Consumer complaint received 2016-04-29
Company: DISCOVER BANK
State: CA
Product: Credit card
Issue: Closing/Cancelling account

Complaint:
Summary : Discover Card closes account on first-class, long-term customer with excellent FICO score, for simply having " inactivity '' on account. 

I have had my Discover Card in question since 1995 ( 21 years ). I not only have an excellent history directly with Discover, but also have a very high FICO score which recently ranges from XXXX to XXXX ( with XXXX max ). On or about XXXX XXXX, I received a letter from Discover informing me that my account was suspended and would be closed within 30 days. The letter states that the closure was due to " Inactivity on your account. '' I then tried to use my credit card for a purchase, but the card was denied in the system, per the merchant. On XXXX XXXX and on XXXX XXXX, I spoke to a Supervisor using the card 's normal customer service phone number ; neither could assist to re-instate the card. 

Through online research conducted on my own, I found that Discover had a department called the " Executive Office of Customer Advocacy. '' I thought this dept would handle my concern in a more " independent '' manner, but I was mistaken. My assigned rep in this dept was XXXX XXXX. I explained to XXXX XXXX, that I thought I was being treated in an unjust manner as a long-term customer of Discover. For someone to have their account closed without any recourse, for simply not having any recent activity seemed unfair and silly. This has happened before, with other credit cards I own, and with all other credit card companies they have immediately allowed the card to be re-instated. 

One of my major concerns is that Discover 's action to close my account actually hurts my excellent credit score/history. This was not only explained in detail to the two supervisors that I had conversation with, but also with XXXX XXXX. By closing my account with 21 active years, this hurts the " length of credit history '' aspect of my credit score. Also, by closing my account with a credit limit of {$12000.00} this also hurts my credit score ; because a person 's total amount owed ( on all accounts ) is compared to your overall credit limits on hand. The two supervisors and XXXX XXXX, danced around this issue, and said they could not answer to this concern because they were not a " credit analyst. '' This is very basic credit/FICO information, and knowledge that anyone in their ( elevated ) positions should understand. ( The irony is that Discover 's widely advertised free ability to show MY credit score on my statement, will now reflect a lower credit score, due to them. ) XXXX XXXX promised to call me back within a short period of time. She never did. In my initial call with her, I explicitly informed her that it was OK to leave a voice mail. After about 13 days or so, I called her and she said that she had attempted to call me. I do not believe she was being honest with me. She then told me over the phone that Discover could not re-instate my account, and that she also sent me a letter stating the same. I had various questions for XXXX XXXX, but instead she gave me vague answers. Most of her responses had little to no connection to the actual questions I was asking. Instead of talking to me as a human being, she danced around the entire topic and conducted herself more like a high-class lawyer. This was a huge disappointment to me. 

In conclusion, I am just shocked that Discover Card would treat a customer in this fashion. There is nothing " negative '' that I have done wrong. Actually, in my opinion, I would describe the way I have conducted my financial affairs throughout my entire life as near-perfect. I have always treated my credit history and score in a very serious manner. Most credit card companies desire to find and hold customers with excellent credit, but instead Discover rejects individuals like me. For Discover to hurt me and others for simple " inactivity on account '' seems to be not only unfair, but unethical and unprofessional.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation