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The good, the bad, and the ugly - discover what customers are saying about Advanta bank

Welcome to our customer reviews and complaints page for Advanta bank. We understand that making informed decisions about where to invest your time and money can be challenging, which is why we've created this platform for our community to share their honest feedback about their experiences with Advanta bank.

On this page, you'll find a comprehensive collection of reviews and complaints from real customers who have used Advanta bank's products or services. Our reviews are authentic and unbiased, providing you with a complete picture of the company, its products or services, and their customer service.

Whether you're considering doing business with Advanta bank, or you've already had an experience with them, our community's reviews and complaints will give you a valuable perspective on what to expect. Our goal is to help you make informed decisions about where to invest your time and money, and we hope that our platform will be a valuable resource for you.

Please feel free to browse our reviews and complaints and share your own experience with Advanta bank. Your feedback is an important part of our community and will help others make informed decisions.

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6:22 pm EDT
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Advanta bank update for all

In case everyone has not been notified. I was recently was notified by Advanta that they are closing ALL Advanta Business Card accounts as of May 31st. They say a 'trust' that had been funding their business is no longer going to provide funding. Check out their website for more information.
Oh and of course, you still gotta pay them what you owe them.

Gee you would think that with them charging interest rates in the 35+% range, they could make a profit...

Sounds a bit strange...

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8:52 pm EDT
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Advanta bank Awful credit card practices

I have (as of today - that is "had") an Advanta Bank credit card for my very small business. I had it for a number of years, long enough that I can't remember when I opened it. At least 5 years...could be 10 years. At first I used it a bit.

Then they pulled the ole' predatory "change the due date" combined with the "don't mail the statement to the customer in time so that they can have a hope of paying on time" trick. Which of course as expected ... worked perfectly. So I started making a series of late payments. They of course then changed my interest rate to the low 30%s and hit me with outrageous late fee payments. OK... I missed the payments so ... that's what I got. Luckily I never had a balance over a few hundred bucks on it, so it was pretty easy to pay it off in short order.

The main damage was the FEES!

So I paid the balance off and stopped really using the card for my business, since I have an AMEX Business Coprorate Gold card that is the main card I use for that. (Did I mention that my credit rating is around 850?)

I had one recurring automatic payment of $9.95 a month for my business email account that I left on the Advanta card simply for MY convenience of not having to change the autopayment situation. Advanta kept sending the statement so late that I kept missing getting that minor little bill paid, and I STILL had a few repetitve $30 late payment fees on only a $10 bill.

So I paid the account into the plus column (positive balance) by sending about $50-75 ahead of the coming $10 bill. And I kept it that way with a positive balance for a LONG time. I expected that after a while my interest rate would come down. IT NEVER DID. Well over a year like that, I believe. They have been holding about $50-75 of MY money in a positive balance for all that time. No interest. Nice hunh?

Today I went to go online and check my business email. Onl to find that it was declined the automatic Advanta payment on 4/27. My card says "good thru 05/11". I called Advanta's customer service # to see what was up. I KNOW that I am currently $60 ahead of the coming bills. In fact, their automated system confirmed that balance and a payment THAT day before I even talked to a live person.

I got some young lady with a thick Indian accent that said her name was "Trisha" (yeah right...Trisha is a traditional Indian name). I asked her what happened that caused my card to be declined, and remionded her that I had a credit on file about $50 more than the current charge. She told me that they HAD SENT me a new credit card in the mail and that the current card was suspended because of that. She said the new card had not been activated yet. THAT caught me off guard. I had not received that new card, and I told her so.

She said that was why the charge was declined, that my current card was no longer valid. I then asked her what day it was today. She said April 28th. I said I had a card in my hands that said "good thru 05/o9"...which is the END of NEXT month. She just repeated that the current card was inactivated. I got totally ticked off and told her to just to pay the GD existing bill on the currently valid card. She sputtered and said she couldn't. I then asked to speak to a manager. At frst she was reluctant to do so. I had to ask a couple of times. I ended up DEMANDING to speak to a manager to get anywhere.

