For the first time ever, I’ve had a credit card account closed on me against my will. I feel so rejected…
In this post:
My Citi Rewards+ Card was closed
This morning I woke up to an email from Citi with the following subject line:
We’ve closed your account
Well that’s not good! I went to Citi messaging center, and was informed that my Citi Rewards+ Card had been closed due to lack of activity:
Hi, Benjamin. We frequently review cardmember accounts – a recent review of your account shows that it has been inactive and there is a current balance of $0. Due to this, we had to close your Citi Rewards+ Mastercard account. You can no longer make transactions on this account.
Any ThankYou Points you’ve earned through the date your account was closed will be transferred to your ThankYou member account. Points available for redemption can be redeemed for 60 days after the date the account was closed.
Well that’s sad, because this card added real value for me!
Why do I want this card if I didn’t use it?
Logically you’d say “well that’s not much of a loss, you weren’t using the card!” But the truth is that the Citi Rewards+ Card is part of my overall Citi credit card strategy:
- I also have the Citi Prestige Card and Citi Double Cash, which I spend a significant amount on
- The Citi Rewards+ Card has no annual fee, and when you have the card you can get 10% of the points back on the first 100,000 ThankYou points you redeem every year
- In other words, having this no annual fee card earns me the equivalent of 10,000 ThankYou points per year, which is awesome
So while there wasn’t much incentive for me to spend money on the card given the other Citi cards I have, it was still a valuable part of my overall Citi strategy.
Are accounts frequently closed due to inactivity?
Over the years I’ve often received the question of whether credit cards can be closed due to lack of activity. From the perspective of credit card issuers, it makes sense — there’s exposure associated with having open credit lines, and it’s reasonable for credit card companies to reduce them, especially during these uncertain times.
However, I have over two dozen credit cards, many of which I almost never use. And up until this point I’ve never had a card closed on me due to lack of activity. This was a first for me.
I guess the moral of the story is to charge a couple of purchases to a card every so often if you want to make sure this doesn’t happen. Then again, my credit card strategy is already complicated enough, especially with all the temporary bonuses we’re seeing on cards right now due to coronavirus, so I can’t say I really have any regrets.
Is there any recourse when your account is closed?
Here’s a question to anyone who may have been in this situation with Citi before, since this is my first time dealing with this — is there any recourse? Can I call up Citi and say “please reopen the account, I promise to use it more?” Is there no hope, or is there another strategy? For what it’s worth, I spend a significant amount of money on my other Citi cards. At a minimum, is there a way to have the credit line transferred to another one of my Citi cards?
Ultimately it’s not the end of the world to have the account closed, but if I can avoid it I’d like to.
Bottom line
While I knew accounts could be closed by credit card companies due to lack of activity, it had never happened to me before — today was a first. My Citi Rewards+ Card was closed because I hadn’t used it in many months, though it’s still a card I benefited from significantly, given what a good complement it was to my other Citi cards
Has anyone else recently had a credit card account closed due to lack of activity?
Same here. Citibank credit card was my first credit card and have had it in various reincarnations for nearly 30 years. The latest version was diamond preferred and I've been ignoring their letters to convert it to their other newer cards. Then they closed it with no notice in July 2023, citing inactivity.
Same here. I had diamond preferred and the first credit card ever and they closed with an email that I did not even see until few months later. Had the card for over 15 years. It has the same online mentioned in the original post. When I contacted I was told by a manager that dur to fraud they don't contact prior to closing which does not make any sense! They are asking me to...
Same here. I had diamond preferred and the first credit card ever and they closed with an email that I did not even see until few months later. Had the card for over 15 years. It has the same online mentioned in the original post. When I contacted I was told by a manager that dur to fraud they don't contact prior to closing which does not make any sense! They are asking me to apply again which I rejected. Is there something we can do? Perhaps file a case with credit bureau?
Citi closed my card due to having a payment that is late not even a month
Citibank cancelled me as well ... a loyal customer for over 30 years, who maintains an 800+ credit score. I was stunned. The worst of this is that they do so with an impersonal email that does not provide a reason - just a single sentence saying your account has been cancelled. I thought it was a spam aor phishing email initially. You have to dig and plead to determine the reason. I was gobsmacked. This has completley altered my opinion of CitiCorp.
I would join a class action against Discover Card as their action punished those of us maintaining good credit practices …
Discover credit card just closed my credit card account opened in 2006 for inactivity last month . I did not know this until I ran credit karma . In process of house loan And this will effect this .
Have perfect credit - never a late payment since 2006 , never over limit...
I would join a class action against Discover Card as their action punished those of us maintaining good credit practices …
Discover credit card just closed my credit card account opened in 2006 for inactivity last month . I did not know this until I ran credit karma . In process of house loan And this will effect this .
Have perfect credit - never a late payment since 2006 , never over limit … My credit score and my husband plummeted because Discover said they mailed a letter ; we did not receive, about closing account for inactivity July 2022 - and then closed our account this last Aug 27,2022.
I have contacted Discover offices extensively and their Discover executive offices Illinois in Delaware and spoke to Nicole, Stephen , Sonia, Laura manager , Shelby Exec manager . Gotten nowhere to reinstate card as this just happened .
Explained situation to Discover people and that not knowing the were closing account for inactivity and was not called or notified and how this will a effect my credit and they will not help. They even sent me a new card Feb 2021 and I had a negative -.85 balance on account …
Frustrating to have your credit go down for not using credit and being a good citizen . I am being punished for not using my card , not notified in a manner to use card to protect my credit from closire and having perfect credit .
Apparently Discover Card and Bank of America will close account for inactivity and not reopen account . Wish an attorney would calls action this as it affects consumer credit for those of us using credit wisely . It affects time of credit which drops credit score .
I have NEVER been late or missed a payment on any credit card ever .
I have or had perfect credit until this inactivity closure
Discover card was one of my oldest credit cards from 2006 so closing this effected my time of credit history and also my husbands
My card was for $17,000 so closing this dropped my amount of open credit and this effects my credit . The result is my husband is 75 years old and a disabled senior and myself will have to sell our car financed and his truck financed to try to get our credit back up quickly to try to get this loan closed
This will affect my ability to close on a loan in turn this will effect my overall credit and I am a minority women small business owner that was Chase small business owner of the month and we even rang bell at Wall Street and my store and was on national tv commercial for Chase Small business .
So this letter of inactivity Discover said they mailed out would have gone to my store . I have the retired manager of Chase bank working for us and handling financial affairs . This last year and when the Discover card inactive letter of closure would have been mailed to me (I don’t think they really mailed it as we get all mail and it was not there ) but at this time I was out of my California main office and I was in Idaho . Early in year My brother in law died from a brown recluse spider bite suddenly , my husbands little sister (his wife got blood clots from covid shot) and was in er we were taking care of her , she went home and her home burned down and she died so we had to stay up there and help her son that was in er as we were next of kin. She died from smoke inhalation and her house burning down was on the front page of Idaho new paper so can prove it . Then 1 weeks after her death my husbands father in same town also died … so yes this terrible but my point the State of Idaho is where we where for months when Discover letter was mailed , they never called or emailed , my account was on auto pay with 0 balance so assumed fine , we never got said letter, we think they did not mail it or it went to another address as our ex banker did all our books daily during this time and is good at this , so did not know any issues until we saw credit karma report.
