I searched the internet for the best deal on visa card rebates and found Chase Bank USA, N.A. Offered a 3% rebate on visa card purchases. Or, at least, 3% on your top 3 spending categories for the month, the rest of the purchases provided a 1% rebate.
This sounded like a great idea to me, after all, I have an excellent credit rating, always pay my balance in full by the due date, and Capital One was only giving me a 1% rebate, so why not? I applied at Chase and was immediately approved and obtained a $9500 credit limit. This was several months ago.
Well, the time had come and I decided to actually redeem my "points". I signed into my account on line and found I was having a little trouble finding how to "redeem" my "points". There were plenty of ways to redeem points for purchases from companies such as blockbuster, red lobster, the gap, starbucks, avis, sea world, ECT... However; I could not see how to apply my "points" as a credit to my account, as I had always done with Capital One. No doubt, red lobster and star bucks are fine companies, and I sometimes purchase things from all these company's, however, I just wanted the "points" to be applied as a credit.
After much searching for a phone number on CHASE banks website I actually got through to a "live" person. Be advised it took me almost 10 minutes of searching on the chase cc website for an actual customer service phone number.
When I did finally have a customer service rep answer she acted as if she had never heard of any one applying their "points" to their balance before. I felt as if I was talking to someone from the planet Vulcan.
Well, after much time and confusion the customer service rep advised me that she would have to transfer me over to a "credit card specialist". Someone who could see if CHASE could provide me with a "points" redemption plan similar to the one I was dreaming about.
After much waiting I finally accessed the "credit card specialist" who was paid to hear my sad story of how I didn't want to use my points to buy over priced stuff from stores who paid CHASE for the advertising privilege. I just wanted to apply my 3% rebate "points" to my account. The "specialist" acted like it was a very rare request but that she did understand me now. I think she could now understand that I simply wanted the "CASH MONEY".
The "specialist" advised me it might take a few months to get all the particulars worked out. She didn't mention the name of the "new plan" or explain to me why I might have missed checking that special box when I first applied, however, I was confident that I was at now on my way to receiving a 3% cash rebate which I could apply to my balance. I evidently didn't look in the right place on the initial application when I first enrolled in the CHASEFREEDOM plan. I must have been thinking of the "Planet Vulcan Plan or something... You know, the plan that lets you simply apply your "points" to your credit card balance?
So the specialist evidently did her job because after a few short weeks I received a REJECTION LETTER from CHASE Bank stating that I was denied access to their "visa signature credit program" (Must be the secret name for their cash rebate plan) because I have too many loan accounts opened. This is hilarious to me because I have no debt and an 880 credit score. This is from the same company that approved me 6 months ago before I realized that I was enrolling in the plan that offered 3% back on overpriced items from vendors which CHASE bank had an advertising revenue stream with.
I am just glad I found out early that the CHASE FREEDOM 3% rebate program is a joke.
Do yourself a favor and get a Visa Card where you get straight talk and a 1% rebate that you can simply apply to your balance.
Jeff
Fort Wayne, Indiana
U.S.A.
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