I then got Shelly who said she was in Salt Lake City. She was easy to understand... no Indian accent. Basically I got the same "song and dance" from her. One this that was different from her was that she used a different tense for the "new credit card" spiel. She did not say that had SENT me a new card. She said that they were SENDING me a new card. To me an important disticntion. That told me that she KNEW AMD EXPECTED that I had not yet received the new card in the mail. But she still insisted that the curent card was no longer valid no matter what it said on the card itself. She made NO explanation for why the descrepancy, and no apology for any inconvenience or confusion either.

The important point here is that I NEVER got the words "I'm sorry" or ANY kind of indication that this was unfortunate out of either of them. THAT was the breaking point for me. Shelly finally told me that to pay the bill she'd have to re-activate my old card (that never should have been inactivated to START with...it was still valid). She then asked me what I wanted her to do.

I told her that what I wanted was an address that I could send a complaint to about all this and the terrible customer service. To her credit she immediately then gave me Advanta Bank, P.O. Box 30715, Salt lake City, UT 84130. I then said, "What you can do for me is cancel my account, and inform the credit bureaus that it was closed due to the owner's request."

Only THEN did she say she was sorry that this ...blah, blah, blah. It was too late for me. I then hung up.

PLEASE do not EVER do any business with Advanta bank! Caveat Emptor!

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4:43 pm EDT
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Advanta bank Closed account

After reading many complaints against this company that sound even worse than mine I will throw my two worth. About a year ago last Christmas my wife was going in for some surgery so I made a payment for November then a week or so later gave them another 1000 dollars so my Dec. bill would be covered and I could be with her. I'm in the hospital with her they call and say I'm late with my Dec. payment and demand payment over the phone. I told them that I had already made this payment and they argued that I made it to soon and they applied it to Nov. so I agreed to pay the min. to get rid of them. Then they charged me a late fee and raised my rate from 7% to 14%.I did finally get them to drop the late fee after a very heated discussion.
I have since used the card and carried a zero balance monthly so as not to be charged 14%.
Today they have informed me that they have canceled my account. I asked them why and they couldn't tell me all they could do is tell me there is a letter in the mail. I'm not crying over losing this card because they have been terrible to work with and until recently their website was a nightmare to figure out, but I would like to let people know this is not a good company to do business with and I hope with the economy being so bad that other credit card companies don't follow this path as well.

In conclusion: I can only assume they are in big money trouble and are dumping people like me who pay off their bill every month and keeping the 25% interest people. Right now they owe me 31.10 in rewards.
Other funny note today I got a statement in the mail telling me what a wonderful customer I am and wants me to start banking with them 24/7 LOL

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Update by racing5k
May 11, 2009 10:19 pm EDT

As you requested, Advanta is providing you with the following account information.

We have mailed the Cash Back Rewards check for $31.11 to the address on file. You will receive it in 7-10 business days.

We appreciate the opportunity to serve you and your business needs. If you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to contact our Customer Service Center. You can visit us online 24 hours a day at www.advanta.com or call us toll free at [protected], Monday - Friday 8:00 am to 8:00 pm and Saturday 8:00 am to 5:00 pm Eastern Time.

Jasmine T.

I'll let you know if it ever shows up I'm not holding my breath.

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dec4566
dec4566
Cleveland, US
May 11, 2009 9:51 pm EDT

If you account is closed and your rewards balance is less than $50, you'll never see that $31.

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6:13 am EDT
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This review was chosen algorithmically as the most valued customer feedback.

I had a credit card with advanta and some how due to financial hardship was not able to make payments and wanted to have a settlement to pay off the card balance for reduced amount. After lot of phone calls and uncourteous conversation with everyone at this BANK managed to have the settlement to be paid over a period of few months. Did it as was aggreed on...