Brenda
Just happened today I received a letter stating my account is closed due to inactivity. So we are punished for not using the card. Guess Citi Bank doesn’t like not making money off us.
So today I received a suspicious letter headed by Home Depot Credit Services in Sioux Falls Iowa regarding "your recent inquiry regarding a promotion for No Interest With Payments" on items I selected on the card. Since the card is closed I could not have activated any promotions or selections. When I called the given Customer Service Number on the letter the rep identified herself as a Home Depot rep then as a Citi Financial...
So today I received a suspicious letter headed by Home Depot Credit Services in Sioux Falls Iowa regarding "your recent inquiry regarding a promotion for No Interest With Payments" on items I selected on the card. Since the card is closed I could not have activated any promotions or selections. When I called the given Customer Service Number on the letter the rep identified herself as a Home Depot rep then as a Citi Financial Services Rep and said she saw no letter activity from either Home Depot or Citi. Something very suspicious is going on here with Citibank. I am convinced I need legal representation and with sue proceedings for damages.
So is there any recourse/interest in soliciting an attorney for a class action against Citibank for damages in critical credit standing for uninformed, unauthorized closures of Citi owned/managed cards due to their perception of "inactivity" during COVID pandemic as well as personal valid and documented events in prudent finance management in not incurring charges on their high interest rate cards.
I had off my large balence in full on my citi card 1n 2019. I had had a large balance sue to my son being sick and ran it up to $20,000 in 2012. I made all monthly payments on time every month. Dec 2019 my card renewed with charges along with some unauthorized charges. These charges the Jan statement. I was very sick so I did not open the statement thinking it was just...
I had off my large balence in full on my citi card 1n 2019. I had had a large balance sue to my son being sick and ran it up to $20,000 in 2012. I made all monthly payments on time every month. Dec 2019 my card renewed with charges along with some unauthorized charges. These charges the Jan statement. I was very sick so I did not open the statement thinking it was just offers. My wife opened the statement for February. She started to take care of things for me as I was ill for many months. After we paid off the card I did not use it again in 2019 so for about 6 months so I knew I had nothing due...so I thought. I had this card since 1991 always paying on time with no issues. I also had 130,000 airline miles. My wife called siti bank at the start of Covid Feb or March to ask about the charges on my card. She spoke to representative about the renewal charge and late charges. She also asked it there was another card with no yearly renewal fee but one I could transfer the miles to. The representative recommended one. She said she would removed the late fees and renewal and move us into another card. She would have to first cancel my original card and set me up for the new card. All send OK. I received my new card then received a canclation on my new card as I was not credit worthy because of non payment on my old card which I thought was disputed and taken care of. This went on for over 2 years trying to resolve over covid. I spent hours and hours trying to resolve this with no luck. I was told I needed to write a letter to Citi Cards dispute dept. which I did and again nothing they could do. This also went on my credit report and I was unable to get any credit cards. I then lost all my air miles. It seems to me it was all done on purpose. I called Citi cards about the airline miles and was told to call American Airlines and I called them nothing but the run around and frustration. I got no where with either of them. Nor could they tell me how to get me miles other than traveling which at the time Covid was going on and I could not risk it with my health. Still frustrated over how this was handled and my credit being ruined over their error. Citi cards deemed my unworthy of credit fro non payment of fees I was told were removed when they moved me into the new card. This was nothing but a time waster like 40-50 hours with aso many calls on hold and transfers nothing was easy with Citi Cards in any way. At one time I thought they were great now....they suck. Class action suit is needed.
Yes...we need a class action suit. Will research how to institute one and how other victims are notified.
We need to investigate the inception of a class action suit against Citibank for damages in adverse credit reporting in the uninformed, unauthorized and unapproved closure of cards in good standing for inactivity during critical life events including the worldwide COVID pandemic. Extremely poor management hierarchy decision ultimately affecting the dependability, reputation and adverse publicity towards Citibank. They should be fired for causing such havoc in today's financial environment and innocent people's hard earned credit...
We need to investigate the inception of a class action suit against Citibank for damages in adverse credit reporting in the uninformed, unauthorized and unapproved closure of cards in good standing for inactivity during critical life events including the worldwide COVID pandemic. Extremely poor management hierarchy decision ultimately affecting the dependability, reputation and adverse publicity towards Citibank. They should be fired for causing such havoc in today's financial environment and innocent people's hard earned credit ratings.
PS finally needed to use my Home Depot card for handicap modifications to the house from the extended illness, and the Sunoco card for gas due to escalated gas prices to conserve available cash during recovery. How is this action on their part even legal with it's ramifications on personal life without good standing consumer authorization or approval?
Can the victims here and probably many more institute a class action due to the adverse domino effects on critical credit needs and resulting life events?
Beware of any card managed or owned by Citibank. Two cards, my Home Depot and Sunoco Gas cards were closed due to inactivity without my knowledge or approval, due to illness and inability to leave the house.
This adversely affected my credit score/report because they were
1. Closed by the provider
2. Reduced my available credit.
These cards were at 0 Balance and in good standing. Now Citi is advising to...
Beware of any card managed or owned by Citibank. Two cards, my Home Depot and Sunoco Gas cards were closed due to inactivity without my knowledge or approval, due to illness and inability to leave the house.
This adversely affected my credit score/report because they were
1. Closed by the provider
2. Reduced my available credit.
These cards were at 0 Balance and in good standing. Now Citi is advising to reapply for the cards..more dings/inquiries to further affect my score and will probably be denied due to the negative score from their unauthorized closures. This should be against the FCRA. Consulting a lawyer for the negative impact and domino effect with other accounts and applications.
These morons closed my 1 month old account because I never used my credit card…. The problem is that they messed up the delivery and it never arrived. Idiots, it’s hands down the worst bank, find literally any other alternatives and it’s bound to be better.
Citi closed my account when they thought someone was using my card but I was the one using the card I was able to make a purchase of $60 but when I tried to make a $11 purchase they declined it, it makes so sense I also told citi that I was the one that used the card it wasent anyone else all they told me was my account is under review and they didn’t give me a valid reason why!
CITI CLOSED MY ACCOUNT DIMOD PREFERRED. I HAVE NEVER USED IT AT ALL.
They closed my two (inactive) cards without note. Wait until they get to the wallet of the congressman.
Just got my email today…almost 20 years with Citi for them to close my diamond card without any head’s up. I’m not looking forward to my updated FICO once the loss of this fairly large, long-established line of credit hits.
