going to record the conversation.
Twitter: davesnape
That’s an interesting point Max. I would definitely suggest that people should check with their lawyer or accountant before recording conversations… But, if it is cool to do so, then you have a very good idea on that. Thanks for dropping in Max.
Twitter: ModestMoney
Sometimes with companies you can simply threaten to take your business elsewhere and you get their attention. In the same regard, you could mention that you will be filing complaint with the Attorney General if it is not resolved. Rather than risk damaging their reputation, they will likely pull some strings to help you out. Really though, if they are not willing to help out, you probably want to switch to another credit card company anyway.
Jeremy recently posted..My Decision To Live In An Expensive City
Twitter: davesnape
Hi Jeremy, you are quite right. There really are bad ones out there. I can think of one example of really bad customer service and genuine unwillingness to not fix things that were wrong. I will not name the company, but they do have a lot of complaints against them all over the Internet. They are actually a fairly big company too. Anyway, When they have really done wrong, it is ok to write to the Attorney General. That doesn’t really get publicized, but no company wants to have a lot of unresolved complaint issues logged at the AGs office. Thanks for commenting btw… I like your blog!