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11:42 am EST
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Advanta bank Advanta Refuses to Report to Credit Bureau

I paid Advanta $3, 600+ in July 2008 after an 18% APR hike which sent APR 36%+ after numerous requests for APR of 10% or less to expedite repayment of balance; instead Advanta closed my account after I stated that charging a business 36% is not good business sense.

After paying $3, 600 lump sum balance, Advanta chose NOT to report my account to Experian (or other credit bureaus) which would enhance my credit score even after I requested my account be reported. I have consumer rights and Advanta is infringing on my rights by keeping my credit report incomplete. Was informed Advanta reserves the right to report (business) accounts; Advanta will report any business account defaults (which mine was not). I also paid beyond the minimums every month and was in good standing (paid as agreed) but Advanta is not allowing this account to reflect on my credit history.

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cjmazur
Cupertino, US
Mar 19, 2010 8:46 pm EDT
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Have you had any luck in resoling this?

Does anyone have a "current" card holder agreement they could fax or send me?

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debthelp
Miami, US
Oct 19, 2009 9:44 am EDT

Do you have at least $5k in debt? I know of a company that will settle your unsecured debt for only about half of what you currently owe. Let me know if you are interested. debtrelief@rocketmail.com

dec4566
dec4566
Cleveland, US
Feb 22, 2009 1:02 pm EST

I am working with attorney Alan Finkel in Commack, NY who is working with some state class action law firms to seek action against Advanta. If your interested in particpating, please e-mail me at dec458@msn.com.

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3:10 pm EST
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Advanta bank Excessive Fees

Another good customer...paid on time..paid $2800 more than required in 2008 and now my interest rate is at 37.18% from 7.99%. I am a small business owner and this is just beyond belief. Guess this is what I get for trying to pay the card off. A 'major class action lawsuit' should be formed to put this company out of business and return the overcharges to the good customers...

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6:45 pm EST
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Advanta bank Loan Sharks

I also was scammed by Advanta's Loan Shark tatics for credit cards. Wish I would have found this site before I ever got involved with this bunch of crooks! I also got a low 2.99% credit card transfer to pay off another card for a nominal fee. I also have excellent credit ratings and am never late on a payment. As everyone else here my Dec bill showed I was now a high risk and my new "life of the loan rate is now 32.08%%%%%%%%%%. I contacted the Pa atty general and filed a complaint. My response was this

Please be advised that your complaint involving a National Bank should be directed to the Comptroller of the Currency. You can reach them at 1.800.613.6743 or at their website www.occ.treas.gov.

I went to the web site today and filled out the proper forms. I faxed it in today and hope to hear from them soon.

EVERYONE THAT HAS BEEN RIPPED OFF BY ADVANTA NEEDS TO DO THE SAME. sEND YOUR COMPLAINT The Comptroller of the Currency. You can reach them at 1.800.613.6743 or at their website www.occ.treas.gov. LET US MAKE SURE THE OFFICE IS FLOODED WITH OUR COMPLAINTS SO NOBODY ELSE FALLS FOR THIS SCAM!

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dec4566
Cleveland, US
Feb 10, 2009 8:29 pm EST

Attorney Scott Feldman in Doylestown, PA has successfully sued Advanta last fall for 1 client and was able to recover over $2, 000 in excess interest charges and $800 in attorney fees in small claims court in Philadelphia.

dec4566
dec4566
Cleveland, US
Feb 10, 2009 7:55 pm EST

Your actually better of to file a complaint with the FDIC and also with the Utah BBB. I am working with attorney Alan Finkel in Commack, NY to try and get some class action lawsuits filed against Advanta. We are slowly making some progress. If your interested in participating, e-mail me at dec458@msn.com.

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1:41 pm EST
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Advanta bank Overcharged

I have a business credit card with Advanta Bank and have been a good customer for 8 years. I have never missed a payment or paid late and yet my interest rate jumped from 15% to 36.18% this month ( Jan 2009 ) I have a min payment of $427.00 due to the increase and have no idea how to pay this.

I did call in and speak to a customer service rep and a 'so called' supervisor. I was treated with no respect by either employee and basically told 'Good Luck' on my decisions in the future. I explained that I have been a long time customer with no late payments and needed an explanation!