Citi closed my account 6 months into the pandemic due to non use. I wasn’t going anywhere much at that time. During that time, I paid for two people, flights to the UK. The company will not return my money. They have been doing this to pretty much everyone. I’ve tried for two years to get my money back.
My only hope was for Citi to return my money, which they won’t, because the...
Citi closed my account 6 months into the pandemic due to non use. I wasn’t going anywhere much at that time. During that time, I paid for two people, flights to the UK. The company will not return my money. They have been doing this to pretty much everyone. I’ve tried for two years to get my money back.
My only hope was for Citi to return my money, which they won’t, because the account is closed. I suspect they knew it was doing this to customers and cancelled my card. Good customer with excellent credit, had the card for years, no reason to cancel my card.
My brother just cancelled my mom’s Citi card, she died in 2018. They didn’t cancel hers. Help!
The same thing just happened to me. Despite an outstanding credit score and a very long history on this account, Citi canceled my platinum card due to inactivity. Granted, it's probably been a year or so since I charged anything on the card. I use another card as my primary source of credit, but the Citi card was my main "backup," and I don't like being without another line of credit in case of an...
The same thing just happened to me. Despite an outstanding credit score and a very long history on this account, Citi canceled my platinum card due to inactivity. Granted, it's probably been a year or so since I charged anything on the card. I use another card as my primary source of credit, but the Citi card was my main "backup," and I don't like being without another line of credit in case of an emergency or unexpected event. I'm really annoyed that now I'll have to apply for something else (obviously not a Citi product). And I'm concerned about how this may impact my credit rating for other purposes.
I received an email today from Citi indicating my account has been closed....after 37 years! Apparently due to inactivity (zero balance, no activity for over a year, credit score 836) although the supervisor I spoke to didn't specify the reason. She said the Terms and Conditions clearly indicate they can close an account for "any reason or no reason". If I like, she'd be happy to run a credit check and have me apply for...
I received an email today from Citi indicating my account has been closed....after 37 years! Apparently due to inactivity (zero balance, no activity for over a year, credit score 836) although the supervisor I spoke to didn't specify the reason. She said the Terms and Conditions clearly indicate they can close an account for "any reason or no reason". If I like, she'd be happy to run a credit check and have me apply for a new account. I told her if I wanted a credit inquiry, it would be to apply for a new card with anyone but Citi.
Just found out Citi closed my Dividend credit card account due to inactivity without warning. I don't have a problem with that, but I also had dividend dollars on the account I didn't get to redeem yet. Found out they just absorbed that amount when the account closed. Is this legal? My thinking is that it would be treated as "earned interest" or "cash back" where if the account is closed, they would issue a...
Just found out Citi closed my Dividend credit card account due to inactivity without warning. I don't have a problem with that, but I also had dividend dollars on the account I didn't get to redeem yet. Found out they just absorbed that amount when the account closed. Is this legal? My thinking is that it would be treated as "earned interest" or "cash back" where if the account is closed, they would issue a check for the remainder back to the customer since it was earned by customer. And when I asked if trying to "reinstate" the account back (which they would need to process as a new application) would get the dividend amount back, they said it would probably reset the account and that amount would still not be available anymore. Has this happened to anyone else?
Thats what happened to me ! What a rip!!
Same happened to me. Great credit score never a day late but carried a zero balance for a year. I have two other Citi cards and I’m going to cancel them. I bought a house eight months ago and if that had happened at that time it could’ve had a detrimental effect on my purchase. I’ve been a Citi customer for over 10 years and realized today that they do not care about their customers whatsoever.
This just happened to me as well. I have been a customer for over 25 years. My credit limit on this card was up to $25,000. I owed $0. Their reason for closing was because I haven't used it for quite awhile. But they did not warn me they would close it. And their decision to close it will impact my credit rating greatly. They are not remorseful and have no mechanism to reopen my...
This just happened to me as well. I have been a customer for over 25 years. My credit limit on this card was up to $25,000. I owed $0. Their reason for closing was because I haven't used it for quite awhile. But they did not warn me they would close it. And their decision to close it will impact my credit rating greatly. They are not remorseful and have no mechanism to reopen my account except for me to reapply. I will never do business with Citibank again, They should have notified me and understood the impact on my credit rating. I am sorely angry with them, and they don't care. I hope they lose all their customers with good credit ratings and get stuck with all the bad risk customers. They deserve it. All they had to do was notify me and ask that I charge something. Dumb.
Enough of Citibank BS . They also closed my account because I was late on my payments twice in the last 6 month. My father has died for god's sake! I have been with them for over the decade. No warning, no nothing, card declined when i tried to make a purchase. That's a horrible way to treat your customers.
Why not just set up your card to be AUTOPAY? So even if you are distracted, you're covered.
My credit card account was closed yesterday. I called and asked why and all they could tell me is they sent me a letter. I was in the middle of moving and planned on using that card to pay
For the movers. I was also charged a $450 membership fee for my card on a August 25th. I asked for them to at least credit me back and the rep said she will make...
My credit card account was closed yesterday. I called and asked why and all they could tell me is they sent me a letter. I was in the middle of moving and planned on using that card to pay
For the movers. I was also charged a $450 membership fee for my card on a August 25th. I asked for them to at least credit me back and the rep said she will make a request but cannot guarantee cause it is past the 37 days. I don't understand. I have a 819 credit score with a perfect payment history. The last few months I have paid off my balances really fast because I bought a house. My balance has been at 0 most of the time. It was very embarrassing for my card to get declined. How can they not send a letter or warning they are shutting down?! I felt so blindsided and had to deal with this during my move. I'm very disappointed in Citi Bank.
This shouldn’t be able to happen.
I never been late on my payments with any of my cards.. been inactive because of this pandemic bull crap. We shouldn’t be punished because we where smart and not use credit during this period of time.. they should have the right to do that with out notification asking what’s wrong why is your account inactive. But yet we can run your credit again to reopen it.. yes...
This shouldn’t be able to happen.
I never been late on my payments with any of my cards.. been inactive because of this pandemic bull crap. We shouldn’t be punished because we where smart and not use credit during this period of time.. they should have the right to do that with out notification asking what’s wrong why is your account inactive. But yet we can run your credit again to reopen it.. yes let’s do that plummy my credit even worst from you guys closing it. They are price of crap company and there should be some law to protect us.. my credit was 10,900
It put huge impact on my credit and screwed me to buy a shop..for my business ..
that’s bullshit!
I found out about Citi Bank closing my Shell card when Credit Karma let me know and my FICO score plunged 100 points. I have never, ever had a FICO score under 800 and at times maxed out at 850. I was pissed. I called Shell, they transferred me to a Citi Bank rep. All I got was lip service. This dude was trained to let customers vent and not offer any alternative solutions. I...
