Are There Such Things As Credit Card Hardship Programs?
According to many experts, there is. Credit card hardship programs are setups internal to your card issuer which basically allows consumers in dire straits to hold off payments for a few months, to keep their balance from ballooning out of their control. Does your credit card company allow for one? There’s really no way to know until you call them up.
If you find yourself in need of a brief relief from your debt - even after you stopped using your card - that’s spiraling out of control, call up your card issuer and ask if it’s possible. If the agent at the other end of the line, immediately says no, call again and speak to a different agent. Having your payments on hold can prove especially beneficial, with your account not gaining late charges and other extra fees while you get your finances in order.
What You Need
First, you can’t ask for a hardship if you haven’t missed payments. Until you do, won’t even entertain the idea so don’t bother. You will also need to provide a valid reason to ask for the reprieve. Likely ones that will get your request approved include loss of a job, business losses and family sickness. Unfortunately, the fact that you blew all your money on a vacation or a new car isn’t going to cut it so best come up with something better if those are your real reasons.
Make sure you have mapped out a payment plan even before calling. Naturally, you’ll want to be specific about how long you will need payments to be held as well as when they can expect your regular payments to resume.
March 18th, 2009 at 4:31 am
I called my credit card company to request I be placed into a temporary hardship program until I can find another job. The agent asked me some basic questions about my expenses and income. She ended up denying me access to the hardship program because my debt to income ratio was too high. She said they look for “sustainable income” in order to make sure I can make the monthly payments. I don’t get this. Do you have any idea what the credit card company’s debt to income ratio number is when you are only receiving unemployment benefits? For example, Debt To Income of 50%, 60%, etc. She said to call back when I am able to reduce some of my other debt.
Thanks!