A little over two months ago I wrote about my first reinstatement request here and I’ve wanted to do a followup post sooner but I’ve been working 3-4 jobs and blogging on this topic hasn’t been on my priority list.
Anyway, I filed a complain with CFPB pretty much because I didn’t want to bother calling executive office (EO) . CFPB essentially launches your complain directly to EO and some nice lady from EO office calls you, hears you out, forwards your complain to the appropriate department, and calls you when she has an answer from said department.
Unfortunately, I missed the call from EO and was send a “we couldn’t reach you via phone” letter. This letter also included their response to my “why did you shut me down even though I was recently approved for Sears and AA card” question. I had posed that question pretty much because some people had been successfully reinstated after asking said question….but obviously I am not some people.
you can request account reinstatement up to one year from account closure
So I eventually called and got hold of the lady from Executive Response Unit. I tell her that I would like to be reinstated for these additional card (notice my initial request was only for AT&T Access More and Prestige). I think I also pointed out a few stats to show that I was a good boi (never missed payment, have had Citi cards for years, have had Prestige for multiple years, etc).
An interesting thing to point out that she could not put Sears nor Citi business card for reinstatement….some other department handles that or something.
Another interesting thing to point out is that Citi will not do a hard inquiry if you request reinstatement within 60 days. And surprisingly enough, as mentioned in the letter above, you can request reinstatement request up to 1 year from account closure date.
the usual we’re reviewing your request letter
We’re sorry for any inconvenience you may have experienced due to our decision to close your accounts. Part of our periodic review involves evaluating your credit report to see how you manage your credit relationships. Our records reflect that your accounts were closed on because your Experian credit reports show too many open revolving credit accounts and too many recent inquires. Therefore, the accounts will not be reopened.
Closing Thoughts
I know Chase lifts bans for “too many inquires and accounts” within a year or two but I am curious to see how long Citi takes to lift said ban or if they ever lift it at all.