I found out about Citi Bank closing my Shell card when Credit Karma let me know and my FICO score plunged 100 points. I have never, ever had a FICO score under 800 and at times maxed out at 850. I was pissed. I called Shell, they transferred me to a Citi Bank rep. All I got was lip service. This dude was trained to let customers vent and not offer any alternative solutions. I can live without Shell, as most of the stations in my town were sold to Speedway and the only one left is outrageous on prices. But the negative impact on my FICO score is just plain atrocious. If they would have notified me to use it or lose it, I would have made a few charges from time. It was the first credit card I got after I got out of the military in1 968. 53 years and this is how they treat customers? Damned bad relations in my book. I would love to sue the snot out of CitiBank for the downgrade in my credit score without warning.
In the last 6 months Citibank has closed 2 of my accounts because i didn'ti use them!! I am livid! It damages your credit when they do this. Ao i hate citibank npw.
It just happened to me too. Apparently a returned check payment I made. And I know I had money for that. I feel like it was an error on their end. I also use this card alot for travel and pay it back. I have had an accident for a long time and just opened a checking and savings with a lot of money. Now I am shocked and not happy about it.
I just received notice that my Citi Thank you card was cancelled. Like you, I don't spend on it, however it was a key part of my credit strategy. The line of credit in my name and length of time I've had the card were tremendously valuable as they boosted my overall credit/usage ratio and age of outstanding debt, both significant factors in your credit score. My credit score will now take a significant hit...
I just received notice that my Citi Thank you card was cancelled. Like you, I don't spend on it, however it was a key part of my credit strategy. The line of credit in my name and length of time I've had the card were tremendously valuable as they boosted my overall credit/usage ratio and age of outstanding debt, both significant factors in your credit score. My credit score will now take a significant hit for this.
I called and spoke with an account rep who told me that this was the policy. I could apply to 're-open' the card within 90 days and retain my credit history, but this will require a hard inquiry on my credit report - also something I am hoping to avoid - and there is no guarantee that the line will be re-established at the same amounts.
I understand that this policy is disclosed in the - incredibly - fine print of the card acceptance paperwork, but I am beyond disgusted that there was no e-mail or letter indicating that the account would be under review for inadequate usage. I have received at least 2 letters per week for the past 2 years offering balance transfers and new credit offers, yet Citi can't send a simple note indicating that the account would be reviewed.... I would have had no problem shifting some of my card usage to this card had I been aware that cancellation was pending.
I am more disgusted by this policy and action than I have been by any business, and the lack of reasonable recourse to ensure my credit score does not suffer as a result is infuriating.
Citi closed my American Airlines and Sears card due to a $0 balance with "limited activity" credit score is a 779 according to the letter. Citibank alleges this was a business decision. Citibank always runs a very scandalized bank. Yet so many people deal with this corporation.
Citi cancelled my Costco Anywhere Citi card because of one returned check that was a bank malfunction in connection. I put thousands on this card and would earn cash back. I paid it off every day. I guess they were paying me to use their card, and the first sign of any reason to get rid of me, they did it. And they wiped out all of my Costco money that I get every February....
Citi cancelled my Costco Anywhere Citi card because of one returned check that was a bank malfunction in connection. I put thousands on this card and would earn cash back. I paid it off every day. I guess they were paying me to use their card, and the first sign of any reason to get rid of me, they did it. And they wiped out all of my Costco money that I get every February. $400+ gone. Well, I found a great cash back card with Capitol One. I won't be doing business with Citi anymore. And I have 5 of their cards.
Citi dropped my limit last summer even though I was paying well over my minimum required. The thing that ticks me off about this is as in my case and the writer's, this lowers your overall credit issued which increases your utilization percentage and hurts your credit score.
I too have to giggle that of all people to get stung by a closure it was you. I guess Citi is suddenly cracking down on everyone, even Lucky.
Yup, it happened to me. I had a Thankyou card I wasn't using, so in Summer of 2019 I used it at the drive-through a few times to keep it active. No problem. Well, fast forward to Summer of 2020 and one day I log into...
I too have to giggle that of all people to get stung by a closure it was you. I guess Citi is suddenly cracking down on everyone, even Lucky.
Yup, it happened to me. I had a Thankyou card I wasn't using, so in Summer of 2019 I used it at the drive-through a few times to keep it active. No problem. Well, fast forward to Summer of 2020 and one day I log into my Citi account and the card is marked as closed. :-o
Immediately, before I logged off, I opened up a chat window and told Citi I wanted that card. She fixed it no problem. From my experience I will give a word to the wise: if a credit card gets closed, contact the bank ASAP.
One twist: since I had not used the card since it expired, she treated it as a "card not received" situation so I had to get a new card number, but kept the same account.
Life gets busy and things come up, but if it's a card that you even slightly value, a token purchase on it every 3-6 months will suffice in most cases to keep it open. It doesn't have to be a significant purchase or one with a large rewards opportunity cost.
Yes, I have experienced the same.My Care Credit was immediately closed after I made my last payment within a week. I was so pissed! Usually card companies between 1-3 months of inactivity. My score dropped due to my account being closed. Good Luck!!!
"However, I have over two dozen credit cards, many of which I almost never use. And up until this point I’ve never had a card closed on me due to lack of activity. This was a first for me." For many people this is a common occurrence. Barclays did it to me in an Arrival card and Bank of America did it to me on one of their no-AF cards (one of the lenders sent...
"However, I have over two dozen credit cards, many of which I almost never use. And up until this point I’ve never had a card closed on me due to lack of activity. This was a first for me." For many people this is a common occurrence. Barclays did it to me in an Arrival card and Bank of America did it to me on one of their no-AF cards (one of the lenders sent me a letter warning me it would happen if I didn't use the card but I didn't read it until after the fact). They started to do this stuff during the pandemic. I have never had it happen with an AF card which makes sense. The two cards I mentioned were the only cards I had with those lenders are the time and neither card had seen any charges for well over a year. I am surprised that citi closed your card since you are putting charges through on other citi cards. I have a number of amex/chase cards I don't use much, but may want to use in the future due to rotating categories etc. It would suck if a card I was planning on using in the future got cancelled because I didn't use it, so its a good idea to throw at least a minimal charge on a card once every six months to keep the card activity.
Just had Loblaws (Canadian grocery chain) downgrade my black MC because I wasnt spending enough. This is supposed to be a loyalty card? That move sure will ensure I stay loyal to them.
I make a purchase once a quarter on every card that doesn't get regular usage. A tank of gas, lunch out, or one that I have a small purchase automatically charged to every other month. Another reason you want to keep that card open is for your credit score. Part of your score checks for credit utilization, i.e. how much you have charged versus how high your total credit limit is. Keeping that card open keeps that utilization percent lower.
Capital One closed my card last May due to inactivity. This of course lowered my available credit by $5000. Credit cards do an annual review of your account. In November when Discover did my annual review, they closed my account for inactivity. Now my available credit was lowered by $14,000. When Citi and Chase saw that the vendors closed two of my cards and my credit availability was lowered, they lowered my credit limit with...
