Reply #65: OK I just read the article...Barclay Bank did the same thing

[pipi_k]

Mr Pip had a card through a different bank which was bought out by Barclays. I used it exclusively for nearly ten years and ALWAYS made payments on time and in full.

No problem while the card was at the previous bank. Once it was under the control of Barclay Bank, the same thing started to happen. Places I had used the card before (and on a monthly basis, like Netflix) were sending emails back to me saying that there was a "hold" on the card. The monthly balance wasn't ever anywhere NEAR the limit, and always got paid off in full.

Anyway, Mr P called customer service...some guy in India who spoke limited English. And this is not to denigrate people from other countries, but goddamn...when we're talking about something as important as finances, it's fucking nice to be able to actually understand what the other person is saying, you know? In any case, this guy didn't ask for tax records or anything, but because I was using this card, they needed "authorization" from my husband for me to use his card!!!

WTF???????? What the hell am I...a second class citizen???? I now need "permission" from my husband to use a card I had been using and paying on for nearly ten years?????

This happened three times...each time Mr P called customer service and told them specifically "DO NOT PUT A HOLD ON THIS CARD AGAIN WHEN MY WIFE USES IT". Each time the guy said "OK" and that he would make a note of it.

The final straw came when they did it a third time PLUS they raised the interest rate on a cash advance that was supposed to be separate from the charges put on each month.

The company refused to consider putting the interest rate on the cash advance amount back to the rate they first gave us (for about two months) even though all payments were, again, being made on time.

So Mr P transferred the balance to another card and told Barclays to piss off.

Like someone above said...pay your bills and get screwed over. Don't pay your bills and lose credit points. There's just no way to win. And they do it because they can. Or THINK they can.