How can this be legal? Isn't the Federal Trade Comm. able to do something to deal with them. I know that I can't be the only one being done this way. Who can help us? I have a fed tax id # for my business and can't file bankruptcy or I will loose my business. Please send me information on what options I have.

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Traviss
, US
Apr 28, 2010 5:41 pm EDT

Advanta gave me a rate of 6.99% until Jan 2010. Then it will be 35%. What happens if I do not pay this insane rate and ask for an opt out for 6.99%. Will this affect my other credit card rates?

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Donski
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Aug 13, 2008 6:58 am EDT

Spoke with customer service on 2 occassions and was told my interest rate would be lowered as soon as on-time payment history was good for 6 months. Called in to discuss new rate and told they could not lower. Their service reps. are liars.

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Chuck
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Nov 25, 2008 10:58 pm EST

Raised my interest rate from 7.99% to 27.18% and I was never late with a payment.

Valerie
Valerie
, US
Sep 26, 2008 12:36 pm EDT

I started out with 0% rate and less than 3months ago the company raised my interest rate to 31% this is predatory lending. I tried sending letters and speaking with someone and all I get is poor customer service. The company has jack the price up so high that i cant afford to meet minimum payments. They are unreasonable they ask for my bank information routing information when i decline Joe Dellosa started screaming in the phone. They call my job every day which is not my business. I asked them to stop and he stated he will keep calling. I did consolidation credit he told me that doesn't work and they don't honor that he continue to call. I cant pay 400 a month for a credit card. I ask the company to call my house and not my job because i will get fired it didn't matter because continues to call everyday.

Valerie
Valerie
, US
Oct 07, 2008 5:49 am EDT

I received my Advanta statement today, to discover that my interest rates had tripled. After doing my due diligence (talking to three people - two in management), I was informed that in spite of the fact that I had a perfect payment record, and a credit score of 780, I was still subject to the increase in interest rates.

I immediately closed my account, and have just written a check for $12, 000.00 t0 pay off my card. Too bad for Advanta. Had my rates remained at the previous levels, there is no doubt that over the next few years, I would have charged tens, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars. Instead they are stuck with one lump payment and no more, ever again.

For those of you experiencing the same raping I just did, I urge you to send registered letters to your Congressman, to your Attorney General, and a copy to Dennis Alter, CEO, Advanta Bank Corp., Welsh & McKean Roads, P.O. Box 844, Spring House, Pennsylvania [protected]. Urge your Congressman and Attorney General to look into this. Furthermore, there are already a couple of attorney's in the process of garnering information that will allow them to file a class action law suit. Get you name and circumstances to them.

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Johny
, US
Dec 06, 2008 7:04 am EST

I got a Credit card (small business) from Advanta Bank in May 08, caught by VERY attractive offer on balance transfers (0% for 15 mo) and good rate on purchases (7.99%). In Sept I received a GENERIC amendment to CC agreement bumping my rate to 26%. Customer service - including supervisor - claim this is based on an individual review of my credit rating, income/debt ratio and payment history...

YET all the above are excellent: I've been paying more than min payments on time or early -EVEN THOUGH PAYMENTS Go towards the INTEREST -FREE section of my total balance due...- They must be in financial trouble and trying to get more cash from us or they are truly abusing the system and their executives should be in JAIL.

I conquer with Fred in LA (posting 359279) and wish I could contact him but there is no contact address in his posting.

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Gregorry
, US
Jan 03, 2009 6:37 am EST

I have been a customer of Advanta for several years. I still have high credit scores and I have not been late on any payments on a credit card with Advanta. Recently, Advanta raised the rate to 27.18%. I called and inquired why they did it and I got an answer that I was now considered a high risk. I accelerated my payments and canceled the card. After paying several thousand on the card, I asked them to reconsider their actions but I was told that I was still considered a high risk and therefore, they were still going to charge the high rate.