Capital One closed my card last May due to inactivity. This of course lowered my available credit by $5000. Credit cards do an annual review of your account. In November when Discover did my annual review, they closed my account for inactivity. Now my available credit was lowered by $14,000. When Citi and Chase saw that the vendors closed two of my cards and my credit availability was lowered, they lowered my credit limit with them. As a result of all of this, my credit score went from 746 to 619!! I wrote to both of my Senators and Congressperson after all this happened as I think the closing of accounts without a 30 day heads up was wrong. I have had these cards for over 20 years! If I had a 30 day notice I would have charged a tank of gas or groceries or something. Also, I think it's wrong that a card being closed for inactivity has a negative effect on your credit score. Now my credit is so low that I can't buy a used car to replace my 18 year old vehicle! Of course, none of my political representatives ever responded to my request for assistance.
This almost happened to me on couple occasions. The card providers usually me an inactivity notice 1 or 2 months in advance. I just make a small purchase in order to keep the account and card open.
This happened to me last year. I reported them to the Customer Finance Bureau and contacted Citi customer service to re-open the account. They had to do a hard pull but the account was reinstated and all of my historical transactions were still there. They should let you re-open the account.
I had a card since 1985. We moved and I had just found it while unpacking a box. Missed the cut off by a few days! Called, spoke to several people, opened an escalation ticket to get it reversed. Received a letter two weeks later stating my request was denied. I will no longer do business with them. Their ability to make money off me has now been declined and I have taken my business elsewhere.
I think it's kinda hilarious that the blogger pushing credit cards doesn't know the inactivity rules. LOL.
As for those of you with many cards and small transactions every month to keep open, it can negatively impact your FICO scores because it'll show you have 15-25-whatever cards active, although I'm not sure what the score weighting is per bureau. I know Trans Union seems to be more sensitive to these. I'm typically around 5-7 and...
I think it's kinda hilarious that the blogger pushing credit cards doesn't know the inactivity rules. LOL.
As for those of you with many cards and small transactions every month to keep open, it can negatively impact your FICO scores because it'll show you have 15-25-whatever cards active, although I'm not sure what the score weighting is per bureau. I know Trans Union seems to be more sensitive to these. I'm typically around 5-7 and a FICO score over 800, but when I was around 10-15 (of my 25 cards), score dropped about 20 points. Took about 3-4 months after not using those cards at all ($0 balance, paid in full, but if you pay on due-date and keep spending/using the card, it doesn't get reported as $0) before the Score slowly crept up.
@ mjonis -- It's not that I didn't know about it (I've written a post addressing exactly this possibility in the past), it's just that it hadn't happened to me. Not the same thing.
Another downside is it may hurt you credit utilization. Keep an eye on your numbers.
I was surprised when BofA did the same thing to me on a Royal Caribbean Cruise credit card. Years ago, it was a decent card and the signup bonus made it worthwhile but it's not competitive now with a 1% credit back that only really useful on a cruise. I wasn't too sorry to see it go.
Hmm, I have a Citi AAdvantage card which I use regularly. And a free Citi (née AT&T) Universal credit card which I haven't used at all in over a dozen years. The Universal cards still active, they send me Privacy statement every year.
Citi closed a TY Preferred card last month for no activity for 18 months. I could have applied for re-opening, but then reflected that my strategy for TYPs really ran dry 4-5 years ago.
I took Apple gift cards at 1 cent/TYP (Note: Citi did “steal” my TYPs) which in today’s world is ok for closing out my TYP experience. Not the highest value but not many TYPs and any of this wampum I can turn into cash is welcome.
The person you spoke to should have offered to reactivate the card. Call again and make the request. If they give you a hard time, ask to escalate the call.
Try to pay a subscription for something using that card. For other unused cards, buy a tank of gas, swipe it for a snack, or otherwise make a small purchase. Once it appears on your bill as a balance, pay it.
Citi must have done a huge customer dump yesterday. I received the email and immediately called and was told sorry you need to apply again. I have multiple Citi Cards for business and personal and granted I didn’t use this one, but I have been a customer since 1979 and you would think there would have been an option to “use it or lose it”!
Bevercritt
You probably did not use the card for over six months or a year. Often times this is what happens, but I never had a problem with cards that I use at least once or twice a year.
Happened to me a couple years ago with my Chase Freedom card. It was my first credit card but fell out of use because of the 3% FX fee, and I have a few other cards that provide better rewards/earnings rates. I'd gotten a notice before closure but decided to let it go.
Honestly this kind of thing is super easy to avoid…just set up a small recurring transaction on cards you use rarely. I’ve got a Citi Rewards+ card too, and it’s set to pay my NYT subscription at $1 a month…they’re never shutting that thing down for inactivity
Plus it rounds up so I’m getting 10 thank you points per dollar spent (well, on the NYT subscription anyway) so that’s nice too
It happened to me too, but with American Express. If i had received a warning, i could’ve used it.... I also received messages from Best Buy and carecredit. Had to use them before it gets cancelled :(
This happened to me a couple years ago. I had a diamond preferred card for about 10 years, and got the letter cancelling it. I had not used it in a few years, but still had rewards on it. It had no annual fee. At the time it was my lengthiest account for credit history. Following the closure I had a major drop in my credit score that I had to climb out of. Mine...
This happened to me a couple years ago. I had a diamond preferred card for about 10 years, and got the letter cancelling it. I had not used it in a few years, but still had rewards on it. It had no annual fee. At the time it was my lengthiest account for credit history. Following the closure I had a major drop in my credit score that I had to climb out of. Mine was closed for inactivity. Called and tried to rectify it to no avail. Suppose if it’s “free” they don’t owe us anything. But if you have a good credit score, and have always paid on time when using it, I figured they would let me keep it open for the off chance I use it one day. Would have been nice to have a warning or something first.
Citi closed a no-fee card of mine almost 4 years ago. There was no activity for a year, and the card was shutdown without warning. I called, and they wouldn't reopen. It was not a big loss, except it had 17 years of history.
It's a bummer that it was a card that earns passive points and has a high return on small spend. But with Citi's product change rules, it should be easy to replace in a year or two.
Citi is notorious for doing this. This happened to me a few years back when they closed my old ATT Universal Card which was one of my oldest card and was great for my credit history. Since then, i've gotten into the habit of putting a couple of purchases every year or so on all the Citi cards just to avoid this.
I had USAA reduce my credit line by 97% because of non-use. Even though I hadn't charged anything in quite awhile, the zero transfer fee and 12% interest rate encouragedme to keep a high balance for 10 years as I got out of debt. But they wanted transaction fees more than my interest payments (which were more than the transaction fees would ever be). After I paid it off the credit limit was slashed. After...
