help I'm being attacked by credit cards!

17 years ago

*Sigh* I need more life experience or something. Visa opened a credit card account without my permission through my bank(BofA). It has a 5000.00 dollar limit. I wont own a credit card(I'm too impulsive basically) Anyway, we already tried to close it once. Who do I call/yell at? Bank of America,Visa or both? Is there any way I can prevent this from happening again? I can't begin to describe how ticked I am they can just open these accounts!!Does anyone know if it will affect my credit? It has not been activated BTW. A lot of you seem more finance savy than my DH or I and I appreciate any advice you can throw my way. Thanks,PJ

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Comments (12)

mikeandbarb
17 years ago
As far as I know no one can open an account with out you having ok'd it and signing the paper. I'd called the president of the bank and talk to him and BTW you can close any account at any time if you choose, they cannot refuse to close it. I don't know if it will hurt your credit but I would not want it open for someone else to get their hands on it. I'd do a credit check if I was you to make sure nothing else funny is going on with your credit.
Plus I would take it very very serious if any company opened an account in my name without my permission.
They would not want to do that to me cause I'd be very hot under the collar.
P.S. Look out for this being stolen identity.
Barb
sylviatexas1
17 years ago
Hmmm.

If it hasn't been activated, it isn't open, so I don't think it sounds like identity theft.

I think it sounds like your bank, being in the position of knowing your creditworthiness, took advantage of that knowledge to offer you this wonderful deal.

I'd call-or go in-& raise cain.

& I might move my account(s), depending on the answers I got.
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Well, like everyone else, I agree with much of what has been said but of course, as humans, we can't leave it at that and have to put our own 2 cents in :) You need to figure out a few things about your debt. Is it a matter of you currently have 35k debt that you need to pay off and you aren't adding anything to that debt? If so, then that is great! Work on ways to save every penny you can from your monthly budget to put towards debt. If you are still adding to the debt, you need to figure out why. Have you been paying for your kid's education or any of their bills? Like someone said earlier, if this is the case, they need to pay those things themselves. If they can't get a student loan, then they can cut back on their school hours, find a job full time, and pay their way through. They can also learn to take own their own insurance and phone bills if they don't already. And, if you still can't get your head above water, tell them that they will need to start pitching in on the food budget, or even pay you rent if they wish to live at home. Some may say that is harsh, but what is the best way to prepare a child to grow up and be apart of the real world? The parent pay for everything and bail them out of every problem, then suddenly graduate college and realize they don't know how to budget their own money and end up getting stuck with debt problems or unable to save for anything they want? Or having them pay for the things they want and need while under the protection and guidance of their parents so that when they graduate and/or get married and start their own family, they know how to budget and save money. So this could be a major thing to look at. You obviously don't want to just kick your kids away and make them think you don't love them, but if they aren't responsible for their own things, you need to start holding them responsible for them. Also look at other things you could save on. If you have Cable or Dish, perhaps drop them. Most shows can now be watched online, even if it means going to youtube and seeing if anyone put it up. Perhaps revise the food budget? That's one thing my husband and I have really been working on. I have cut ours in half! I am unsure of your living conditions or what type of disease you have, but if you are able to, perhaps there are things you could do for a little extra money. Clean the homes of family and friends? Host a garage sale and have all the profit go towards your debt? Are there crafts you can sell (they usually don't bring much money in, but every little bit can help). Perhaps you have a skill or talent you can train people in? If you can find something you can do that will create extra income, do it and discipline yourself that all of that extra income will go towards your debt and can't be spent elsewhere. If you haven't already, check out various sites about cutting the budget and frugal living and as you apply those tips, use the money saved toward debt. I have 2 things left to say. The first is a tip I read about paying off debt. Write down all the various debts you owe. (To whom, who much the debt for each is, and their minimum payment). Next, order them from smallest debt to the largest. Each month, pay the minimum towards each debt, but for the smallest debt, the one listed on the top of your list, pay more. I'll give an example on a small scale. We'll say you owe $ to 3 creditors. Vista debt: 300 Min: 20 American Express debt: 1000 Min: 50 Master Card debt: 2500 Min: 100 So, you pay the 50 and the 100 to AE and MC, but for Vista, we'll say you managed to get enough extra income to pay 100 a month on it. So, for the next 3 months you get it paid off (Note, I am not calculating interest, it is not needed to get the basic concept of this). Once you paid off that Vista, that gives you $100 extra each month that you can then apply to the AE card. So, rather than paying the min 50, you are able to put 150 towards it. Once the AE is paid off, you now have 150 extra in the budget so you add that to the minimum payment you were paying on the MC which means you'll be paying 250 on it each month. With this method, you can quickly pay off debt and reduce the number of creditors you are paying because rather than spending forever trying to pay off the largest amount, or slowly paying off all at the same time, little by little, you free up money as you finish paying off creditors so you can apply more to other debt. I hope that tip helps. The last thing I have to say is short. If you already have bad credit, do not fret about it. You don't want to do anything stupid, obviously, but do not fret about past mistakes. After 7 years, bad records are taken off your credit record. I could be wrong on the 7, it may be slightly more or less, but I believe it is 7 years. I know for bankruptcies, it is 10 years before it is taken off. (But please don't go bankrupt if avoidable because we, the tax payers, as well as yourself assuming you work and pay taxes, end up paying for it through our taxes). I hope the advise I gave was helpful.
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janet_w
17 years ago
Bank of America is notorious for doing things like this. I refuse to do business with B of A. Report them to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission).

