I just called yesterday to cancel the American Express Gold Card I got back in June when they were running the $250 signup promotion and the officer on the phone who spoke with a nice British accent offered $25 credit to my account if I don’t close the card right away.
I don’t think I am going to keep it for much longer though. The annual fee they start to charge after the introductory year is just ridiculously high.
Another time I was canceling a credit card the agency (Citibank) offered me to move my credit line to another card I had with them. Not that I need any more credit than I already have but still it could come handy one day. It doesn’t cost anything so why not. Also I heard that large credit limits positively affect your credit history (provided you don’t carry big balances).
Sometimes when I call to cancel a credit card the clerks offer low interest balance transfers. If balance transfer is what you are looking for then it is always worth to ask for 0% and no balance transfer fee. Pressured by your intention to cancel the card the officer may be more willing to look for opportunities to offer you a nice promotion. I got 0% a couple of times when canceling a card and used it to finance the remainder of my car loan.
Unfortunately I have never been successful to improve my cash back rate or extend the cash back promotion on my cards, which is what I would like to do the most.
Tell me your story. What perks were you able to bargain for when canceling those credit cards?
The photo is courtesy of Sanja Gjenero @ stock.xchng
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