I had USAA reduce my credit line by 97% because of non-use. Even though I hadn't charged anything in quite awhile, the zero transfer fee and 12% interest rate encouragedme to keep a high balance for 10 years as I got out of debt. But they wanted transaction fees more than my interest payments (which were more than the transaction fees would ever be). After I paid it off the credit limit was slashed. After having the card for over 35 years and denial of any appeals, I canceled the card from this ungrateful company.
Ben, I had the same thing happen. Citi used to have a 30 day window during which they would reopen the card just for the asking. I didn't see the notice so missed the window but they reinstated the card based on an abbreviated application taken over the phone so it won't be difficult to get the card back and it will have the same account number.
Since then I make a token charge on...
Ben, I had the same thing happen. Citi used to have a 30 day window during which they would reopen the card just for the asking. I didn't see the notice so missed the window but they reinstated the card based on an abbreviated application taken over the phone so it won't be difficult to get the card back and it will have the same account number.
Since then I make a token charge on cards I don't use on a regular basis about every six months and haven't had a problem since.
Hope this helps.
I had that happen a few years ago with... I think... a Chase card. The key is that it was, like yours @lucky, a no annual fee card. Guarantee they won't do it with an annual fee card. The letter I got said that they would close it in 60 days and spending on the card wouldn't change their mind. It was one of my oldest cards, of course that had been valuable to me...
I had that happen a few years ago with... I think... a Chase card. The key is that it was, like yours @lucky, a no annual fee card. Guarantee they won't do it with an annual fee card. The letter I got said that they would close it in 60 days and spending on the card wouldn't change their mind. It was one of my oldest cards, of course that had been valuable to me at some point. My oldest card is actually a credit union card that i haven't used in a decade or more and it's no fee. They keep renewing it and the credit limit is probably something stupid like $5000. But, really I should spend on it occasionally, as it is a good 4-5 years older than my next older card.
I make a point of putting at least one purchase on every card every month. That way I don't have to worry about this.
Subscriptions are an easy way to do this- Netflix on one, Hulu on another, etc.
Same thing happened to me 2 months ago.
@ James S.
"I have the Citi Rewards+ which I opened when I closed my Prestige, to hold onto some points."
Me too - my Citi Rewards+ was closed unexpectedly - with an email like you got - Ben.
I wanted to keep the card open - since I on occasion would book tickets with some point applied to try to make the AA miles...
Same thing happened to me 2 months ago.
@ James S.
"I have the Citi Rewards+ which I opened when I closed my Prestige, to hold onto some points."
Me too - my Citi Rewards+ was closed unexpectedly - with an email like you got - Ben.
I wanted to keep the card open - since I on occasion would book tickets with some point applied to try to make the AA miles - distance based.
But I haven't flown yet in 13 month - so I hadn't used the Citi Rewards+ (will be flying for the first time next week.
I did call Citi immediately and expressed my displeasure - and request that I wanted the account reopened. I told them I spend over $50K a year on my Citicards and if not reopened I would be cancelling those cards. And I wanted my points restored.
But the person said you have to reapply (and no promises that they would reopen). I was transferred to another person - which when through the questions like opening a new account and a new credit check was done. They told me this would they would make a decision in 7 days and let me know. And that if approved they would send me a new card.
About 7 days later - I noticed that my account showed again on Citi website - so I called and they did reopen the account and my points were reinstated. They kept the CC number the same - and while I did get a new (duplicate card), I was told the old card would work too.
I guess - they evaluate you as a customer. If you use other Citi cards a lot, then I think you will. If you just use it for the AA club members - then who knows maybe not. Hard to say, but my experience as a good customer - I got it reopened. I have also had my original AA citi card for 35 years - so many that made a difference too.
Happened to me with a Citi card. I called and they reopened it. Credit bureaus seem to count it as having been open since the original date.
For every card I’m not using I set up a monthly $5 donation to a charity and autopay the bill from my checking account.
@Ben
When you have two high value cards in addition to the one that was cancelled I am confused as to why you did not call them and confront them on this issue.
Unilateral arbitrary decisions should always be challenged - especially by those whose entire portfolio would suggest that the organization should consider more than just one card at a time.
In your case - just because it would not cause you great pain...
@Ben
When you have two high value cards in addition to the one that was cancelled I am confused as to why you did not call them and confront them on this issue.
Unilateral arbitrary decisions should always be challenged - especially by those whose entire portfolio would suggest that the organization should consider more than just one card at a time.
In your case - just because it would not cause you great pain is not necessarily a good excuse to let it go. Jump on your steed - raise the lance - and let them know who is boss ;-) (the customer, of course)
My sister recently had her Barclays JetBlue card (she had downgraded to the no AF version last year) closed for inactivity, and they would not reopen it.
Several years ago, I had a United card (also a downgrade to a no AF card) that they warned me they would close, so I was able to call Chase and get them to keep the card open. Shortly after, I closed it myself since I realized I...
My sister recently had her Barclays JetBlue card (she had downgraded to the no AF version last year) closed for inactivity, and they would not reopen it.
Several years ago, I had a United card (also a downgrade to a no AF card) that they warned me they would close, so I was able to call Chase and get them to keep the card open. Shortly after, I closed it myself since I realized I did not really want or need it.
After reading your post, I did a small load to my Amazon account with my Rewards + card, since it is a former Prestige card I downgraded to keep my TYP.
The same thing happened to me...twice. The recourse is just to request, I believe in writing, that the account be reopened and it will be done. My Citi card account that was closed due to inactivity was that of my first every CC, which I got in 1986 with a $500 CL. Over the years the CL climbed to as high as $11K. Never having been much of a Citi guy, i had no use...
The same thing happened to me...twice. The recourse is just to request, I believe in writing, that the account be reopened and it will be done. My Citi card account that was closed due to inactivity was that of my first every CC, which I got in 1986 with a $500 CL. Over the years the CL climbed to as high as $11K. Never having been much of a Citi guy, i had no use for the card , which earned TY points. I requested that the account be reopened simply because closing it would drop the age of credit history precipitously.
After Citi closed the same account again a few years later, I just decided to do nothing and let the age my credit history take a hit. There was a slight decrease in my credit score, but then it rebounded quickly. With that, I was done with Citi. Good riddance.
Two plastic boxes. Once or twice a year
I take cards from one box, use them a little then place them in the 'used card' box. All because a few years ago Cap One canceled my Quicksilver for inactivity. I am still mourning!
They did this to me recently as well. It was a Citi Double Cash that I had recently converted from an AAdvantage Platinum Select. When this happened, I objected that I had changed the account with the intent of using it more. But, they said I'd have to escalate my request, which I did. When a specialist reached out to me, they said they'd only reopen my card if I authorized them to conduct a...
They did this to me recently as well. It was a Citi Double Cash that I had recently converted from an AAdvantage Platinum Select. When this happened, I objected that I had changed the account with the intent of using it more. But, they said I'd have to escalate my request, which I did. When a specialist reached out to me, they said they'd only reopen my card if I authorized them to conduct a hard pull on my credit, which I declined. I'm (hopefully) going to be in the market for a home in the near future and don't want new inquiries on my account. So, oh well. I lost my second oldest account and Citi has lost my business.
