Send A Letter In The Mail
You can also send a letter to Chase in the mail, which may make sense if you dont manage your account online or feel like calling in to speak to someone. In your letter, youll want to include your name, account number, address and a brief message that says you want your Chase credit card account closed right away.
If you are wondering how to close a Chase credit card via snail mail, you can use the following address:
National Bank By MailWesterville, OH 43086
Can You Reopen A Closed Chase Credit Card Account
You cannot reopen a closed Chase credit card account, but you can apply for another Chase credit card or the one you had before. Just remember that Chase has rules that limit who can and cannot get their credit cards or earn a sign-up bonus.
For starters, the Chase 5/24 rule says you cannot get approved for a Chase card if you have had five or more credit cards within the last 24 months. Further, Chase has specific rules that govern their families of cards. If you read the fine print on the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, for example, youll notice it says:
The product is not available to either current cardmembers of any Sapphire credit card, or previous cardmembers of any Sapphire credit card who received a new cardmember bonus within the last 48 months. If you are an existing Sapphire customer and would like this product, please call the number on the back of your card to see if you are eligible for a product change. You will not receive the new cardmember bonus if you change products.
Old Credit Is The Best Credit
The age of a credit card account is also an important consideration. The time an account has been open is a factor in credit scores, Griffin says. A longer positive history is beneficial to credit scores. So, closing an older account in theory could have a more negative impact.
How negative? Theres no single answer, Griffin says. Credit scores weigh everything in a persons credit history in relation to each other. So, for one person, closing an older account can represent higher risk than it does for another person solely because of the unique nature of their overall credit histories.
If you are young and have a short credit history, closing the account could hurt your overall credit score more than if you were someone in their 50s who has a much longer credit history. As stated earlier, closing the account doesnt wipe that account history off your report, so if you open a new credit card with more attractive terms to replace the card youre canceling, your credit score wont take a big hit.
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Check For Rewards Redemptions
If the deceased has any rewards left on their credit accounts, you may be able to redeem them as an authorized representative of the estate. In order to redeem rewards, the authorized person will have to put in a request with the issuer and make sure that the account balance is paid in full. Many issuers have a timeframe for paying off the balance, so make sure you check this detail. Rewards will be issued in the name of the deceased and sent to the address they have on file.
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Will My Credit Score Be Affected If I Close My Chase Checking Account
No, it doesn’t! Credit bureaus are not privy to your bank account information and hence cannot report your transactional activity to the credit bureau. The only case where your credit score might be affected is if you have negative overdraft balance and haven’t repaid in a long time. Banks will pass on the overdue amount to collection agencies, who can report to credit bureaus, thus affecting your credit score.
Destroy Your Old Card
After your account is officially closed, you can destroy your card. The simplest way to do this is to put your card in a shredder. You can also cut it into tiny pieces.
If your card is made out of metal instead of plastic, such as the American Express® Gold Card, these options won’t work. You’ll need to contact your bank and request a prepaid envelope that you can use to mail your old card back. Once received, your bank will safely dispose of it.
Editorial Note:
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Care For Your Rewards
Dont forget about the rewards that youve earned — use them while you still can. When you convert the card, your accumulated rewards may disappear. Thats the same case for when you close the account.
In some cases, you may even be able to transfer the rewards from your old card account to the new card account. Once again, I highly suggest that you confirm this with your card issuer before agreeing to a card conversion.
You might even take a swing at;negotiating bonus perks and other retention bonuses;when switching to another card.
Since many card bonuses are only offered to new applicants, you’d be getting something extra for converting your card — treat the retention bonus as a small token of appreciation for being such a loyal customer.
Check Your Credit Report Again
Once the card is closed, its always a good idea to check your credit report again. By law you are entitled to a full credit report from the three major credit bureaus Experian, Equifax and TransUnion once a year for free. To get your full reports, head on over to the annual credit report site and click the Request your free credit reports button. If youve already received your free yearly report, be prepared to pay up to $12.50 per report if you decide to check your credit report after closing down a credit card account.
