Salute Credit Card review: Cancelling Service 43

I have a Salute Credit Card, that I am still paying. I think about 4 or 5 years ago my card was cancelled. I called salute to find out why. I was told that they were cancelling all cards, it had nothing to do with me and that it would not hurt my credit. I never sent in a late payment or missed a payment for the length of time I had the card. The interest on the card is ridiculous and they even charge you a maintenance fee.

We have been customers of salute for more than 3 years. We actually had a reduced rate I believe around 11.99%, and have been trying to pay them off for over a year now. About 2 months ago american credit councelors had an error and sent out my payment late. They called me every hour sunday thru saturday.And I mean every day. Calls started at 7:00AM. That sucks when you work nights. But at anyrate I told them it was just late and they would get it anyday, After a week they finnally got me to pay $67.00 which is slmost 3x larger than the normal payment. Plus a few days later acc finally got my payment to them, so they got an additional 25.00. They told me at the time I paid the $67.00 that if I pd. then they would put me on a program giving me 6 months at 0% interest and reduced pmts to $10.50. Thats why I agreed to advance them that money when acc screwed up. After that i called acc and removed myself from there program to get this better rate .I called salute on the 1st (had a heck of a time finding the number, and tried to pay 10.50 and they wouldnt accept that as a payment) When I find out that they lied, there was no program. Fortunatly for me i recorded the call, hawever they said it was a mistake and i wasnt being put on the program. I felt ripped, but dont worry it gets better. Today i recieved a phone call again, I recorded the call once again, They wanted $50.00, they said i was late. duh, , they wouldnt take the pmt for the 10.50. Now get this, once again he said im sorry you were on the program but we removed you cause you didnt pay. thats bull. i called they said i wasnt on the program, once again he said i will put you back on if you pay 50.00. then i told him to hold on, came back to the phone. i said i am recording this call, can you repeat what you just told me. then he lies, he sais he said he would try but no promises. the thing is i got the entire call on voice recording and when i made him aware i was recording he changed his story. In the state of oregon you do not have to even tell people you are recording. At this point i told him he would not see a dime from me until they gave me the rate. he said there is nothing i can do, so i told him their is nothing i can do either. This compay sucks Royale

I am beyond frusterated with this company. They closed my salute account, gave me tribute card, then reactivated the salute account. 2 months later they closed both accounts and now I am sitting here paying 19.00 a month for the account maintenance fee, and they went up on the online payment too, it use to be 4.95, now it's 9.95...does anyone know if what they are doing is legal or what?

I also had a gold Salute card. They raised my limit & then canceled me all in one months time. They are still charging me a $9.95 monthly maintenance fee plus finance charges so I am getting nowhere on paying this bill off. I called to try to get them to at least drop the maintenance fee since they canceled me & I had never missed a payment. They were very rude & hung up on me. What in the world can be done with this company? I need help & suggestions really bad! DO HAVE TO KEEP PAYING?

They cancelled my account and also charge 9.95 monthly maintenance fee and also a 4.95 charge if you pay online. I called and they said the charges are "in their contract". Well, my credit limit was "in their contract" also and they took that away. Why can't they take their outrageous fees away just like they took away my credit balance. I think I may call the Attorney General office in Minnesota about this one. I have a Capital One card also, and they said if I don't cancel my account my finance charge will go from 21% to 26%. I cancelled but I went over and now they charge 30.00 per month for overlimits fees until I get it over. It keeps going up because I can't afford to pay more on it per month. It's almost 200.00 more now than before because they keep charging 30.00 for each month it stays overlimit. I can see a one time overlimit charge but 30.00 each month! Another one for Attorney General.

same thing happened to me. they increased my limit over the summer and then they canceled me around december.

My Salute card was also canceled. They gave me a credit increase and then within the month canceled it. Now they think it's decent to continue to charge these ridiculous fee's. I found out my card was canceled when I went to use it and it was denied. Then 3 days later got a notice in the mail that they were canceling it. Now on my credit report it says canceled at consumer's request. Which obviously is not the case. They need to put "Company bankrupcy" or whatever the issue really is instead of blaming it on the consumer.

I too have / had an account that has been cancelled without notice. I paid on time and then was sending in my payments and called to find out that my account had been closed 3 months prior to that. She told me that I was not the only one, that the program was closed to everyone. I told her that I was reporting them to the BBB.

