Consumerist
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discover
Discover Vastly Improves T&C But Reduces Open Road Rebates
Discover Card customers received a notice in the mail recently that the card was reducing the "Open Road" rebate on auto maintenance and gas dropped from 5% to 2%. Around the same time, customers have also received notice that the terms and conditions for the card are basically coming in line with the CARD act ahead of schedule. Hmmm, coinkydink? More » -
payment protection racket
Discover Customer Snookered Into Payment Protection Plan
Aaron feels he was tricked by a Discover cold-caller into enrolling in a pricey payment protection plan. His cautionary tale is evidence that giving a credit card-affiliated phone salesman the go-ahead to send you an information packet can backfire. More » -
credit cards
AmEx, Discover Ditch Overlimit Fees
American Express and Discover will no longer bill customers who exceed their credit limits, according to company spokespeople. The creditors aren't eliminating the fees because they care about their customers. No, they're providing what American Banker calls "the first concrete examples of how a new law will restrict issuers' abilities to turn a profit." The new CARD Act that Congress passed in May requires consumers to opt-in before they can exceed their credit limits. Since overlimit fees, which can reach $39, aren't very profitable for creditors, they decided to ditch the fees altogether. More » -
credit cards
Have A Discover Card? Check Your Due Date For June
An anonymous reader says both his and his wife's Discover cards—the accounts are separate—had their due dates moved up by four days in June. He called Discover, "and they stated that they sent out notices in the mail 45 days in advance warning of the change, which I don't remember seeing. Regardless, they were able to revert my due date starting in July. You may want to have your readers closely check their Discover Card statements."
(Photo: Brooks Elliott)
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ask the consumerists
Can Canceling A Credit Card Really Hurt My Score, Or Did Discover Card Lie?
Reader David said he called Discover Card to cancel his account — but was advised against it because canceling credit cards can hurt your credit score. He wants to know if it's true. More » -
discover
Discover Won't Let Man Opt Out Of Arbitration, Even Though Their Terms Allow It
When John signed up for a Discover card a few months ago, he noticed an interesting item in the fine print—he could opt out of binding arbitration if he sent in a written request that contained a few lines of necessary info and his signature. John followed the instructions, but Discover rejected it. Since then they've rejected his request a second time, failed to call him back when promised, and transferred him to CSRs who don't know what the word means. The latest news: now that 30 days have passed, he's no longer eligible to opt out. John's thinking about canceling the card. More » -
american express
Amex Tops JD Power Credit Card 2008 Customer Satisfaction Survey
JD Power and Associates ranked American Express at the top of their 2008 Credit Card Satisfaction Study. Customers gave the company high marks in interaction, billing and payment processes, reward programs, fees and rates, and benefits and services, with the first three factors standing out in particular. Capital One and HSBC, which target revolvers with lower credit scores, received the worst marks. Oddly, Discover got second place. People must really like their two-cycle billing (see "Two-Cycle Billing And Why It's Evil"). Full rankings inside... More » -
rental insurance
Which Credit Cards Have The Best Rental Car Insurance?
One of the tricks that seasoned travelers know is to always deny the insurance when renting a car. Why? Because the credit card that they are using already comes with insurance that they are familiar with, and because you are required to deny coverage from the rental car company in order to take advantage of your credit card's insurance. But how do you pick a credit card that has good rental insurance? More » -
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discover card
How A Forgotten Blockbuster Video Caused A 2 1/2 Year Battle With Discover Card And Collection Agencies
"Universal Default" is when your credit card company adjusts the terms of your loan because you "defaulted" with another company. In reader P.'s case the "default" was a Blockbuster video that his friend forgot to return. Discover Card took this opportunity to double P.'s interest rate. When he tried to fight it by closing his account, it launched him into a 2 1/2 year legal battle with Discover, a collection agency, and now the credit bureaus. More » -
sales pitches
Discover's Speed-Reading Sales Technique Means You Can Get To "No" Faster
A zealous Discover rep tried to get Richard to sign up for a "protection program" by speeding through the details of the agreement as fast as possible—you know, the fine print part that makes it clear you're agreeing to a paid service. When Richard made it clear that he wanted to hear the details again and that no, he hadn't agreed to anything, the rep hung up on him. Discover, maybe you want to have a talk with your reps about their sales techniques. More » -
credit cards
Over Your Credit Limit? Get Ready For Higher Interest Rates!