I feel this is wrong of the bank to jack someone's rate to 27.18% for reasons that are general. They could not state specifically why they did it.

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Mathews
, US
Jan 04, 2009 9:41 am EST

I was also a victim of this highly unethical Bank that offers a low start rate, claiming it will last much longer and then raises the rate 10 fold. My initial rate was 2.99 and raised to 27.18. I have perfect credit and have never paid any payments late. I was told I had been pre notified by mail (never was) and had the option to opt out? Now I'm stuck with payments multiple times higher that initially promised. This is a great example of why banks cannot be trusted and should be highly regulated. I would advise to close any accounts with this company, payoff or transfer to another company.

Where is the Congressional action that had been promised for this blatant consumer abuse?

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Wendy Banks
, US
Jan 14, 2009 9:53 am EST

I have a business credit card with Advanta Bank and have been a good customer for 8 years. I have never missed a payment or paid late and yet my interest rate jumped from 15% to 36.18% this month ( Jan 2009 ) I have a min payment of $427.00 due to the increase and have no idea how to pay this.

I did call in and speak to a customer service rep and a 'so called' supervisor. I was treated with no respect by either employee and basically told 'Good Luck' on my decisions in the future. I explained that I have been a long time customer with no late payments and needed an explanation!

How can this be legal? Isn't the Federal Trade Comm. able to do something to deal with them. I know that I can't be the only one being done this way. Who can help us? I have a fed tax id # for my business and can't file bankruptcy or I will loose my business. Please send me information on what options I have.

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Nina
, US
Feb 04, 2009 10:10 am EST

I've been employed by Advanta Bank Corp for 6 years. Yesterday, Feb 2, I went to work and started my shift at 7:30 a.m. and by 11:00 a.m. I was laid off, along with all the other members of our call center, manager and all. Beware all of your calls will now to to India. For the last year Advanta has been out sourcing to India, we've been going to India to train. About 50% of the calls that I take are coming from for the reps in India, because customers do not want to talk to the reps in India. I don't blame them.

The last 6 months while Advanta has been jacking up the interest rates of their customers, I've been taking customer calls and defending Advanta, actually believe that what I was doing was in the best interest of a good employer. Well I may be fooled once, but if it happens again then I would be the fool.

Good luck. We've all been screwed!

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6:32 pm EST

Advanta bank You name it

In all my years of doing business with banks I have never seen more dishonest and absolutely predatory lending practices performed as I have by this institution Advanta Bank . If the old "bait and switch" ever applied to a lending institution I am positive it applies here. To draw you in with a low rate and jack it up for no good reason is deceptive at the very least. I wonder if anyone has contacted any news agency including the major networks ? There seem to be enough complaints and I am sure that during tough economic times they would love a juicy story such as this! So I say lets get them...

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Bill
Chicago, US
Jun 01, 2009 8:15 pm EDT

The same thing happened to me and I just filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission, The Illinois Attorney General, and will get an attorney to see what else can be done. I may offer them a settlement at .30 cents on the dollar if they settle this account as paid in full and cease any further damage to my credit report.

The rates they charge are mafiaesque.

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hatethem
Tampa, US
Feb 05, 2009 6:14 pm EST

I have had the same problems with Advanta. We always paid our bill every month in full and they kept increasing the credit limit. When we finally did use the card for a major purchase, (fuel for our tug) as the interest was still low (7%) the next bill showed the interest at 27%, then when they saw we were making payments on time monthly, they again increased the insterest to 34.9%. After several emails, phone calls, etc. I got the same run around as everyone else posted here. They could care less about their customers and yes, my letter did call them loansharks. There has to be something that can be done about this company.
I'm paying a balance, where the min. due ea. month is now 597.00 with this new interest. That's crazy.
I hate hate hate them.

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Jason
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Dec 02, 2008 9:10 pm EST

Yes, I agree. Advanta Bank Corp upped my 12% card to 32% and put my balance at the cash advance rate of 37.18%. My account was in good standing and I paid on time. They said they did it because they felt it was appropriate. If my $5K balance is a risk for them, they should close up shop.