I agree with everyone else. this is the worst company i ever heard of. they offer this card to people with bad credit so we can rebuild our credit. Usually people who have bad credit don't have much money and that is why they ended up with bad credit in the first place and basically they are stealing from us by charging all the fees and then canceling the card right after the annual fee of $150. I don't know about all of you but i expect to be able to use my credit card as i make payments on it. I refuse to make payments on this card if I am unable to use it. THIS COMPANY IS A COMPLETE RIPOFF. I AM NOT LETTING SOMEONE STEAL MY MONEY. someone also commented that Tribute is owned by the same company and I am now have problems with them also. I had the card for about two years and have always made timely payments usually paying much more than the minimum. my last payment was late by a few days causing a late payment which took me over my limit, however when i sent the next payment I sent at least double the minimum payment due and they cancelled my card due to being late one time in two years and it was only late by a few days. this company that owns these cards is clearly a SCAM ARTIST. has anybody been able to do anything about this company as of yet and what exactly can i do besides contacting the bbb and has anybody got anywhere the bbb>

I contacted Salute about a week ago, because my credit limit was zero and I had just made my monthly payment. I was a bit confused. I was never over limit and my account was on Auto Pay so I never missed a payment. When I contacted customer service they sent me an email stating me account had been closed. I am angry about the way this company does business and they never sent me a letter.

I agree with the situation of Salute Credit Card, I went to Walmart and that was how I found out they were not authorizing any new charges. I was a faithful customer to this organization and paid my bills on time and received at least 3 incresses in the time frame I had my card within the first year. I was dissappointed when I did not get notification of the cancellation of my card as well. I agree if the card is closed by the company then there should be nothing but the balances we are paying in regards to this card.

I am writing this note because I started out paying on time and when I got ill I was still paying my bill but I was not working therefore I would be late some times and they started adding 35.00 late fee 35.00 overlimit fee. they also took out the annual fee without telling me. they increased my credit limit without sking if I wanted them to. anyway they have very bad ethical business principles. I will pay my monthly payments but all this other trumped up mess I will not poay because I hardly ever used the card.

eydie pettegrew
card #[protected]

There is a petition regarding our complaints and I encourage each of you to sign it. http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/SaluteVisaVictims

This company is a rip-off and everyone should get together and file a class action lawsuit! They charged me all these late fees when I wasn't late and all different amounts with each statement. I called Salute [protected] and the guy couldn't hardly speak english and could not even tell me anything except when was I going to make a payment and I told him never because I want all the money back I paid to get this card! Anyone interested in starting a lawsuit, I'm ready!

It happened to me as well. I got my card in August and was excited to see that they up your limit every month that you pay on time. I've been paying on time for six months and thank God I found out that my card was canceled via their website rather than by trying to use the card. How embarassing that would have been!
They tell me I will be stuck with paying their 20$ convenience fee payments every month until I pay the card off. Excuse me? There is no convenience or service anymore, so how can they legally get away with this? Not to mention that they make it damn near impossible to call them by hiding their phone number. They knew they were in trouble as early as the summer of 08 and yet they allowed me to get my card, knowing they wouldn't be taking any applications as os September.
We need to file a class action lawsuit and get these guys. This is reprehensible behavior. For a company claiming to offer help to high risk credit holders, they sure did do their best to screw us to a wall.
For those looking for their number, I have it.
[protected]
That number was good as of today. (February 11th 2009) The lady I spoke with was American, spoke clearly, and was actually very nice and helpful. She waived a 35.00 late fee that was unfairly charged due to a banking mishap, and also waived the telephone payment. She was actually very reasonable and kind, so be sure not to take your anger at Salute out on the little people - the call center reps are not the criminals - its the suits we need to go after.

How annoyed am I! I too received the same letter just last week. I've had this card for 2 years as well. Since the letter gave no indication why my account was being cancelled, I assumed they didn't like that they weren't making much money off me since I always pay my balance in full. I was actually intending on paying my balance this Friday when I got the letter. I own a tribute card as well so I guess I need to find out what they are doing.

My problem with the cancellation of my card is that I bought gas twice and the $1 memo posts showed up on the card during that week when the account was still good. After I got the letter I got online to check my account to find there was no credit limit or available balance anymore. I had gotten my account up to a $650 credit limit.

Now the card is closed and those two purchases did not show up on the last statement. I don't have those receipts anymore and I have no way to figure out where I got the gas from to see if the payment was taken care of since I was in another state at the time. I know one thing, no crap better come back on me as a result of these idiots cancelling my card. Those purchases were made during the time when the card was still good and they have to honor those purchases. I am so pissed I can hardly type. To see other people going thru the same thing is disgusting!

