Yet another Barclays card question

[iswmle]

Does anyone have any experience or knowledge of Barclays suddenly closing or decreasing the credit limit? I ask this because I am switching my main card over to them. I am still a Cap1 fangirl, but Barclays approved me for their Rewards Mastercard and gave me a credit line of 4k, which would be my highest, 2k more than Cap1. I normally put no more than $500 on my card, $900 during my heaviest months; but I really like having that breathing room in terms of utilization. I went online to some credit card forums and there are horror stories of Barclays suddenly closing accounts or decreasing credit lines. They say that Barclays does not like a lot of credit inquiries and will close based on that, but I wonder if it is a mix of reasons that the poster is not saying (like maybe high utilization, maxing out limits, etc). I don't want any drama with a card that I am planning on using on a regular basis.

So for a cardholder who is planning on using the card on a daily basis and paying in full, should I be concerned at all with Barclays?

[angel7821]

In my card agreement with Barclays it states if there is no activity for 3 months the account will be closed. I put my gym membership on it so I know I will be using it every month. Other than that I don't know of what others are saying about utilization and credit inquiries.

[Mayo]

I've had this card for a few months and so far no problems.

[mijd]

I too have had the rewards card for almost a year and haven't had any problems either. In fact after 8 months they increased my limit without my asking and have been sending me cc checks for balance transfers etc with a low apr for a 6 month period. But I remember reading in the beginning where they would close the acct if it wasn't used for a period of 3 months. I can't recall if that was any time or from when the acct was first opened.

[CCsAreEvil]

My 2 cents.. also, if someone can give more clarification. I think Barclays is one of those "monogamous" type credit card providers. They would love it if you use them exclusively. I think if you plan to mainly use their card, they'll love you. Don't start racking up balances on other credit cards. I "think" they come back to check your credit after 6 months of opening? Unless they monitor their users more often to see how you are doing. They do want you to have low utilization.

My guess is they come "check up on you" (your credit) a few months later and if you have a high utilization ratio, they'll drop your CL.

Anyways, I'm still a new Barclays member.. but they seem ok so far. I'm hoping they bump my CL up in 6 months or so.

[msm859]

Started with credit line of $4500, 6 months later they raised it to $5700, another @ 8 months raised to $8700. Never asked for any CLI's but heavy use and PIF every month. So no complaints. I do have other cards including a BofA American Express that gets a lot of use - it had started out as a secured Visa that I got unsecured and did a product change.

[iswmle]

Don't start racking up balances on other credit cards. I "think" they come back to check your credit after 6 months of opening? Unless they monitor their users more often to see how you are doing. They do want you to have low utilization.

Thank you, everyone, for the responses! To CCsAreEvil: I only use one cc at a time, my utilization is low, and I always PIF, so with that criteria I think I should be good.

I called customer service tonight because I was not seeing the new account. The lady I spoke with was super nice. She said that my account was not built yet, and she immediately did it with me on the phone. She is also expressing it out to me for free! She said because I am such a "good" customer (debatable, I have not used the Apple card since December) that she would be able to wave the fee, which is about $22. Whenever I have asked for a credit line increase with Barclays they have been so accommodating. I will stick with them as long as the Rewards are good and they are nice to me

Another thing I asked her about was decreasing credit lines or closing accounts. She said that when the account is inactive for up to 6 months they can close or decrease the credit line. Which makes sense, I suppose. So I agree with CCsAreEVil in that they love to see usage.

In my BK I charged off a lot of big banks (Citi, Chase, Navy). The funny thing is I have gotten as good if not better service with my rebuilders than before I had to file.