What surprised me is that they did it without warning.
I've always had warning on cards I rarely used, but I guess I can't count on it always.
Better get some auto-spending setup!
The same thing happened to me I was shocked hadn’t used it for 6 months ! I was upset because that does affect your credit score especially if creditor closes account.
The ironic part is I have another card with them ! No problem there with that one !
I think it is unfair to make you use a credit card if at the time you might not need too.
Not impressed
I think banks must be cleaning up unused credit. I had my credit line at my bank halved. The letter said it was due to lack of use for 18 months. I never use a credit line and never asked for it, so it has actually been unused for many years. It was noted on my credit report that my credit had been reduced, but the reality is it is a rounding error.
Yeah I had a Cap1 account closed last year. Now for the cards I don't use much I keep a little spreadsheet and pay all my standing monthly bills with those just to keep a transaction. One for water, one for utilities, one for my newspaper, one for the gym etc!!
I had that issue with a chase card, I called and they reopened the account
Happened to me. It's like losing 10% of your TYP balance.
They will reopen the account, call soon.
I thought activity is needed every 24 months but don't quite remember, you can ask when you reopen it.
@DenB
As an introvert, I'd like to say that I often would avoid talking on the phone if I could help it. So yes, for some people, it's much preferable to ask in written text than to make a call.
Citi shut down my Premier card a couple years back when I went 12 months without using it.
Aside from that, Chase has sent me letters a couple times telling me that they were gonna shut down one of my Freedom cards, but I've always just called them and told them I want to keep it. FNBO sends me a letter threatening to shut down my TravElite card whenever it's been 6 months since I've used it.
I had my CITI dividend card also no annual fee closed after not using the card for several years. This just reminded me to put some spend on my CITI AA mile up. I use my Citi rewards + for my iCloud backup each month. Double cash I use a lot so no issue there.
Ben - the same thing happened to me with a citi card - they closed my citi double cash a few years ago due to “inactivity.” I called and they were very apologetic but said there was no way to reopen it and it was an automatic action. For reference, I was using the double cash card once a year at that point (I downgraded to it from an AA annual fee card, which was...
Ben - the same thing happened to me with a citi card - they closed my citi double cash a few years ago due to “inactivity.” I called and they were very apologetic but said there was no way to reopen it and it was an automatic action. For reference, I was using the double cash card once a year at that point (I downgraded to it from an AA annual fee card, which was my longest credit line for 10+ years). I have another double cash now and have switched to using it every 6 months and seems ok so far. Maybe it would be better to do it more often given the other stories here. Please keep us posted if you get any official response from Citi on how they handle this issue. Thanks!
@Antonio it was very obviously a joke. Take a deep breath.
Just when I was planning to use it again, I found out that Discover canceled my card after 20+ years of having it.
Apparently they sent a letter but it went to my old address and I never received it.
It was mildly annoying but I had rarely used it in over a decade.
And this doesn't only happen to credit cards. My father is in his 80s and his pension and social security covers...
Just when I was planning to use it again, I found out that Discover canceled my card after 20+ years of having it.
Apparently they sent a letter but it went to my old address and I never received it.
It was mildly annoying but I had rarely used it in over a decade.
And this doesn't only happen to credit cards. My father is in his 80s and his pension and social security covers his expenses so he doesn't do much with his investments and one of them was almost given over to the state for inactivity. He had to call up and make sure it wasn't deemed "abandoned".
Happens a lot but normally I've got a letter telling me its going to happen in 30-60 days if there's no activity, which case if you want to keep it find a way to spend something on it. My guess is given the number of cards you have, and the combined credit limits, you'd be a target for inactivity closing to minimize exposure risk.
Duh... No spendy, no cardy.
But seriously, call them and if they don't give it back, then threaten to close the Prestige. :-D
The key thing here, and very straightforward, is no annual fee. If there is no annual fee, there will be no activity if the balance is zero and the card is not being used. That's a non-performing credit card and most issuers will close such accounts.
It's funny that the blogger says that he feels rejected when he shares his wallet with another 28 other cards, possibly also 25 without use.
Maybe he thinks the IT infrastructure and the Fronf and Back Office workforce are made of chocolate in the land of dreams.
If someone doesn't generate profit in a Business it's a sxxx customer.
Citi closed two of my accounts. No payment or credit problems and refused to refund my annual fee for my CitiPrestige card and stole my ThankYou Points. After calling multiple times and getting no real answers as to why, I filed suit against them.
Before court day, they settled. The points were approximately 135,000. They settled for three thousand dollars and wanted me to sign an non-disclosure agreement, which I refused. They paid court/legal fees...
Citi closed two of my accounts. No payment or credit problems and refused to refund my annual fee for my CitiPrestige card and stole my ThankYou Points. After calling multiple times and getting no real answers as to why, I filed suit against them.
Before court day, they settled. The points were approximately 135,000. They settled for three thousand dollars and wanted me to sign an non-disclosure agreement, which I refused. They paid court/legal fees and for their goofy lawyer.
In closing, Citi sends me credit card offers at least a few times a year. Yea, sure. Never again!
Cards with an annual fee are never closed on me. Only the free ones.
While I did lose a Capital One card for lack of use, I really did not care. Had no strategy and other cards "pay" better.
What surprised me is when I was influenced by this newsletter to apply for the IHG card from Chase. I was rejected (with an 830 credit score) because I had not used my Sapphire card enough over the past year. I appealed and they stood firm.
I understand the economics from their end, but I hated losing the IHG bonus!
Roger
Citi recently turned away my business completely, and I have a hard time understanding how they are making these decisions. In July, I fat-fingered a payment amount on my AA Executive account, and it bounced -- a good faith mistake. Citi responded by closing all 5 of my open cards (2x AA and 3x proprietary; $45k total credit lines; oldest account opened around 2007). Appeals by phone and mail yielded no results. No way to...
Citi recently turned away my business completely, and I have a hard time understanding how they are making these decisions. In July, I fat-fingered a payment amount on my AA Executive account, and it bounced -- a good faith mistake. Citi responded by closing all 5 of my open cards (2x AA and 3x proprietary; $45k total credit lines; oldest account opened around 2007). Appeals by phone and mail yielded no results. No way to use ThankYou points, no prorating of annual fees (which had recently hit).
I've never had another issuer close an account unilaterally. I'll miss the Executive card, but it's hard to see why I would ever return to Citi.
For cards I do not use often I make a $5 payment every other month. This creates activity and a credit balance.
I’ve had one closed for inactivity unexpectedly. I’ve gotten warning letters on a few others letting me know that if I didn’t use the account, they would close it. I now rotate cards in my wallet from tine yo time and make small purchases to prevent closure.