Same here, except one thing...Salute did credit back $100 of the annual fee which I had already paid off.I have only had the card for a few months.My advice is to pay off the balance you have ASAP! before they hit your credit with something bad.I also have the Tribute card and I plan to pay off my $95 balance and close the account before they do it to me again.Don't give them anything to use against you.For those of you who need credit improvement, I reccomend Continental Finance MasterCard especially.Payments post quickly, the fees are lower and they increase limit as they promise.Also, Orchard Bank seems to be OK, but I am not sure yet.Stay away from First Premier Bank, they are a total rip-off.At first, I thought it was just me, but now I see that many others have been victimized.I am sorry for us all.It really stinks to have closed accounts showing on your credit when you are trying to rebuild it.I agree with the person who wrote that you should pay it off and fight for the money back on the annual fee and to get the maintenance fees stopped.When your credit is tender, you do not want any more collection activity to start up.

I just found out that my card was terminated today. I went to use my card and it declined this weekend. Imagine the embarrassment. I was fortunate to have another card on hand to make the small purchase. When I came home and checked my mail, I found out that my credit card limit had increased. So again imagine my surprise this evening when I get a statment in the mail charging the maintenance fee and confirming that I had a credit line increase, and then finding out that the next letter that I received in the mail (also today), showed that my credit card was terminated. I contacted the number on the letter and was routed to a customer service center in Central America, where I could not get any real answers as to why my account was closed. I had to find out on the internet that the company was out of business. So I am really upset that I am just finding this out that this has been going on for MONTHS now! I will check into this further.

The card program was terminated in November of 2008? I just received Notice today...Called, spoke to some lady who informed me that everyone's card is terminated and so on...I too will look into the legal aspect of this, I have there other card TRIBUTE, that one will probably be cancelled next.

My husband and I both got the Salute card... within 2 months of paying on time he gets a cancellation of account, I emailed them and they said they are just cancelling this program.. WHAT? ok? Mine was still active for a couple more months and then the close mine! Same answer. They are ripping people off on the fees and activation fees, yearly annual fees whatever they all charge. Making people pay these fees then cancel them in a couple months they are ROBBING people! I want some of my fees back!

Yep same ol crap happened to me with this card, kept paying and paying but balance never goes down

does anyone know the phone number to this company... please post it

does anyone have the phone number ... please post it

I TOO HAVE BEEN DUPED BY THIS CREDIT CARD COMPANY... IM NOT HAPPY ONE BIT THIS COMPANY SUCKS.

funny how the number on the back of the card is unreadable on everyone's card right? haha. shady from the start

I too have had great credit with them and they kept raising my limit, always said you have excellent credit now they cancel me and keep charging maintence fee. I don't think that is right.

My wife and me received following is the letter.
NOTICE OF TERMINATION OF CARD PROGRAM on 11/04/2008. My wife also received her monthly statement, but I didn’t. So I called the number listed on the letter to find out what was going. I talked to a rep and he gave the speech about cancelling everyone’s cards. I also requested a new statement be sent. On 11/14/2008 I get a phone call from salute wanting a payment for $69 that my payment was late. I told that person wouldn’t give my bank info over the phone, I would make payment online. I went the site and it wants a $54 payment. So I called the number in notice again to find if I could get the extra fees waived because I have never missed a payment and now he’s tilling me I owe a payment of $113. That same day I received my statement wanting a payment of $113. My payment was do 11/13/2008. the statement received was dated 11/08/2008. My payment is $25 and that means that they ether raised my payment $88 or he’s charging me the fees before I was late. This company is trying to rip people off. If you need help with your case me and my wife are willing to help.

when I went to use my card is when I found out it was cancelled can you amagin standing in line going to pay for stuff you want to purchase and they tell you its been declined thank God I had another card with me I called right away and they told me my card was cancelled because they were going out of business but I still have to pay the balance and they still charge you for service fees well the Hell with that I call the BBB and filed a complaint and also contacted my attorney because something is way off here My attorney said if they cancelled everyones card then they should not be charging us a service fee so dont be surprised if everyone who has a salute card receives a letter from my attorney or the BBB My attorney is also including his fees so I dont pay He is going to make them PAY... If the BBB finds a problem they also will file a complaint I am not going to stop until they pay me... I didnt even receive a letter about no cancelation even when I went on to pay my bill everything was still showing up my limit everything so those ### are gonna PAY

I just spoke with someone and they told me the card program was cancelled on 15 November. Maintenance fees are being charged in accordance with the terms and agreement statement. I agree with everyones comment. It would have been nice for some sort of warning. I never heard of something like this happening to people who pay their card on time. Did anyone notice a credit increase before it was cancelled? Kind of funny when they knew they were going to close the program. However I don't think anything can be done because the services was used, meaning the credit was used to purchase products or services. Good luck to everyone.