They would tell me one pay off amount and then assess extra finance charges, not send a bill, then assess late fees, then more finance charges.

Their customer service has been outsourced to India. I have a difficult time understand many of the people I get on the phone.

This company is criminal as far as I'm concerned I don't have words for the frustration this credit bank has caused. I will be glad to be rid of them. They do what they want and are accountable to no one.

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bsb4256
,
Nov 26, 2008 6:06 am EST

Advanta did the exact same thing to me. Had a business card at % 7.99- used it regularly. Had built up a balance but never missed a payment. Then they jacked up the rate to %27.9. They refused to lower the rate and had no excuse for the increase. I have good credit so I trnsfered most of the balance and paid the rest. Makes no sense - they just lost business of a descent interest rate and the regular use of thier card. Maybe they are hoping for a lot of defaults so they can apply for a goverment bailout. The credit crisis has only just begun if banks like Advanta are alowed to get away with this .

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7:04 pm EDT

Advanta bank Interest rate raised because of the state of the economy

Everyone needs to be very wary of doing business with Advanta. This month my interest rate was increased from 11.99% to 25.39%. When I questioned why this was since I was an excellent customer and have excellent credit, I received the following reply. It seems now it doesn't matter how good you are at paying your bills, you are punished for what the rest of the country does. I am paying off this credit card immediately and canceling my account. Buyer beware!

Thank you for contacting us about the terms of your Advanta account.

Your Advanta rates are based on a variety of factors including information about your Advanta account, such as credit line utilization and payment history and information we obtain from credit bureaus about your personal and business credit. The information we obtain from the credit bureaus can include your activity on any other accounts you may have including mortgages and other credit cards.

In addition to factors such your account history with us and your credit scores, our evaluation also considers the economy. Given the current difficult economic environment, we expect accounts with similar behavior and credit profiles to your account to now have a greater likelihood of defaulting than before and your new pricing reflects that higher risk.

We appreciate the opportunity to serve you and your business needs. If you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to contact our Customer Service Center. You can visit us online 24 hours a day at www.advanta.com or call us toll free at [protected], Monday - Friday 8:00 am to 8:00 pm and Saturday 8:00 am to 5:00 pm Eastern Time.

Charles Regazzi
Account Manager
Advanta

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Catherine
,
Oct 06, 2008 5:24 pm EDT

WHY IS THIS HAPPENING TO US? 2 WORDS -

THE ECONOMY ! We have not defaulted on any payments. We are paying the consequences of the financial crunch we are in PERIOD!

ADVANTA is taking advantage of us. Don't tolerate it. Close your accounts immediately and transfer you money to another institution that has business ethics.

I will keep sending emails to all my contacts informing them of this SCAM and contact the FDIC, congress and Senators as the previous post suggests. Please take action get the word and close your accounts.

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mike mtn
Glenside, US
Sep 26, 2008 12:33 pm EDT
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their CEO is Dennis Alter, phone # is [protected]-call and ask for him, I actually got his email and left him a choice message, of course the jerk did not return my call, but I did get some satisfaction-they raised my rate from 8$ to 25 without any notification, I closed it but will forever bad mouth these jerks-their stock is around $5 now, was up around $27 less than a year ago, CEO Alter paid himself 3 million in 2008, and he is a big contributor to Obama, McCain and Biden-what comes around goes around, I say. Love to see a class action against them, also I wrote to BBB, Congressman, Senators, FDIC (was told on the phone that their tactics were under investigation)-call Alter, the more that call and leave messages, the more he can be annoyed too.

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onofrio bruno
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Sep 18, 2008 12:18 pm EDT

another Advanta loyal customer with perfect credit screwed by the bank raising interest to over 30% for no reason or explanation. Could they be in financial trouble? I hope that someone finds out if this is legal.Can anything be done as a class action against Avanta?

