Sudden Reduction in Credit from AMEX

stephanwhelan

I've been an AMEX customer for many years (i've had numerous cards but the most recent is my BA Amex Credit Card). I've discovered over the weekend they have decided to cut my credit limit from £6,500 to £3,000 without any notice.

I've spoken to several members of the account review team and the corporate message is the same - they review internal and external factors. My internal factors are perfect (as they have told me) so it has to be external factors. My credit rating and outstanding unsecured debt is the lowest it has been in years so the only factor I can think of is that AMEX is more risk adverse in the current climate.

Has this happened to anyone else? Do I have any further appeals open to me to get AMEX to review their decision (the main reason is that the AMEX is my primary personal and business expense card so I need a reasonable limit as my spending fluxes over different weeks).

Very frustrating so any help would be most appreciated.

Thanks!

_Andy_

If you do a search on the forum there have been a few threads about limit reductions, there's quite a long one somewhere.

never-in-doubt

_Andy_ wrote: »

If you do a search on the forum there have been a few threads about limit reductions, there's quite a long one somewhere.

Hiya

This will be the huckleberry mate! http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=1694063

M_Thomson

stephanwhelan wrote: »

I've been an AMEX customer for many years (i've had numerous cards but the most recent is my BA Amex Credit Card). I've discovered over the weekend they have decided to cut my credit limit from £6,500 to £3,000 without any notice.

I've spoken to several members of the account review team and the corporate message is the same - they review internal and external factors. My internal factors are perfect (as they have told me) so it has to be external factors. My credit rating and outstanding unsecured debt is the lowest it has been in years so the only factor I can think of is that AMEX is more risk adverse in the current climate.

Has this happened to anyone else? Do I have any further appeals open to me to get AMEX to review their decision (the main reason is that the AMEX is my primary personal and business expense card so I need a reasonable limit as my spending fluxes over different weeks).

Very frustrating so any help would be most appreciated.

Thanks!

I'm the same. Around 2 years ago I had an £8000 limit on 2 Amex cards. Always paid on time, and have a good credit history. It is now around £1600 across 2 cards. I wouldn't take it personally. Amex is making losses at the moment, so they are trying to reduce their risk exposure. Doesn't stop it being annoying though.

donnac2558

I read online boards based in the USA. All those with a money section have members saying this from late last year. AMEX is cutting credit and has been for sometime, seems it is coming over to the UK now as well. On the US boards they are really angry as the credit in some has been cut down to 100s not even thousands.

david39

Looks like most of the card issuers are reducing credit limits, especially to customers who have large limits that they do not use fully.

This looks like a paper exercise, reducing the issuer's perceived risk, but in fact making no material difference to the card holder because the reduction is down to their general spending level anyway.

Many reductions seem to be triggered when the card holder pays a large lump sum off a big debt - as if the payment brings the account to the notice of a credit controller who then sees an opportunity to clip a few thousand off their risk factor.

I've just paid a lump sum off an MBNA card, reducing the balance to zero, so I'm waiting now for a letter from them dropping my limit by a chunk.

wjordan

I just got my BA American Express credit limit slashed from £14,000 down to £1,000

They also say I am no longer able to withdraw cash from ATMs using the card (not that I would ever do that)

I pay on time, I've got a good credit record, I have no debt at all, so I guess they just don't want my custom...

fozmcfc

You don't make them enough money wjordan, but that's a very harsh reduction.