My salute card was also cancelled. I made my payments and then recived a letter saying my card had been cancelled. They gave no reason why. The only diffrence for me is I did not just pay on my card, I was going to pay the day I recived the letter and decided not to when I read it. Know they want to charge me a late fee for a card they cancelled. Not because of late payments but what ever reason they have and will not say.

i have been looking for a telephone number and cannot find one. salute has my statement as no credit limit amount and no available money. does anyone have a phone number that you can share with me?

Yup this sucks! I've had mine for almost 2 years, at least my balance was low. it did help to rebuild my credit. Just bought a new car! May have lost a few bucks on the fee but it was still worth it.

I have been paying on time for 18 months to help restore my credit and I have just payed my yearly fee do I deduct that and my monthly fees do to lack of an active credit card I don't know

Everything mentioned in the other posts is pretty much true for me as well. I paid my Salute bill on time and IN FULL every month. In 18 months, I never carried a balance...EVER! I finally called salute when I noticed my most recent payment had been posted, but noticed I had no available credit. However, comparitavely speaking, I think I am one of the "lucky" ones. I actually talked to a human. Albeit, I think she was Osama Bin Laden's former goat hearding secretary. The accent was so thick I couldn't hardley understand her. Please note, I have no bigotries and I am not judging anyone with an accent. But at the same time...what good is customer service when you can't understand them? The only words I could understand were..."All salute cards have been cancelled, dirka, dirka, dirka, dirka, dirka, dirka, sorry for the inconvenience.

I, TOO, JUST HAD MY CREDIT CARD CANCELLED, A WEEK AFTER THEY UPPED MY LIMIT BY 200.00! WHAT A CRAP COMPANY.

HOWEVER I AM GOING TO PROCEED FURTHER INTO CHECKING THEM OUT, CALL THE LOCAL BBB, FIGHT LIKE HELL AND I WILL DEDUCT ALL SERVICE CHARGES, YEARLY CHARGES, ETC. AND JUST PAY ON THE PRINCIPLE. YOU MIGHT ALL WANT TO DO THIS, TOO.

I WILL KEEP YOU POSTED ON THE UPCOMING EVENTS!

I too am in the same boat as the rest of you. I just went onto their website to make a payment and found that my credit limit is zero, yet ofcourse my balance remains the same, although I have paid the maintenance fees that apply to the year which hasn't expired yet.

I did a little research and found that Salute Visa is owned by Urban Trust Bank. Visiting their website www.urbantrustbank.com I found the section for their credit cards. On this page it simply states "We are working to improve the information currently available on our credit card products. Please check back at a later date." The bank is located in Washington DC, however if they did sell you their product, you can contatc the better business bureau within your state to find out what legal recourse you may have for the finance and maintenance fees that are owed for services not rendered. (as they terminated the card early)

To protect your credit standing, I suggest continue to pay the balance off, yet fight for your money with the BBB. Banks like this shouldn't be able to prey on poor credit individuals who are willing to pay fees to build on our credit, just to have that opportunity taken away and the fees still remain.

I too just found out today that they cancelled our account. I've called and haven't even been able to get through on the customer service line. Any recourse?

What can we do about this. They charged me a annual fee of $150.00 then tell me my accounts been closed.I have no problem paying for charges I incurred but that 150.0 that should be illegal.Its a charge for 10/2008 through 10/2009. for a closed account ?

i am also a victim of this crappy company. i too spent an hour on the phone waiting to talk to someone i could hardly understand. she said all accounts were closed and it was no fault of mine- and that because of this it WOULD NOT affect my credit report. i find this impossible to believe since my debt ratio will definitely change. maybe they will make a notation saying they cancelled the accounts and it won't show against us? i read one persons comments though, that said this had already affected his score- so my recommendation is to check your credit reports and call your attorney general! if enough people call they will act upon the company and fix this problem.

You know there may be some legal recourse; I just paid an annual feel, of I believe $150 for the upcoming year just before all the accounts were closed. That should have never been charged. They knew they were closing the accounts.