BofA Amex card? - Credit Card Forum

Miss Posh · 10-05-2008, 07:38 PM

Hi,

A newbie here and a ? to ask.

Does or has anyone heard of or have a BofA card that is tied to Amex(?) because BofA aquired MBNA and when that happened my card suddenly turned into Amex. It is actually called an "IE" business card Bank Of America IE business card w/Amex logo.

That asked and before I have an answer, have another question.
Why would my interest rate go UP after I used one of those "zero" interest rate checks? The check/balance transfer(what they call it) was a very small amount BUT the interest rate changed by 3%.

The limit on this card is very high but the balance owing is very low even w/the zero % check I used.

Does anyone have a clue as to why that happened?

Thanx.....

Miss Posh

Mogul of Pineapples · 10-05-2008, 08:26 PM

Welcome to the Forum!

Bank of America has recently began issuing American Express cards. This is ironic especially since the Bank of America is who created Visa. What happened was an antitrust ruling stated that banks need to issue American Express cards too. They can't squeeze them out of the game and only do Visa and Mastercard. Expect to continue seeing more Amex cards issued by more banks in the future because of this.

About the interest rate jump... that has to be for some other reason. I'm not saying their reason is justified but they wouldn't do it for using a BT check alone. May I ask what % of your credit line you're using on that card? If you use more than 30% of your credit limit on any card that can be viewed as being financially stressed (read: high risk) and they use that as an excuse to jack up rates.

On any of your other cards too... do you have balances above 30% of the credit limit? Also do you know if any of your cards are Mastercard World, Visa Signature, or a charge card? I ask this because these types of cards don't always report credit limits to the bureaus, which can in turn distort the calculation of credit used to credit available ratio.

Another reason it could be the issuer of the card. Was this a B of A card? They've been known for raising rates out of the blue this year for no justified reason.

Miss Posh · 10-05-2008, 09:10 PM

Hi................

And thanks for the quick reply!

I only have the one card and I called it wrong....it's called a "IT Professional ...." whatever.
This card started out as an MBNA card.....then BofA when they merged or whatever happened. And now has the Amex logo.

As for the % owed, it is less than 10% of the 25K limit....way less...of course they add in the BT amount which was not much and it is still way under 10%.

I guess they figure since I make way over the minimum payment each month, raising the rate is one way to make more on me?

O well............whatever, I guess. Wonder if calling them on this will make a difference? Why waste my time?

What I'd like to do is change this card to the Amex/Costco one......hummmm

And be able to keep that nice limit, never use it BUT it IS nice to see that figure

Thanx again,

Miss Posh

1bootcamp · 10-05-2008, 11:41 PM

Evergreen State I see. I have a good buddy that moved there a couple years ago for a job at Microsoft. I haven't been there in years myself. I have a trip to North Cal later this year I may try and hop on up there and do a road trip.

About this problem to be honest B of A has gotten to big for its own good IMO. Even the mainstream media has been talking about them doing this to customers lately for no reason. How do you think they are financing all those big acquisitions lately?

Being the number one credit card issuer now lets them call the shots. If I were you I would give them a call. It may not do any good but you won't lose anything other than your time. Tell them you've been a loyal customer and request your rate be lowered to what it was before. If you switch to American Express they are fairly generous with credit limits so you should be able to start off with a high limit. How much longer do you have on the BT before it runs out?

Miss Posh · 10-06-2008, 08:24 AM

Hi and thanx for the response!

I might call and ask them to change the rate back. I think the BT has until late 2009 before it runs out. I think I'll pay this card off.

I almost applied for the Amex/Costco card online last night but thought no better not have any inquiries for credit right now.

Think I'll just fly low for now and keep using cash for gas since credit for gas can get away from you sometimes.

Hope you get up to Evergreen State on your trip. Enjoy all your sunshine for me too!

