I have been a savings and checking account customer with Washington Mutual for about 12 years, and a credit card customer for 10 years. I have two credit cards with WAMU... A Visa card (formerly Providian) and a MasterCard.
The cards have significantly different terms and it has been impossible to get anyone at WAMU to explain to me why I am being treated differently on the two cards. The Visa card is my oldest line, established in 1999, and has a $9400 credit line. But the APR is a whopping 31.99% and there is a $59 annual fee. There are no benefits or perks of any kind on this card. The MasterCard has an APR of 16.99% which is not great but fairly reasonable in my opinion. There is no annual fee.
I have a FICO score around 670 (not real great, I know) with no bad debts and no negative entries on my credit bureau reports. I am, unfortunately, carrying about $22K of credit card debt. I feel this is the primary reason my FICO score is not higher. However, to my credit, I always pay early and typically pay twice the minimum amount due on all of my credit cards.
Calls to WAMU are fruitless and frustrating. The usual excuses are offered (bad economy, employees can't change terms, etc.) and I've consistently been told I will receive a notice in the mail when there is an offer on my account.in the 10 years since I opened the account, I've not received such an offer.
I know I need to take steps to reduce my debt, and I am trying. I have also been somewhat successful in balance transfers to get better terms, etc. My beef with WAMU is they are my primary bank, represent my oldest line of credit, and should be working with me to help me with my finances instead of throwing out the anchor and blocking me every step of the way.
There is no reasonable explanation for charging me 31.99% on one card, while charging me 16.99% on the other. All of my other credit cards have better terms. I don't want to close the Visa card as it represents my oldest line and has the most available credit. I understand these two items weigh heavily on my FICO score.
I finally took everything in to a local branch and sat down with a manager. She was not empowered to do anything and had to call and speak to people in the same operation I have already tried. The result: there is nothing they can do and they recommend I just wait until the JP Morgan Chase acquisition is complete (in two to three months) at which time I can plead my case again and they may be able to do something then.
I guess I just want to let everyone know my story so you can make informed decisions about who you bank with and what credit cards you choose to use. Because of how I have been treated, I cannot recommend WAMU/JP Morgan Chase at this time. I am hopeful that will change.
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