Credit Card woes

We have credit cards; they are a necessity. Once upon a time, we were stupid with them. We ran up some serious debt. We have long since paid it off and are all the more intelligent for our mistakes.

Now, we keep two major credit cards. Our card of choice is Discover. We love the whole 'cash back' thing. Yes, other companies have their reward systems, but we're happy with Discover and, to be honest, I've had the card since college, and that was a LONG time ago! Unfortunately, not all places take Discover, and for that reason, we also have a Visa card. We have had that card for a good 6 years. Still, we use the Discover all the time (and pay it off in full every month).

With the convenience of debit cards, I have come to rely less and less on the Visa card. (Can you already see where this one is going?)

Last week, The Husband wanted to order something from a company that does not take Discover. We don't use our debit cards online, so I gave him the Visa card. Last night, I went to register The Girl for camp. The camp does not take Discover, so I grabbed the trusty Visa again. I type in my information and hit "submit." The screen comes back with a 'deny' message. Knowing I must have made a typo, I try again. Same thing. I try a third time. Then, for good measure, I try a fourth time. (I'm persistent like that!)

Confused, I log on to my Visa account only to discover that I have a $200 credit limit and an available balance of about $140 (due to The Husband's purchase last week). WHAT?! This card, when issued, had a limit of several thousand dollars. WHAT HAPPENED?!

I phoned the credit card company and learned that my account had been slated to be closed due to inactivity. Um...HELLO...a letter in the mail warning me would have been nice! So I tell the nice gentleman on the phone (hi, Mike, if you happen to read my blog) that clearly, this is an error, as I just used the card last week, and can he please fix the account now. He says he'd be happy to fix it. The account review board will take care of it. I ask how long that will take. He says they meet once a month...on the 9th of the month!

WHAT?! I can't wait that long! I need my account working NOW!

I ask to be transferred to the account review department, but I'm informed it is a committee and there is no way to reach them. There is nothing Mike can do except note on my account that I do NOT want it closed and would like my credit limit reinstated.

I managed to take care of camp registration (which would not have waited) through other means and am now waiting to have the credit card issue resolved.

I also made sure to use the card *again* earlier today!

***Note to self: Use Visa card AT LEAST once a month from now on!