You can also contact all three credit bureaus and tell them you did not open this account that you want it removed it should not effect your credit in any way.

Have your credit file flagged when anything appears on your file you are contacted. I agree check your credit report you and hubby can get a free copy once a yr from all 3 credit bureaus online and print it out.

Did you know that the Credit bureaus have the right to give out your name and address to credit card companies and Ins companies so they can make credit worthy offers to you. You can opt out from them doing this by calling the CB or writing them.

Go to the bank in person and find out who opened the account for you and why. I would make it known that your not happy about this at all. If they opened an account for you no telling what else they opened in your name without your knowledge you might be a co signer on a loan etc.
grittymitts
17 years ago
We get 'em all the time but if you don't call and activate it, it's not an open account.

If you can't burn it, cut right right thru the middle of the numbers, then cut the other way & toss it.

Suzi
mikeandbarb
17 years ago
AWWWWW,I thought it had been activated, MY BAD.
But I would change my bank if mine did open one without my ok. We get a lot of offers all the time, they go right into the shreader. I'm like U PJ it's to tempting not to use at times and Christmas and SPRING time is one of those times. Best way to stay clear of debt is to use cash.
pjtexgirl
Original Author
17 years ago
Merry Christmas and thank you! I'm going to call the Credit bureaus and tell them not to give out my info! I'm gonna raise a stink at the bank too. I'm giving them a one and only warning that this not happen again or I'll call the FTC. They'd better belive this lady!!I'll check on my credit too. *blush* I don't even know what my rating is. I'd better get more pro active here. I noticed they pulled this !@#$% right before the holidays. (Dirty pool if you ask me. )The saddest part is that we simply couldn't afford any credit debt right now at all. I swore I told myself a million times,"Happiness and good cheer with modest gifts are better than debt and a worried/depressed mom with lavish gifts" all through the holidays!PJ
little_dani
17 years ago
Christmas is over. Thanks be for a wonderful holiday, and sweet and smiling faces all around.

We spend only cash, never use a credit card! We had so many cards once upon a time, I swear we could have bought a luxury car on a credit card! Credit limits out of sight! What is that about? Who needs that much credit?!!!

If I am going to buy something that big, surely I have the good sense to go to my bank where I can get a much better deal.

Anyway, long story short, we cut the cards up, and got them all paid off, and will never again have that kind of debt.

We keep one card for 'emergencies'- and that means it is a real emergency! Like me breaking down on a dark and desolate road, and DH has no money, can't get any, and no gas in the truck to come and get me! THAT kind of emergency! LOL

Christmas is not an emergency. We had a modest Christmas, and everyone is happy, I think. Most of all, DH and I are happy! We only went overboard for each other, but that is always the way it is. We plan for it.

Hope y'all all had a nice Christmas too.

Sic 'em, PJ!

Janie
pjtexgirl
Original Author
17 years ago
:^)Thanks,I will! I like Christmas too! PJ
rick_mcdaniel
17 years ago
Simply call the bank (the number is right on the card), and tell them you never authorized any such account, and to close it immediately. You will not be liable for any such account, and no one is authorized to open an account which you have not specifically asked for.

Also tell them if it happens again, you will report it to the proper authorities.

You do NOT want to ignore it however. Sometimes this is evidence of identity theft, which you want to stop in it's tracks. Often, offers are stolen from mailboxes, and then submitted in your name, that are bogus.

Simply cutting up cards is not enough, as all a thief needs, is the account number, in today's world.
beachplant
17 years ago
I just saw something on this in the paper. A lot of banks are opening these accounts for you. Basically they are an overdraft of some sort. You innocently write a check, your account is short $2.00. The bank, in their generosity, puts your overdraft on the credit card or whatever they have decided, you get charged service charges, convenience charges, overdraft charges, etc. etc. etc. So pretty soon you owe $200 for that $2.00.

Call the bank honey & see what is going on. If they don't help you call me & I'll call them. The squeeky wheel gets the grease!
Good luck.
Tally HO!
carrie751
17 years ago
Wouldn't it be a better world if we were just given the option of knowing what is best for "US"? I do so hate it when negative (return this if you don't want it) tactics are used. What's so wrong with asking me if I want it, and the decision is mine - not theirs? Short vent!!!! LOL
pjtexgirl
Original Author
17 years ago
I'm trying to keep my rant short! Go get em Beachplant! LOL! Seriously, the whole situation is insane. I know so many people who are slaves to credit card debt. They work like dogs,stress all the time and spend,spend,spend for mostly cr*p they wont remember why they bought it.The credit card companies LOVE this. They make so much money on it they'll obviously stop at nothing to try to hook someone in.
I had a crazy vacuume cleaner woman who tried to convince me that "only 50 bucks a week" was spare change! I said,"must be nice to be so rich! I wouldn't do it if I had the money....no financing on ANY non-necessities! 50 dollars here,20 dollars there,5 dollars there...next thing you know you're up to your butt in debt!"She looked at me like she'd swallowed a tack. Now I know why this poor woman put up with her pushy,abusive boss for a really cr*ppy job.I have enough problems(student loans!). No thank you! PJ

help I'm being attacked by credit cards!

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help I'm being attacked by credit cards!

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