[Vermont Lt]

Close it. I don’t care.

Last month I purchased a firearm with my Amex card. Now the $600 or so is not in my normal spending pattern. I have no limit, and the balance due was something like $400.

I got a call from Amex stating that I was nearing an amount that would require that they suspend my spending. I told them that was OK, because I wasnt going to use it any more. The one time event was going to be paid as soon as I got the bill.

They wanted me to pay the current $400 AND the $600 that would appear next month.

I told them to screw. The $400 would be paid by the due date, and the other would be paid when I got the bill next week.

I have never been late. I have always paid it in full.

What is this world coming to?

[cynwoody]

That happened to me in December 2007. I had charged $16,000 worth of computers at the Apple store (outfitting a new office). A couple of weeks later, there was a message on my answering machine to call an AXP 800 number. Turned out they'd noticed a change in my spending (normally about $800 to $1500 — gas, groceries, the occasional airline trip). I told them, whatever, no problem, I'd take care of it. The company expense check having already been deposited, I double-checked my BofA bill-pay to make sure the AXP payment was properly scheduled. And that was that.

This past week, I got yet another mailing from them asking me to sign up for extended payment terms on purchases over $100 (or was it $200?), in exchange for 5000 frequent traveler points. I finally did it, having tossed previous offers in the trash (only offered 1250 points, cheap bastards!). Why my signing up for something I will never use is worth 5000 points to them (about $50 in air travel) is beyond me.

[grey_whiskers]

A lot of credit card companies have had problems with people running up huge charges on the bill, then defaulting.

Their "fraud detection" software noted the anomaly in your patterns.

This software sometimes gets them into trouble: as when data miners discovered people who purchased certain tires or ate at certain fast food places, had an appreciably higher risk of default.

If I remember the story correctly, one of the credit card companies tried to put higher charges on these merchants, and got their ass kicked for it ("How dare you stigmatize our customers! Who do you think you are, WE pay YOUR salaries!" etc. etc.)

They beat a hasty retreat.

Cheers!