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Chase Customer Service Alternate Methods Of Contact
Customer Login:secure03a.chase.com
Secure Messaging:;Log on to your account and click on Secure Messages;in your sidebar, or head directly to the secure messaging center
In-Person: There are more than 16,000 ATMs and 5,000 local branches find a location near you
Twitter: Tweet questions to
Facebook: Send messages via;
The information regarding the Amazon Prime Rewards Visa Signature Card, Chase Freedom Flex Credit Card, Chase Freedom Unlimited® card, Chase Freedom® Student Credit Card, Disney® Premier Visa® card, IHG® Rewards Club Traveler Credit Card, and Starbucks® Rewards Visa® Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
Joint Credit Card Accounts
When the co-owner of a joint account dies, the account can be taken over by the remaining owner. The co-owners name will need to be removed from the account, so that sole responsibility for the account will fall on the remaining owner.
Joint accounts are different from authorized user accounts. Both parties are responsible for the debt on a joint account, while an authorized user is not a primary cardholder and holds no responsibility for any debt accumulated on the account.
If you and a relative have a joint account and your relative passes away, you can take over the account. However, if you are an authorized user on your relatives account and their account is canceled after death, you lose access to the account.
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Chase Freedom Flex Vs Chase Freedom Unlimited
The Chase Freedom Flexs popular sister card, the Chase Freedom Unlimited® card, lets you Earn 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase, 3% on dining and drugstores, and 1.5% on all other purchases.
When comparing the cards, there are two main differences to note: The rotating bonus categories, and the earnings rate on all other purchases. The Chase Freedom Flex earns 5% cash back on rotating bonus categories and a standard 1% rate on purchases not covered by other categories. Meanwhile, the Chase Freedom Unlimited® doesnt have any rotating bonus categories, but it does have a better 1.5% earnings rate on anything else.
That 0.5% difference can seem marginal at first glance, so youll want to assess your spending habits and see if youll actually benefit from the Chase Freedom Flexs rotating categories. If you cant keep up with them , the Chase Freedom Unlimited® may save a few headaches for you.
Keep in mind that you can have both cards if you want to leverage each cards strengths when maximizing purchases. However, the Chase 5/24 rule again applies here, so youll want to make sure that you can qualify for both in a given time frame.
How To Properly Close Your Credit Card Account
During this very unusual year, you may be feeling some financial pressures you didnt see coming. To help get your finances in order, you may be thinking of cancelling a credit card account. You conclude it might be a good way to prevent overspending. Or maybe you just have too many in your wallet or purse.
Cutting a into pieces may stop you from using it, but it does not cancel your account with the credit card company. In order to do that, you have to contact your issuer to properly close the account.
There is a right and a wrong way to close a credit card account,
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Here are some tips on how you should close your credit card account.
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Is It Better To Cancel Unused Credit Cards Or Keep Them Open
If the credit card is one of your oldest cards, you may want to reconsider closing it. By keeping your oldest line of credit open and making consistent on-time payments on it, you can show future lenders that you are committed and able to handle long-term debt.;
If there is a large annual fee on the card: Why pay a large fee if you aren’t benefiting from card perks or you no longer find the card useful? But before you close this kind of account, consider whether doing so could worsen your credit utilization by reducing your available credit limits.
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Upgrade Chase Credit Card
There are many reasons to downgrade or product change Chase Credit Cards with annual fees like the Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve and Chase Ink Preferred. And now with the new Pay Yourself Back tool on the Sapphire Cards, it might make a whole lot of sense to upgrade Chase Sapphire preferred Credit card to reserve as well. This post focuses on Chase Ultimate Rewards earning credit cards. There are several very good reasons to downgrade, upgrade or product change Chase Credit Cards rather than cancel them.
- First the Chase 5/24 Rulerestricts you from getting approved for a new Chase Credit Card account if youve opened more than 5 new credit card accounts in the last 24 months. . So anyone who is over 5/24 should probably not cancel Chase credit card s.