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irokk
,
Sep 15, 2008 2:55 pm EDT

Another screwed Advanta customer here. My rate went from 7.99% to 25.08%. When I called customer service I was told by the nice lady from India that due to 'economic reasons', my rate was increased. I have never been so betrayed by a CC in my life. You bet this card is getting transferred and closed NOW. I just hope all my other cards don't start following suit.

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Helen Lane
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Sep 12, 2008 5:59 pm EDT

same thing here...been a customer for years, 8 years, and overnight, for no reason they raised my rate to almost 36%! I've never seen anything like that. My other cards are 11% and I have a great track record for paying on time. This has to be against the law. I closed my account and will cash in stock to pay it off. Stay away from this company, at all cost!

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Bob Gonsalves
,
Sep 03, 2008 11:06 am EDT

This is just happened to me and for the same exact reasons. I have never been late nor have I ever exceeded my credit limit. My 7.9 fixed rate increased to 35% overnight. I called Advanta Bank Corp today and was able to close the account at the 7.9% and will be able to pay off the balance at that rate

I am a public relations consultant and would be interested in hearing from others experiencing this rip off. I want to hear from people that have never been late for any reason nor have they exceeded their balance. I think this is an important consumer scam story that needs to be told. Thanks.

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christian
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Sep 03, 2008 9:47 am EDT

What can I say.. Same as the previous griever. From a 7.99% to 25.99%! OVERNIGHT! Ridiculous, what is it with these banks/credit card companies? The government needs to step in and place CAPS! No wonder so many people are in debt and just getting worse.

I called customer service to receive the same explanation, rates are based on a variety of factors including information about your Advanta account, such as credit line utilization and payment history and information we obtain from credit bureaus about your personal and business credit, blah blah, blah, blah, blah! An increase of 18% in 30-days? Are you on drugs? Are you serious? What a BLIPPIN' rip-off. THE GREED! YOU just lost my business. I am going to write to Washington and see how I can pass some of this agony, injustice, prejudice, personal time-wasting. When I have to get on the phone and call your lame customer support to hear this kind of crap (That's just what THIS IS and what THEY ARE DOING and GETTING AWAY WITH)! C_R_A_P, crap is what this means to me (we should make a satirical song about you guys). EVERYONE NEEDS TO CONTACT THEIR CONGRESSMAN/WOMAN AND WASHINGTON. This ABUSE has to STOP!

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Advanta bank Late fee & phone payment fee SCAM!

DO not do any business with Advanta! I have been a loyal credit card member for years and always paid my monthly balances in full each month. I never carried a balance! NO INTEREST OR FEES – Ever! In July 2007 I went to pay my bill on-line... THEIR WEB SITE WAS DOWN! The credit card was for my business and with a tight schedule I always paid via their web for the ease and convenience. The bill was due that day, I could not make the payment, and did not have the time to call them or try later that day or maybe the next day. I wanted to make the payment now and could not because someone at Advanta botched a web update.

The Advanta Story from their site: “At Advanta, our focus is on small businesses, and no one knows the needs of small business like we do. Started in 1951 with $30 in seed money in founder Jack Alter's spare bedroom, Advanta has grown into one of the nation's largest providers (through Advanta Bank Corp.) of business credit cards to small businesses, without forgetting what it is like to be a small or start-up business.” OK, Yeah right! Don’t bend over anytime soon because it’s 2007 and you will pay for that seed and growing out of your ###!

When I called (now after the due date) the customer service representative told me he was aware of the problem and told me I could make a payment today over the phone and I did in full as always. I asked him (more than once) if I would be charged for the phone payment and a late fee and he assured me that our conversation would be documented and that I should not have a problem. OK.

Well, I received my next statement and I had a charge for $12.00 for a phone payment service fee and a $39.00 late fee. I figured no problem, I would call Advanta and they would see the notes from my last call and credit me for their error. WEB SITE DOWN! I was told that they have credited me for a late fee in the past and they can not and will not waive the late fee but will remove the phone payment fee. Yippee, I wanted to jump for joy but thought the seed I mentioned earlier might fall out and it would smell like the BULL ### that Advanta has grown to be! Bogus Fees and Charges for their web outage and forget me the small business customer “as their founder focused on?”. Advanta would rather focus on charging you fees for their loss in interest and/or loose you as a customer. The Advanta Story – SCAM YOU OUT OF YOUR MONEY! Advanta Customer service? NO, IT DOES NOT EXIST! No such department.

