Providan....good in a pinch...but get out as soon as you can!
Written: Mar 12 '02 (Updated Mar 12 '02)
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Pros: quick credit for bad situations, can pay and review on line, credit limit increases
Cons: Outragous Interest Rates, No Grace Period, Will "freeze" your account when traveling
The Bottom Line: A good card ONLY if in a jam. Find a better card ASAP- Don't pay a high interest rate with no grace period if you have good credit.
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| danagod's Full Review: Visa Classic (Providian Bank) |
I got this card in 1996 after my ex husband did a doozy on our credit. I found myself desperate for a credit card in my name ONLY and Providian was able to supply it. The fine print didn't matter at that time......21% interest rate....no grace period......$59 annual fee. I started with a credit limit of $1000. They constantly upped my limit. Last time I checked it was over $8000 and Providian sent me 2 more of their cards....the Mastercard and GetSmart Visa. Those got put away right away.
Flash forward 6 years.....I have EXCELLENT credit.....I have a car that is almost paid off....I just bought a house....and I have $$$$ in the bank. I decided it was time to look at my credit card rates......WOW.....still at 21%.....after threatening to close my account they finally reduced my fee to 16% and waived the annual fee. I ended up closing my other two accounts with them just because they ticked me off.
I then started looking at my fiance's Providian rate.......He has excellent credit too......he is at a 19.99% fixed rate with no grace period and $8.00 monthly fee......there was NO NEGOTIATING with providian on that one.....they refused to budge.....so those accounts were closed PRONTO.
We went from 5 accounts with over $18,000 credit lines to one card with $8,000 in one day. GOOD BYE PROVIDIAN!!!
I am in the process of obtaining a card from another place and the final card will also be closed!!!
Providan also froze my account twice while I was traveling......something to do with their fraud alert....I got stuck in Jamaicia with no credit card and they would not unfreeze it until I FAXED them a copy of my drivers license and a copy of my phone bill so I could prove who I was.......WHO CARRIES THEIR PHONE BILL ON VACATION WITH THEM???......there I was stuck for 5 days in a foreign country and had to get my friend to pay for all my shopping until we got back to the states....I didn't even get an apology from Providian!
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
danagod
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Reviews written: 2
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