Next time you brush past your credit limit you may get hit with more than a hefty over-the-limit fee. The Red Tape Chronicles reports that credit card companies are starting to slap exuberant spenders with penalty interest rates. Compounding the danger to consumers, creditors are simultaneously rushing to slash credit limits. More » -
news from the swamp
Liveblogging The Senate Permanent Subcommittee On Investigations Hearing On Arbitrary Credit Card Rate Increases
Today at 9:30 a.m., Senator Carl Levin (D-MI) will continue his investigation into the unfair and deceptive practices of the credit card industry. Today's topic: arbitrary rate increases for cardholders in good standing. The hearing picks up where Senator Levin left off in March, when he questioned the use of excessive fees, interest charges, and the abuse of grace periods.
Today's hearing will feature two panels. First, three aggrieved consumers will share their horror stories. Then, the presidents of Discover, Bank of America, and Capitol One will explain that the three consumers who just testified are not at all representative of average cardholders. Right.
The tears and lies start flowing at 9:30 a.m.
(Photo: samwilkinson)9:25: Two choices for your viewing and listening pleasure: Video Link—Audio Link
9:34: And we're off. Levin has arranged for an interesting hearing. The first consumer we will hear from is Janet Hard. Janet is married to a steamfitter. She has a Discover card that jumped from 18% to 24% because her FICO score dropped. When Janet complained, the rate dropped to 21%. Discover's President will testify today. More »
9:10 AM on Tue Dec 4 2007
By Carey Alexander
4,771 views, 33 commentsLatest by aaronw1: If you're carrying a balance, you're doing it wrong. Either make more or spend less. They could jack more »
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complaints
Discover Lowered APR When Asked, But High Rate Still Applies To Old Balance!
"I took your advice a while ago on asking your credit card company politely for a lower APR. I asked Discover Card to give me just that.
Things seemed peachy. I called customer service and asked a lower rate and got it without any confrontation, argument or a supervisor. Strange I thought, but OK. I got my 3.9% APR for one year. Great! When I can make those large purchases for my apartment that I need to carry a balance with. Now consider I already had about a $1200 balance to boot.
I thought every time I made a payment it would apply to my oldest charges which are the ones with the 16.24% APR. It would make sense right? Isn't that how credit cards work? So in my first month with the new rate I made $68.53 worth of purchases and made a $548.79 payment.
So in theory, that $1238.98 balance I had last month at 16.24% APR should now be $690.19 right? Wrong!" More »
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complaints
Discover Randomly Raises 400,000 Members' APR "To Remain Competitive"
Discover card holders, check your bills. You may be one of 400,000 lucky members getting their interest rates significantly increased for no apparent reason.
We received a "Love Note" separately from our statement from Discover stating that our APR will be rising from 12.74% to 19.99% . While I do carry a small balance on the card sometimes, it has never been one that I use much because I have cards that are below 8% APR and still offer rewards. Now, my credit isn't bad (744 FICO - just checked after getting off the phone with Discover). I have no past dues, never pay late, etc. I also noticed that the statement said "this decision to change your terms was NOT based upon information in your credit file".
More »Bewildered, I called Discover and could not believe the explanation I got....
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fees
Roundup Of Various Credit Card Late Fees
"ConsumerMan" Herb Weisbaum over at MSNBC says that banks have messing around with their late fee structure lately—adding a third tier of pricing, raising fees, etc. Those of you with higher balances might be paying more if you're late. We think that's not cool, so we're posting a round-up of current fees. More » -
how to
Make Credit Card Companies Your Bitch
Blueprint for Financial Prosperity reminds us that savvy consumers can take advantage of credit card companies hellbent on turning a profit. Most credit card companies will go to great lengths to keep their customers happily spending away. Use these tips to make them cater to your every financial desire: More » -
executive customer service
Contact Discover Card CEO, David Nelms
David Nelms, CEO
davidnelms@discover.com
2500 Lake Cook Rd.
Bannockburn, IL 60015
Phone: 224-405-0900
Fax: 224-405-4993 -
complaints
Discover Downgrades 5% Cashback Rewards
Discover recently downgraded its 5% cashback rewards. Used to be you got 5% cash back up to $1200 annually. Now, you only get 5% on the first $100 each month. Don't charge up to $100 that month? You've just missed an opportunity to save $5. More »
discover
New York, 8:45 AM
Mon Nov 9
11 posts in the last 24 hours
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