- Chase allows cardholders to have one Chase Sapphire branded account per person, so if you already hold a Chase Sapphire Card like the Sapphire Reserve, you cannot be approved for a Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit card as well.
- In this scenario it makes sense to product change your Sapphire Card to a Freedom or Slate card so that you can receive a different Sapphire card and a new Sapphire Cardmember Bonus on approval.
Related: Guide: Downgrade Options and Rules for Amex, Citi and Chase Reward Credit Cards
Heres When To Close A Credit Card With Zero Balance:
- It has an expensive annual fee.
- Youre worried about fraud and wont be monitoring the card as closely. All credit cards give you a $0 fraud liability guarantee, but you might not want to count on the issuer to flag every fraudulent charge on its own.
- Keeping it open becomes a hassle, for one reason or another.
If youd like to monitor how your credit changes after youve closed an account, you can track your credit report and score for free on WalletHub, the only site where reports and scores update daily.
What happens to your credit score when you cancel a credit card?
When you cancel a credit card, your credit score could fall in the short term, depending on how old the account is and how much other credit you have. But canceling a credit card account might also benefit your credit score in the long run if you manage the rest of your finances better as a result of having one fewer account to worry about.read full answer
You can estimate the effect of canceling a credit card on your credit score by using our . You can also check your latest credit score for free on WalletHub. Youll get daily updates as well as personalized advice.
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Can You Pay Off A Closed Account
You can pay off a closed credit card account whenever you like, and because of credit utilization ratios, it’s an excellent idea. In fact, when you’ve got money available to lower credit card debt, always pay off any closed account first. One possible exception would be if one of the open cards has a very high interest rate, possibly because you’ve taken large cash withdrawals, which always have very high annual rates in the general area of 25 percent.
References
Reasons To Downgrade Your Credit Card Instead Of Canceling It
The biggest reason to downgrade your credit card instead of canceling is to keep your overall credit score intact. Canceling your card impacts length of credit history, which makes up 15% of your overall credit score. It will also negatively affect your credit utilization, which makes up 30% of your score. By downgrading instead of canceling, youre avoiding messing with 45% of your credit score, and in some cases, it comes at no extra cost to you!;
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Plan Your Exit Strategy
If youve gone through the list above and you still want to cancel your credit card, its time to plan your exit strategy. There are two primary goals you should keep in mind during this process protect your credit scores and protect your rewards. You dont want to see your credit score spike by just canceling cards and you dont want to lose any points or miles you may have accumulated.
Get Added Protection While Shopping
Several consumer protections can come in handy, too. Enjoy purchase protection that covers damage and theft on new purchases for 120 days, with up to $500 per claim and $5,000 per account. Chase will also extend a manufacturers warranty by an additional year on eligible warranties three years or less.
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Dispose Of Your Card Properly After Confirming Cancellation
After documenting the cancellation process and making sure that your credit report reflects the closed account, you are finally free to discard your credit card. There are a few ways to destroy; your plastic or metal card, but youll need to pick a disposal method that leaves your information completely unrecoverable from identity thieves.
If you do decide to pick up the scissors, make sure that you are cutting each bit of information including your card number, CVV, expiration date and signature.
Although it may be worth temporarily holding off on closing a credit card if you are in the market for a new loan or mortgage, canceling a credit card shouldnt be a source of major concern for consumers with good credit, since the resulting impact on their credit scores is likely to be minimal and temporary.
What To Do When Your Card Is Discontinued
Charlie had a Chase Rewards credit card that was no longer available to new customers, but he was allowed to continue to use it.
However, last month, he received a letter in the mail stating that his card was going to be converted to the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, which has a $95 annual fee .
He probably wasnt the only one who received a notice about the card program being shut down.
Most likely, other cardholders received the same notice — and plenty of them would have just agreed to convert to the Chase Sapphire Preferred card even though the card program may not fit their spending behavior.
In fact, these credit card conversions happen all the time. It happened to me. It can happen to you.
While you may not have much control over the fact that your current credit card program is shutting down, you can take some action as to what becomes of your credit card account.
Here are a few tips to help you, if youre ever faced with such a decision:
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