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Greg
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Nov 01, 2008 11:49 am EDT

Mr. Chad C. Blue is the Chief Credit Officer for Advanta Bank Corporation. Anyone having his email or home address, home phone number, or direct business phone number should post this info here and on the bad credit card website and every blog pertaining to Advanta. Mr. Blue is overall in charge of authorizing the increases we have seen on our business card rates. I too have an excellent credit score, send more than the minimum each month, have never gone over my limit, never made a late payment, and have NO OTHER DEBT except a personal c/c that is paid the same. There is no reason for Advanta to raise my interest rate from 7.99% to 11.31% in 5 months. I get nowhere over the phone, and I really want to contact this Mr. Blue. We should all be flooding Advantas executives with our complaints. Anyone that has already STARTED a class action suit against advanta please let me know.

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DR
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Jun 12, 2008 3:08 pm EDT

WOW! I hate to see that I'm not the only one stiffed by Advanta. They botched an electronic payment, which they charged me a late fee for, jacked my interest rate, and hit me with a bounced check fee. After a conference call with my bank, Advanta refused to put our interest rate where it was supposed to be. Since they had already given back the late fee and the bounced check fee, they had to hold to their policy on rate increases, as I couldn't prove the mistake was theirs. After 4 bouts with Advanta's circle talking customer service reps, I still couldn't get any results. They just keep saying the same lines over and over again to frustrate you (like they are trained) and then when you ask to speak to a supervisor, they hand you over to the idiot in the next cubicle. I was finally told that "Upper Management" had reviewed my case, and they were sticking to their decision (Upper Management is probably the night janitor's neighbor's epileptic dog). They even told me I was not authorized to see the information that was passed on to upper management.

ADVANTA HAS NO ETHICS, THEY ARE NOTHING MORE THAN A MONEY SCAMMING LOAN SHARK WITH FEDERAL BANKING INSURANCE. EVERYONE WHO HAS HAD ISSUES WITH THEM NEEDS TO LODGE A COMPLAINT WITH THE FTC.

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Dr. Griggs
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Jan 11, 2008 8:01 pm EST

I was a loyal customer for years and never missed a payment, either. Then I bought some software that didn't work. I returned it to the vendor, who refused it. I refused to pay for it and cited three pages of the software's and vendor's failings to Advanta. Their response was that I had to find other dissatisfied customers before they would credit my account. That is impossible. Do you think the vendor is going to give me a list of his dissatisfied customers?
I paid the bill and learned to live with the software, which still sucks. Advanta charged me interest and a late fee for not paying for the software until the next month. I paid that, too.
Months later I cancelled a monthly service 10 days before the end of the credit card cycle--plenty of time for the service to reverse its monthly charges. An Advanta rep told me on the phone they had talked to the service and the service agreed to credit back my account the following month. They subsequently refused to do that and Advanta refused to credit back my account, too, despite what Advanta told me. I didn't pay that bill, figuring the service would come to their senses, but when they didn't, I was into another billing cycle with more interest and late fees. Advanta refused to reverse either. I paid the bill and closed the account, vowing never again to do business with Advanta.
My conclusion is that they are vendor oriented, not consumer oriented. They have arbitrary rules that do not fit reality. They are inflexible. I'm not. I now have other credit cards. I suggest anyone who reads this take this to heart. You won't know just how bad these people are until you really need them. In a word, Advanta is AWFUL.

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Instead of the 0.69 rate offer, they charged 34% annual interest! This happened on two balance transfers months apart. Seems like a scam. After lots of waiting, they will correct the mistake, but the overcharge shouldn't happen to begin with.

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