Southwest Rapid Rewards VISA – Trouble Again!

We decided to replace Steffie’s purloined Ipod, so we headed to the Apple store at a mall near college. Once again, my VISA purchase was denied. This is not the first time I’m writing about my frustration with this First USA account. I got it off my chest before in August 2003 and December 2004.

Here’s part of the letter going to the VISA bank involved, First USA.

My name is Geoff Fox and I am the account holder of this Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards VISA. My account is up-to-date and has never been late. I spend what I consider a significant amount of money using this card and have a substantial credit limit.

I’m not a deadbeat, but I’m being treated like one by First USA.

Today, for the fourth or fifth time since I’ve been using this VISA, I presented it for a purchase and was turned down. I was later told it was because I was out-of-state and this was a purchase at an Apple Computer Store

5 thoughts on “Southwest Rapid Rewards VISA – Trouble Again!”

  1. I bet if enough people complained to Southwest Airlines, instead of First USA, they’d be inclined to move their promotion to another card company that gave their customers better treatment.

  2. Write a quick letter to the state banking commissioner in First USA’s home state (Delaware?) and an identical one to CT- and send a copy to First USA’s general counsel.

  3. Hey Geoff

    I have had no problems with my SWA Visa Credit Card, except when a $5,500 transaction from out of state was declined. When I called the number on the back of the card, the computer asked me about recent activity and asked if I recognized the requests. Telling the computer that it was okay cleared things right up, and they were able to process the transaction right away.

    I agree that while they are trying to prevent fraud, the good guys get hurt in the process.

  4. People’s Bank put my family and I in a terrible situation a number of years ago by declining my Visa card. It was late at night in Miami, we had just flown in from outside the USA, and were stuck in an off-site airport rental car office at closing time because the security department at People’s had frozen the account. Why? Are you ready: because it seemed suspicious to them that I had paid off the entire balance of the card before traveling out of the country. Even though we had only charged a few things outside of the country – which they approved – now that we were back they froze the account! The poor woman in customer service tried in vain to help me; only the security department could unfreeze the account, and THEY HAD GONE HOME at 6PM. Thank God I finally realized we had (barely) enough available credit on another card to rent the car and get us out of a rather seedy area of Miami at night!

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