Miss Posh

Cucumber · 10-06-2008, 09:36 AM

here's a copy and past from a blog I read regularly about Bank of America raising everyone's rates lately

Quote:

* Fiona's APR went from 9.9% to 23.99% without ever missing a payment.
* Devan's increased from 9.9% fixed to 19.99% variable with no explanation.
* Dave had his APR raised from 6.99% to 25.99% without ever missing a payment.
* Mark's APR went from 5.9% fixed to 19.99% variable.
* Carl's interest rate raised from 9% fixed to 23% variable. B of A told him it was due to his "high balance" on the account.
* Jake had his APR increased from 9.9% fixed to 25.24% variable. B of A told him it was due to insufficiently large payments each month and a high balance.
* Carol's APR on her balance transfer jumped from 3% to 22% before the end of the promo period.
* Bob had his interest rate raised from 14% to 23%.
* Sean had his interest rate jacked up from 7.99% fixed (for 9 years) to 26.99%.
* Britney had her interest rate increased from 5.99% fixed (for 3 years) to 11.99%.

Miss Posh · 10-06-2008, 11:18 AM

Very interesting..........guess BofA can do whatever they want, when they want..............stab.....stab....til we bleed.
Grrrrrrrrrrrr

Thanx for info.....could you post a link for that blog?

Miss Posh

Multi-Purpose · 10-06-2008, 06:32 PM

BusinessWeek had a recent writeup about Bank of America blindsiding customers with APR increases. The good thing is we can put our money where our mouth is and stop using their cards in protest of this practice. I'm in full agreement of raising interest rates if it is a customer that has had his credit significantly effected by something negative, but doing it for no reason is plain wrong.

Mogul of Pineapples · 10-06-2008, 11:59 PM

Only using 10% is definitely NOT over utilization of your credit. To me it sounds like what must have happened is simply the same thing they're doing to many of their customers.

I have a B of A credit card with a balance transfer of 0% on it that expires in December and they have not raised my normal rate yet. This could be because I don't make purchases on that card anymore so they know raising the rate would be pointless anyways. My % of credit limit used is closer to 25%.

In my opinion Bank of America no longer offers cards which are worth having. Their rewards are the typical 1% and if you carry a balance their rates are above average.

I like the American Express Costco card. I use to have it until I canceled my Costco membership. It wasn't worth having a membership there for only myself.

goober · 10-07-2008, 07:12 PM

i canceled my b of a credit card.......

YOU SHOULD TOO!!!!!!

10-05-2008, 07:38 PM	#1
Miss Posh Green Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: In the woods of the Evergreen State Posts: 5	BofA Amex card? Hi, A newbie here and a ? to ask. Does or has anyone heard of or have a BofA card that is tied to Amex(?) because BofA aquired MBNA and when that happened my card suddenly turned into Amex. It is actually called an "IE" business card Bank Of America IE business card w/Amex logo. That asked and before I have an answer, have another question. Why would my interest rate go UP after I used one of those "zero" interest rate checks? The check/balance transfer(what they call it) was a very small amount BUT the interest rate changed by 3%. The limit on this card is very high but the balance owing is very low even w/the zero % check I used. Does anyone have a clue as to why that happened? Thanx..... Miss Posh

10-05-2008, 08:26 PM	#2
Mogul of Pineapples Centurion Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Where the smog from the 101 freeway coats my home's windows... Posts: 279	Welcome to the Forum! Bank of America has recently began issuing American Express cards. This is ironic especially since the Bank of America is who created Visa. What happened was an antitrust ruling stated that banks need to issue American Express cards too. They can't squeeze them out of the game and only do Visa and Mastercard. Expect to continue seeing more Amex cards issued by more banks in the future because of this. About the interest rate jump... that has to be for some other reason. I'm not saying their reason is justified but they wouldn't do it for using a BT check alone. May I ask what % of your credit line you're using on that card? If you use more than 30% of your credit limit on any card that can be viewed as being financially stressed (read: high risk) and they use that as an excuse to jack up rates. On any of your other cards too... do you have balances above 30% of the credit limit? Also do you know if any of your cards are Mastercard World, Visa Signature, or a charge card? I ask this because these types of cards don't always report credit limits to the bureaus, which can in turn distort the calculation of credit used to credit available ratio. Another reason it could be the issuer of the card. Was this a B of A card? They've been known for raising rates out of the blue this year for no justified reason. __________________ “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you'll do things differently.” -Warren Buffett Current Cards: American Express: Blue Cash, Simply Cash Bank of America: Visa Financial Rewards Platinum Plus Chase: Rewards Visa, Amazon Visa Discover: More Current Everyday Card: American Express Blue Cash