@cap - I know you can setup an auto-reload on amazon. Is there a way to have multiple setup so you can have one for each card without any manual work?
Barkley's cancelled my card for the same non-use reason. Since Barleys' does not report to credit buraus anyway, I took my 50,000 acquisition premium and said good bye
Time to apply for it again and get a sign up bonus.
One of my Citi AA card was closed last month due to inactivity. It was one of my oldest credit cards with a huge credit limit and longest account history. Curious / concerned to see how it affects my credit score, but since my score is 820+ something I guess it is not going to be end of the world.
This happened to me in January for a Citi card after 24 months of inactivity. I gave them a call, but they declined to reopen my account.
Had a threat from Chase Ink Business CASH to use it or loose it
Closing one of Ben's sock-drawered cards is akin to spitefully tossing a neutrino into the Pacific. You really showed him, Citi!
I need way more info.
1. When did you last use the card?
2. When did you last earn the 10% rebate?
3. Why are you averse to calling them?
Something fishy here
While mine wasnt closed my limit on my rewards+ was lowered by $2000 because of no activity. I have been afraid to touch any of my cards because the state of the world at this time but maybe I should be putting a little on them from time to time for this reason.Thanks for sharing.
They did it to me also. And so did Capital One. It would have been nice if I had received a reminder that I had an inactive card and I should use it or lose it. I didn't even have the opportunity to move my credit to another card. Capital One ticks me off every time I have to deal with them, or try to deal with them I should say. But the flexiblity of their points is a big plus. Great for car rentals and VRBO's.
Have you redeemed any ThankYou points in the past year or so? When you redeem TYP, even if you do not use your Rewards+ card they generate a statement for that month to credit you the 10% back in TYP. I am curious if that is enough to count as activity on the card, or if it has to be an actual monetary transaction.
I like how there is a yes and a no....just call yourself, you can't depend on these comments.
Yeah, my history with citi ended when I contested a rental charge. I rented a car from a place a fine minute walk from where I lived, and declined the CDW, because citi covered it. Then I got billed twice the agreed amount because the company claimed that I elected their CDW and returned the car to a site ten miles away.
Citi sided with Avis over a fraudulent $300 charge. That was the...
Yeah, my history with citi ended when I contested a rental charge. I rented a car from a place a fine minute walk from where I lived, and declined the CDW, because citi covered it. Then I got billed twice the agreed amount because the company claimed that I elected their CDW and returned the car to a site ten miles away.
Citi sided with Avis over a fraudulent $300 charge. That was the first and last time I disputed a charge with them (well, alright, the very first two charges to the card was a restaurant that inadvertently double billed me, but that was quickly fixed). That was over ten years ago. Even then, I considered the three hundred bucks chump change. I'd done business with them for over fifteen years, and never had a problem, and if they want to side with people who are obviously defrauding me, well, why do I need them? I gladly paid the sum to end the relationship; in terms of their transaction fees, they lost more than that from me in the months that followed. On my side, I haven't had to contest a charge since then.
I'm sure many people have similar stories about every credit card company, and every rental agency. Heck, I've used my Amex to rent from Hertz multiple times in recent years and haven't had a problem, but I won't deny that others have had huge issues, which are documented here. So this is just my story, the reason why I don't do business with them. I can't say how common an experience this is, so maybe my case was unusual, and I don't judge others by the cards they keep. But I was triggered by the line "Never trust Citi". Learned that lesson.
Citi did the same thing to me, closed out a Double Cash card that I had used to downgrade from an AA card. As others mentioned, make sure you put small spend on any card that you hold just for the benefits. For Rewards+, I keep it in my Apple Pay and whenever I'm at a vending machine or other very small purchase under a couple of bucks, I use it to get 10 points....
Citi did the same thing to me, closed out a Double Cash card that I had used to downgrade from an AA card. As others mentioned, make sure you put small spend on any card that you hold just for the benefits. For Rewards+, I keep it in my Apple Pay and whenever I'm at a vending machine or other very small purchase under a couple of bucks, I use it to get 10 points. As others have mentioned, you can automate this with Amazon by just setting a $1 monthly charge (and you'll get 10x on that purchase)... once you get the card back of course!
The real question will be if this re-starts the clock on your 24-month waiting period to apply for any new ThankYou family cards.
Do you think it's because it's a no annual fee card? If it had an annual fee I doubt they would have closed it.
@Cap and @Matthew: Great ideas, thanks.
It is a loss, but at the end of the day, this card got you $150 to $170 in value (depending on how much you value Thank You points) by giving you 10,000 extra Thank You Points. For you, that is pretty insignificant based on how many points / how much spending you appear to have. For Citi, it's a clear loss given you don't spend on this particular card and don't need the credit...
It is a loss, but at the end of the day, this card got you $150 to $170 in value (depending on how much you value Thank You points) by giving you 10,000 extra Thank You Points. For you, that is pretty insignificant based on how many points / how much spending you appear to have. For Citi, it's a clear loss given you don't spend on this particular card and don't need the credit on this card. Let Citi reallocate the credit to someone who will actually use it.
This has happened to me before on old cards I forgot to spend on that I kept just to enhance my available credit and age of accounts. My lesson is to make sure you spend on the cards you want to keep long term, prune cards that you don't want to keep long term, and keep things as simple as possible
The only time something like this almost happened to me, I received a communication from the credit card issuer that the card would be closed due to inactivity unless I used it for a purchase within the next 30 days. I'm surprised they didn't give you some kind of similar warning.
$1 Amazon loads across all unused cards, every month. Set cards to autopay from your checking account.
This builds Payment History across many Revolving Accounts and has low Credit Utilization reported every month. Money never goes to waste since it slowly accrues in your Amazon account.
@Ben, why ask the question? Is there a downside/risk to calling and asking? Just wondering if there's a reason you're asking the readership before acting.
You have 30 days to reopen it. Simply call back :)
i had this happen to me last january for the same card (i think 24 months of inactivity...oops)!
i just called and they re-opened the account, with a hard pull, and that restored all the credit history, etc. it was justified for me because this was one of my longest open lines of credit.
maybe not worth it for you, but for anyone else, know that it's just a call away to restore it!
Bank employee here. For most banks if you do not use a card for two years it will be closed for lack of activity to reduce exposure. Generally speaking you cannot reopen the same account and would need to reapply for the card that was closed assuming that card is still offered.
Hi Lucky,
Unfortunately the did the same thing to my Citi DoubleCash Card. I tried to appeal it to no avail. This was about a year ago so perhaps things have changed since then, but it was very disappointing.
citi and chase and boa have closed my cards due to inactivity, with only boa giving notice. you'll just need to set some calendar reminders to use once a year.
I have the Citi Rewards+ which I opened when I closed my Prestige, to hold onto some points. I have to force myself to remember to buy a coffee on it every month or so. Never trust Citi!
To better understand, when was the last time you made a transaction on your card?
I have a $1 donation to Science Friday every month for this reason.