It was my first credit card, and they closed it due to inactivity. Now my credit score will fall because of it. Is it legal to do? The card was in good standing.
2007-10-10 14:14:53 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Business & Finance ➔ Credit
They reported it as closed at consumer's request, but I called them and was told it was due to inactivity. If I reactivate it, will it be the same account or will they just open a new credit card account for me?
And yes, it does affect your credit score.
2007-10-10 14:38:56 · update #1
No, I did not get attached to the number. Please, answer the question if you really know the answer. Thank you.
2007-10-10 15:06:05 · update #2
It does ding your credit score by lowering your available credit limit. If you have other cards with balances, the percentage of debt would now be higher.
If you've had the card for a long time, it also closes your history.
When you talked to the bank, did you ask to have it reinstated? They should be willing to do that. But you will have to use it periodically. Just pay it in full every month.
2007-10-10 16:43:06 · answer #1 · answered by bdancer222 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Yes, BofA does have the right to close your account due to inactivity, but they also must accurately report that to the credit bureaus, so if your credit report shows "Closed at request of account holder" or some variation of that, then you need to dispute that with the credit bureau.
Now, your credit score SHOULD not drop because this account is closed, unless you have had recent activity (sounds like you haven't). A good rule of thumb is two years of inactivity will result in no noticible affect on your credit score. And, yes, if you ask BofA to reopen your card, they will pull another credit check and that will cause you more harm than anything.
Bottom line: if you have a good credit rating right now, apply for a CapitalOne card, a Discover Card, or a (insert your favorite airline) Miles credit card; that is, if you are disciplined enough to pay your balance in full every month and reap the benefits of one of these cards.
Ditch Bank of America, they are a shady company that are really out to screw you over. They care not for their existing customers. Believe me, I was a BofA "customer" for several years.
Hope this helps
2007-10-15 22:06:09 · answer #2 · answered by jemorgan28 1 · 3⤊ 1⤋
Bank of America owns the account and is lending the money. They have the right to close the account at any time for any reason. It can show as closed for inactivity also if you have applied for another account with them in which case they may close the account in order to open the new account.
If you have applied and received a new card it may be owned by Bank of America even though it has some other affiliation. Example - Major League baseball cards are actually run by Bank of America.
Since the account was not negatively closed and it is not reporting as a negative close they do not have to notify you.
if you would like to have the account re-opened you can call and have them put in a credit request to re-open the account. Your credit score will not neccessarily fall because of this.
2007-10-10 16:41:01 · answer #3 · answered by Melissa 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yes. If your credit account is inactive for a set period of time, it is at the bank's discretion to close an inactive account. Believe it or not, this is stated in those pamphlets that you get when you open your account. You should call Bank of America and speak to an associate to see if they can reactivate your account. They should be able to do that for you. Your account number should stay the same depending on what kind of account you have.
2007-10-10 14:25:05 · answer #4 · answered by oceanpotion™ 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
am not sure if a bank or credit card company would lose a customer account due to inactivity. I've a card which I've not used in the last 2 years and I still get my online statements and every now and then.. the teaser balance transfer checks.
Again, each bank and credit card company might have different rules.
2007-10-10 16:30:56 · answer #5 · answered by Sreenu 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Inactive cards don't necessarily lower your credit score and not by a whole lot. Since you didn't buy the card, they can do what they want with it within reason. You must not have used it in years. I have a few cards that I haven't used in quite a while, and I finally closed them.
If they give you a new card, it will probably have a new number.
Did you get attached to the old number?
2007-10-10 14:50:14 · answer #6 · answered by Steveo 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First of all I would tell Bank of America that they can take their credit card and stuff it where the sun won't shine! Go apply for another card at a place like Centennial bank.com Bank of America can do anything it wants to it's customers and they do! Bank of opportunity? sure! Using every opportunity to charge fees for everything under the sun while giving credit to ILLEGAL ALIENS! I'm suprised anyone does business with them! Didn't one terrorist who flew a plane into the World Trade Center get into the country ILLEGALLY by crossing in from Mexico and get his flight training in Arizona with a line of credit from Bank of America? HMMM! That was another opportunity too, wasn't it?
2007-10-10 23:56:45 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Call the Credit card Corporate office to find out why. They may be going out of business. There are lots of other better cards out there shop around.
2016-05-21 02:13:50 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
since it was inactive it should not impact your score, give
it 30 days and request a copies of your credit reports
and see HOW they reported it. It should say closed due
to inactivity. Do you have in writing that is why they closed
it ? Yes, they can do that, Banks do it with Accounts.
2007-10-10 14:21:39 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋
Yes, they do. They own the credit card. If you don't use it, they still have to manage it. It costs the company to leave the account open without any activities.
Read the fine print.
2007-10-10 14:21:27 · answer #10 · answered by Notredame 3 · 3⤊ 1⤋