Complaint Review: Juniper Bank

Having had a Juniper credit card for over 2 years and no previous problems. I was shocked and disappointed when I opened my May 2004 credit statement and discovered that Juniper had doubled my credit card interest rate. The increased interest rate evidently was placed initially on my March 2004 credit statement but I didn't pay attention to it, nor the April 2004 statement.

I called Juniper's service line number to see what had happened and why the interest rate had increased. The male answering gave his first name and I asked since I had never missed a payment and had exceeded my minimum payment requirement each and every month and thought when I signed up that the initial interest initial was a set figure, how and why the increase? He put me on hold and came back with the statement, "The economy is just down." What? I asked what did that mean and what did that have to do with me? I signed up for the lesser interest rate and thought it would remain just that.

I asked to speak with his supervisor but was told he was the manager and there was no one else I could speak with(????, no general manager or credit supervisor? and I didn't know bank managers took initial service calls?). What Juniper has done is most surely usury and indirection. They sign you up with a workable interest rate and then after a number of purchases they bump you up to a very high and untenable interest rate, a very devious and insidious act. Like all crooks and crooked entities Juniper has found a way to gouge the public. This was a planned move by them and I unfortunately fell for it(Caveat Emptor).

Harold
Memphis, Tennessee
U.S.A.