Barclaycard limit reduction post covid

ianfreeman

Has anyone taken their complaint to the Financial Ombudsman?

[Deleted User]

Hopefully not. At best it would be a waste of time, at worst, another contribution to higher costs for everyone.

Shakin_Steve

ianfreeman said:

Has anyone taken their complaint to the Financial Ombudsman?

What's to complain about? Show them you have the wherewithal, through the paperwork they ask for, and they'll consider upping your limit. As has been said previously, no one is entitled to credit, it's at the discretion of the lender.

MattMattMattUK

ianfreeman said:

Has anyone taken their complaint to the Financial Ombudsman?

What you mean is "Has anyone chosen to waste the Ombudsman's time?"

MattMattMattUK

topcat638 said:  

Although you are totally correct in your assertion that no one is entitled to credit we are entitled to respect and customer service. 

You are not entitled to those things, you might wish you were, but that does not mean you are.

topcat638 said:
Would you suggest the way Barclaycard have gone about this upholds any respect for their customers. It could have all  been handled in a more professional and thoughtful way. They probably let a computer algorithm make this call.

I do not see it as respectful, but I also do not see it as disrespectful. Barclaycard are recalculating their risks based on current circumstances and adjusting their exposure accordingly. They have emailed or mailed people to give them warning of their decision, as well as having a route to try and change their mind should they wish. The algorithm will have made the call, based on available data, but a person would have not made a different call based on the same data, the only difference is that it would have taken a person a lot longer to work out the answer. 

CRISPIANNE3

al and thoughtful way. They probably let a computer algorithm make this call.

I do not see it as respectful, but I also do not see it as disrespectful. Barclaycard are recalculating their risks based on current circumstances and adjusting their exposure accordingly. They have emailed or mailed people to give them warning of their decision, as well as having a route to try and change their mind should they wish. The algorithm will have made the call, based on available data, but a person would have not made a different call based on the same data, the only difference is that it would have taken a person a lot longer to work out the answer. 

It is nice to know Barclaycard regard me as a good risk otherwise I would have received one of their reduction letters. My limits with them total £23,200. 

onlyfoolsandparking

CRISPIANNE3 said:

al and thoughtful way. They probably let a computer algorithm make this call.

I do not see it as respectful, but I also do not see it as disrespectful. Barclaycard are recalculating their risks based on current circumstances and adjusting their exposure accordingly. They have emailed or mailed people to give them warning of their decision, as well as having a route to try and change their mind should they wish. The algorithm will have made the call, based on available data, but a person would have not made a different call based on the same data, the only difference is that it would have taken a person a lot longer to work out the answer. 

It is nice to know Barclaycard regard me as a good risk otherwise I would have received one of their reduction letters. My limits with them total £23,200. 

Well I guess only time will tell on that one, just out of interest I was one of the customers that Barclaycard decided was too much of a 'risk' and they reduced my limits by £20350 on my 2 cards BUT MBNA INCREASED!!! my limit on one card in Dec 2020 by £5k to give a £15500 limit and then the other one by £5k to give a £16700 limit in February this year, go figure!

vacheron

Can I play devils advocate as we approach page 19 of this thread? 

From what I have gathered so far:

• Barclays are slashing credit limits, the covering letter apparently states that this is based on "the information they hold about you" 
• Those who want to keep their limits are being asked to prove their income. 
• The customers in question appear to have held the card for a long time and they appear to be rarely used and/or don't carry balances anywhere near the credit limit. 

It sounds to me like Barclays have identified that they have a LOT of customers with large credit limits, but any information they may hold regarding their income could be years, or even decades out of date.

This means they may have tens of thousands of customers out there who are now on hugely reduced incomes with credit limits of 20-40K and who would never qualify for this limit on their current income, and this could be seen by the regulators as irresponsible.

So, what do they do? It seems the approach is to assume that the people for whom they have no recent income data have effectively zero income, hence the £250 "safety" limit often being offered, and then ask the customer to provide up to date proof of income to justify a higher limit (just as they would need to for a new credit application). 

A second assumption by them could be that those running up monthly bills of thousands and paying them off at least have significant "income" of some description making them potentially less of a risk.

However, despite many pages of frustration and anger from people who never used their limit, but seemed to like the "feeling" of having it, how many have actually called up, proved their income, and what was the outcome? 

 

brianposter

It could, of course, be that some of these limit reductions are simply incompetence - somebody has not realized that a £250 limit makes the card useless for many people, whereas a £1000 or £2000 limit is all that is required.

Vinknut

I had a Barclaycard limit reduced from £3,500 down to £260 whilst on a business trip a few years ago (2015 I think, or thereabouts).  I always used that card for my regular (twice a month) trips, paying for the hotel and then claim expenses back and pay it all off the following month.  Usually somewhere between 2k and 3k a time.

I wouldn't have minded, but it was done with 2 days written notice WHILST I WAS ABROAD.  No email, no text, just a letter that I couldn't see and a rather embarrassing situation as my card was declined at the checkout and I had absolutely no knowledge of the ridiculous limit reduction.

At least this time people are being given notice, but it does seem like a ridiculously low arbitrary limit - esp. for responsible users who will use it for larger purchases and the extra safety of S75.  A reduction to £250 can only mean one thing; "take your business elsewhere".