I am trying to understand this situation and its implications, so any advice would be appreciated. About a week and a half ago, I went into the bank to make a deposit, and was suggested by the teller that I could try to get a lower rate on my current credit card which I have through the bank. I talked with one of the account people there, and determined that it was worth a shot. A week or so goes by and I don't hear anything, then notice in my online banking that I have a NEW credit card account listed, which is not what I expected or agreed to. I have been in contact with the person who I signed the initial application with to request a rate decrease, but I have been having trouble getting clear answers from her. According to her, I was not approved for a different rate, but they could approve me for a new card with a higher limit and the same rate (naturally), but with a 0% introductory rate for the first 12 months. The problem I'm having is that an application for this new card was processed and a card has been sent to me for it, with the new account appearing in my online banking, despite me never giving consent to do so. According to her, this was done by the underwriters who made the decision regarding my eligibility.
So, I have several questions based on this:
- Is this kosher? It seems fishy, but I do not have a copy of the application to confirm that there is no clause allowing for them to do this (I do not believe there was, though, and have requested a copy to confirm).
- Will this affect my credit? According to her, the account will not be reported unless activated, but I wanted to make sure this was the case.
- Technically, this is still a better deal than my current card. If I choose to activate the card, how does opening a new credit card affect my credit score?
- If I were to activate the card, I wouldn't really need my old card. Would closing this older account be a bad idea?
Thanks for any advice you can give!
Submitted January 24, 2017 at 12:05PM by Vataro http://ift.tt/2kpD4ch