10-05-2008, 09:10 PM	#3
Miss Posh Green Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: In the woods of the Evergreen State Posts: 5	Hi................ And thanks for the quick reply! I only have the one card and I called it wrong....it's called a "IT Professional ...." whatever. This card started out as an MBNA card.....then BofA when they merged or whatever happened. And now has the Amex logo. As for the % owed, it is less than 10% of the 25K limit....way less...of course they add in the BT amount which was not much and it is still way under 10%. I guess they figure since I make way over the minimum payment each month, raising the rate is one way to make more on me? O well............whatever, I guess. Wonder if calling them on this will make a difference? Why waste my time? What I'd like to do is change this card to the Amex/Costco one......hummmm And be able to keep that nice limit, never use it BUT it IS nice to see that figure Thanx again, Miss Posh Last edited by Miss Posh : 10-05-2008 at 09:37 PM. Reason: spelling

10-05-2008, 11:41 PM	#4
1bootcamp Platinum Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Big Island, Hawaii Posts: 52	Evergreen State I see. I have a good buddy that moved there a couple years ago for a job at Microsoft. I haven't been there in years myself. I have a trip to North Cal later this year I may try and hop on up there and do a road trip. About this problem to be honest B of A has gotten to big for its own good IMO. Even the mainstream media has been talking about them doing this to customers lately for no reason. How do you think they are financing all those big acquisitions lately? Being the number one credit card issuer now lets them call the shots. If I were you I would give them a call. It may not do any good but you won't lose anything other than your time. Tell them you've been a loyal customer and request your rate be lowered to what it was before. If you switch to American Express they are fairly generous with credit limits so you should be able to start off with a high limit. How much longer do you have on the BT before it runs out? Last edited by 1bootcamp : 10-05-2008 at 11:47 PM.

10-06-2008, 06:32 PM	#8
Multi-Purpose Platinum Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Somewhere in So Cal Posts: 76	BusinessWeek had a recent writeup about Bank of America blindsiding customers with APR increases. The good thing is we can put our money where our mouth is and stop using their cards in protest of this practice. I'm in full agreement of raising interest rates if it is a customer that has had his credit significantly effected by something negative, but doing it for no reason is plain wrong. __________________ Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek. -Barack Obama

10-06-2008, 08:24 AM	#5
Miss Posh Green Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: In the woods of the Evergreen State Posts: 5	Hi and thanx for the response! I might call and ask them to change the rate back. I think the BT has until late 2009 before it runs out. I think I'll pay this card off. I almost applied for the Amex/Costco card online last night but thought no better not have any inquiries for credit right now. Think I'll just fly low for now and keep using cash for gas since credit for gas can get away from you sometimes. Hope you get up to Evergreen State on your trip. Enjoy all your sunshine for me too! Miss Posh

10-06-2008, 11:18 AM	#7
Miss Posh Green Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: In the woods of the Evergreen State Posts: 5	Very interesting..........guess BofA can do whatever they want, when they want..............stab.....stab....til we bleed. Grrrrrrrrrrrr Thanx for info.....could you post a link for that blog? Miss Posh

10-06-2008, 11:59 PM	#9
Mogul of Pineapples Centurion Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Where the smog from the 101 freeway coats my home's windows... Posts: 279	Only using 10% is definitely NOT over utilization of your credit. To me it sounds like what must have happened is simply the same thing they're doing to many of their customers. I have a B of A credit card with a balance transfer of 0% on it that expires in December and they have not raised my normal rate yet. This could be because I don't make purchases on that card anymore so they know raising the rate would be pointless anyways. My % of credit limit used is closer to 25%. In my opinion Bank of America no longer offers cards which are worth having. Their rewards are the typical 1% and if you carry a balance their rates are above average. I like the American Express Costco card. I use to have it until I canceled my Costco membership. It wasn't worth having a membership there for only myself. __________________ “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you'll do things differently.” -Warren Buffett Current Cards: American Express: Blue Cash, Simply Cash Bank of America: Visa Financial Rewards Platinum Plus Chase: Rewards Visa, Amazon Visa Discover: More Current Everyday Card: American Express Blue Cash

10-07-2008, 07:12 PM	#10
goober Green Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: OBX Posts: 23	i canceled my b of a credit card....... YOU SHOULD TOO!!!!!!

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