What is interstate credit card law? Bank is in Delaware. Applicant is a California resident. Application in NV
So my friend was in Vegas at the USAir gate waiting for his plane. A guy came over and offered a free t-shirt and free airline ticket voucher. So he signed up, thinking it was a gimmick to build brand loyalty.
A few weeks later, his credit monitoring service emailed him that there was an inquiry from Barclay’s Bank. So he called and was told he had been issued a USAir Mastercard miles card. He was confused and angry that he’d been deceived. The huckster didn’t even furnish a disclosure of fees. When he got the card, he noticed an annual fee of $79, which was also not disclosed either by the person in the airport (who didn’t even mention it was a credit card application) or the phone rep, who talked him into keeping the card that had already been issued.
Can he cancel and have the inquiry removed? What is his recourse? Which state’s laws have precedence in this case?
No fine print. That would’ve blown the scam. Barclay’s told him it uses “independent contractors”, not professional bankers in the airport. My friend said the signup sheet looked like a Word document with only USAir’s logo on it.
Jeffery
Aaron
All of that information should have been in the fine print in the application he signed. Or did he put his information on, and sign, a blank piece of paper?
He’s already taken the hit on his scores for the inquiry. Juniper/Barclays will probably allow him to convert the card to one of their other partner cards that is a no fee card (and they do have some great ones, they even a Vegas rewards card).
If he doesn’t want the card, or to convert the card, he can always have the annual fee waived and close it. But, unless Juny decides to be nice and remove the inquiry, he is more or less stuck with it for the next 2 years
ETA:
If the paper he signed contained no verbage stating that his credit report would be pulled, or the person who took the app failed to disclose that fact, then he could claim that they had no permisible purpose to pull his credit report and that his rights were violated under the FCRA.
But
On the other hand, there is case law that talks about permissible purpose. The gist of it is – when a creditor has reason to believe that there could be a relationship with a person, then they have permissible purpose to pull a credit report –
That “signed” application would have given Barclays reason to believe there could be a relationship with him and would have given them permissible purpose.
Your friend could stomp his feet and “demand” deletion of the inquiry or demand payment for the FCRA violations or even sue over it (if he can prove damages).
But more than likely the person who took the application has a script that he was supposed to follow. The script would have included telling the people who sign up that a credit report would be pulled. All that person would have to do is provide a copy of the script and “claim” he followed the script and mentioned that a report would be pulled.
I would imagine that your friend would not get very far with an intent to sue letter or by suing, simply because “he signed” the application.
If he’s not interested in converting the card to another, then possibly the most effective thing to do is to cancel the account in writing, request the annual fee be waived and also explain that there was no wording on the application stating a credit report would be pulled and the person who gave him the application did not mention a credit report would be pulled and ask for goodwill from them in removing the inquiry.
One other thing, Barclays reports new accounts “very fast”.
Many times accounts will hit credit reports before a person even receives the card. He might also include in his letter that they remove that listing instead of showing it as a closed account.
He should put a cc on the letter to a higher up with Barclays and send a copy to that person. He may be able to find names of higher ups on the Barclays website, the BBB site or by Googling Barclays.
And he might send everything certified mail.