Cross Country Double Cross
Written: Dec 05 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Absolutely none whatsoever
Cons: Biggest scam artists in credit today.
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| pyallen's Full Review: Cross Country Bank |
My husband made the mistake of applying for and receiving a credit card from Cross Country. We'd filed bankruptcy in the past, and Cross Country was the first that offered us a chance to start rebuilding our credit. What a crock. Cross Country has managed to make our credit report even more dismal than before.
The credit limit was $400.00. We were thrilled with this amount, high enough to cover an emergency car repair if it was needed, but low enough to keep us from going over our heads. The balance on the card is now $850.00. I'm sure you're wondering just how our balance is over twice the credit limit. Well, join the crowd, we're trying to figure that one out too.
Cross Country runs a well organized scam, just this side of outright fraudulent. Actually, I'm sure if enough people talked to attorneys, or even the Better Business Bureau, Cross Country could be closed down. Here's how the scam works:
If your balance is near the limit, when the finance charges are added, it will be over the limit. Most other credit cards do not consider this a true over the limit, though. They just add the extra few dollars to the minimum payment due. Cross Country immediately tacks on a $27.00 over the limit fee. So now your $400.00 credit card bill amounts to at least $427.00. NEXT, Cross Country does the really underhanded thing. No matter when you make your payment, it is never, and I mean NEVER, posted until the day after the due date. My husband has called them the day the bill arrived (with a due date 21 days away) and made arrangements to pay right then out of our checking account. He is always assured that the payment will be credited on the next business day. The payment is always, ALWAYS credited exactly 22 days later, the day after the due date. So now they can tack on an additional $27.00 for a late payment. Which once again takes you OVER THE LIMIT, adding another $27.00!
So, my husband got his first statement, which showed $395.00 in charges, and $9.00 in finance charges for a total of $404.00. They added $27.00 because it was over the limit, bringing it up to $431.00. Due 21 days later. He mailed his payment of $51.00 (31.00 on the over amount, and $20.00 minimum payment) the day after we got the statement. The next statement we got showed that they deducted the $51.00, leaving a balance of $380.00. But since they didn't post the payment until the 22nd day, there was a $27.00 late fee which took it up to $407.00 which necessitated the addition of another over the limit fee, for a new balance of $434.00. Oh, and of course the interest of another nine dollars, for a grand total of $441.00. Isn't that absolutely unbelievable?? We kept our original charge to under the limit and by the end of the second month, we had been charged $81.00 in bogus fees!
We have TRIED to get this paid down, but after two years of fighting with them, we've given up. In the two years we've had this card, we've paid over $900.00 on that original $395.00 balance and they still show us owing $850.00. Now, the only way to get rid of it is to pay off the entire $850.00. As it stands now, every single month we get billed the late fee plus an over the limit fee (because we're WAY over the limit), so we have to pay $54.00 plus the interest just to take care of the bogus charges, and they're right back on there the next month.
Customer service is a joke. We called to ask why the check was cashed 10 days before the payment was due, but it wasn't posted until the day after it was due. We were told that the check had to be received early enough for the check to clear our bank, plus allow 5-7 business days for them to post it after that. So it's apparent by that information that they should RECEIVE your payment about 17 days before it's due. Add in the 3 or 4 days it takes the payment to get to them, and the 3 or 4 days it takes them to actually deposit the check, and it's very apparent that the only way to get a payment to them on time is if you mail it a week before you get your statement!
Two months ago, we just quit paying. They've already ruined the credit we've been rebuilding by showing us continually late and over the limit on the credit report. They can take me to court, whereupon I will pull out all those cancelled checks that show they received the money (and deposited it) before the due date. Let THEM explain to a judge how we could have paid this much money and still owe twice as much as the credit limit is for, without us having made ONE charge since the first month we had the card. I'm rather looking forward to it.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
pyallen
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Member: Pam
Location: Western Oklahoma
Reviews written: 208
Trusted by: 126 members
About Me:
Biting wit served here. Products skewered regularly. What is a smart toaster, anyway?
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