Complaint Review: Advanta Credit Card Small Business

I'm in the same boat as the rest of you. Small business, retail store, have carried the Advanta Card for 9 years. They just increased my spending limit, sent me new cards, and then, low and behold to my surprise when I opened this statement, interest jumped to 35.08%. I did not receive a notification, or if I did it appeared as those checks they send every month, which I shred.

Here's the kicker. I do major buying for my retail store 2 months out of the year, March and August. I will charge anywhere from $20,000 to 30,000, then pay most of it down within 4 months. They increased my rate just after I had attended one of the gift shows and my balance is very high.

I called, got the same response, no they would not lower it, no they do not know why it increased. Then I received an email with all that bs about the market and economy and how now I'm suddenly a high risk. I checked our D&B rating, no change there, checked credit reports (thinking maybe I was a victim of fraud), nothing, credit score is over 800.

I closed the account, will sell off my personal stocks and pay this card off. If anyone is going to be making almost 36% off my company, it's going to be me, with a personal loan to the company.

This has got to be illegal. I figure Advanta is tight for cash, dividends were due, and so they just screwed their own customers to pay their investors.

Kat
Small Town, Maryland
U.S.A.