Citi Says Use Your Credit Card Or Pay Up
We have reported here before that some credit card issuers have introduced new fees for cardholders that do not use their cards, at least not enough to the credit card company’s liking.
In some cases they have gone as far as closing down the accounts of cardholders that were deemed to be inactive. They do have a right to do that, although it could be debated as to whether not it is a sound business practice.
Well here is a new one courtesy of Citibank:
Effective April 1, 2010 there will be a $60 annual fee charged to all account holders. The $60 amount will be credited back to the account if there are at least $2400 worth of charges made on the card in a years time.
So here we have a case of not use or lose it, but rather use it or pay more. Citibank said through a spokesman, “We understand that customers can be frustrated by new fees, especially in difficult economic times. However, this action is necessary given the costs of doing business.”
$2400 is a fairly big hurdle to meet in order to get the $60 fee waived. It’s basically an average of $200 a month charged to your card. Certainly this won’t be the last time we hear of this. And you can bet that other credit card issuers are taking a close look at this to see how it goes over.
We have said all along that there would be new and inventive ways that credit card companies would be coming up with in order to charge their cardholder’s new fees. Here is but one example. There will be more.
Related Information:
- No Pay for Bank of America CEO Ken Lewis It looks as if the Obama administration is enforcing its edict to crack down on corporations receiving federal bailout money. It was recently announced that the beleaguered chief executive officer...
- Citi Cards – Find the Card That is Right for You Citi cards features some of the most popular credit cards on the market today. Search, compare and apply for Citibank credit card offers right here....
- A Review of Popular Citi Cards Read our review of popular Citi cards to see if they are right for you. Search, review and compare Citibank credit cards right here....