Community Chat

[Icegoddess]

I got an E-mail from Capital One today telling me that they have lowered my credit limit based on my buyng habits.  I don't know whether to be offended or grateful.   I pay my entire balance every month and I don't use it every month.   I do skip the reminders to update my income since I'm retired and I feel like it's really none of their business if I'm paying my full balance every time.

I wonder if that affects my credit score in a negative way. 

[Linmo]

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@Icegoddess wrote:

I got an E-mail from Capital One today telling me that they have lowered my credit limit based on my buyng habits.  I don't know whether to be offended or grateful.   I pay my entire balance every month and I don't use it every month.   I do skip the reminders to update my income since I'm retired and I feel like it's really none of their business if I'm paying my full balance every time.

I wonder if that affects my credit score in a negative way. 

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@Icegoddess You should check your account to make sure it's a valid email and not a hoax to get your personal info.  We use our Capital One account very mimimally if at all every month and haven't received a notice.  

[Icegoddess]

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@Linmo wrote:

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@Icegoddess wrote:

I got an E-mail from Capital One today telling me that they have lowered my credit limit based on my buyng habits.  I don't know whether to be offended or grateful.   I pay my entire balance every month and I don't use it every month.   I do skip the reminders to update my income since I'm retired and I feel like it's really none of their business if I'm paying my full balance every time.

I wonder if that affects my credit score in a negative way. 

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@Icegoddess You should check your account to make sure it's a valid email and not a hoax to get your personal info.  We use our Capital One account very mimimally if at all every month and haven't received a notice.  

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@Linmo the address appears to be a valid Capital One address, but I would never sign into my accout using a link in an E-mail.  It also had the last four digits of my card number in the E-mail.

[homedecor1]

@Icegoddess 

I was annoyed when I got the email from CitiBank telling me they lowered my credit limit (substantially) due to "not enough activity in past 6 months".  Reality, I haven't used this card in over a year.

I opened it for the reward program but then realized the "rewards" weren't that great🤷‍♀️ and only used periodically some small purchase on it to keep active. 

I was going to request it closed but remember reading closing cards hurts your credit score.

[tucsongal]

It hurts your credit score if you carry a balance, so you should be fine.

[sunshine45]

it will lower your credit score a bit.

anytime you have a drop in your available credit it will cause your score to drop.....whether it is closing a credit card or decreasing its limit.

my credit cards do send me emails sometimes to update my income and i fill it out.

[Nuttmeg]

@Icegoddess

Capital One is not making a transaction or interest fee each month on your credit card. 

The company has a online credit score tool Creditwize. It will help make suggestions to improve your financial health.

I do not provide any income updates unless absolutely necessary. 

[elated]

Your credit score is lowered if your using too much credit versus what is available. Carrying a balance on your credit card does not lower your score. If you make your payments on time, that is a major factor. If you open too many credit cards in a short period of time, that hurts your score. 

You can talk with an agent on line and find out their reason. It might help you understand why. 

[Pook]

@Icegoddess  It's because you are not using it and pay off each month so they are not making money on your account.  

[geezerette]

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@Pook wrote:

@Icegoddess  It's because you are not using it and pay off each month so they are not making money on your account.  

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@Icegoddess 

In essence, this is correct.

Your total available credit is carried as a liability by the issuing bank.  During times of hardship for financial institutions (like now), they like to/have to reduce their liability exposure as much as possible.

Because you don't use your credit card much they aren't making much money from you using your card compared to the liability you're causing them.  Thus, they reduce your total credit limit so they can reduce their liabilities and it shouldn't bother you since you don't use their card to close to its limit.  If you do need that extra credit limit for some reason, contact the bank.

I've had a couple of my credit cards do the same thing in the last few years since the Great Recession when the banks were under so much pressure to reduce their liability exposure.