Finally paid off your card and ready to say goodbye for good? Here’s what you need to know to cancel a credit card without damaging your credit report.
* Call your credit card company and tell the customer service representative that you’d like to cancel your card. They’ll probably try to talk you out of it, and may even offer lower rates or fees to try and convince you. But if you really want to cancel the card, be firm. Be sure to ask for the name of a person and an address that you can send a credit card cancelation request to.
* Write a short letter to that person or the credit card company in general if you can’t get a specific person’s name. Include your name, address and account number, and state that you’re canceling your account, and you’d like your credit record to reflect that request. Send by certified mail so that you can make sure the card company got your letter.
* Wait 30 days, and then obtain a copy of your credit report to ensure it says “closed at customer’s request.” Also, look to see that the account is actually gone from your credit report.
* If the report says “closed by creditor” that will reflect negatively on your score, so you’ll need to call the card company to tell them about the mistake and ask that it be corrected.
-- The Nest Editors
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