bad credit cards

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	Anonymous Complaint: First Premier Bank are liars!!!! I was two weeks behind on my card payment and so I called to make payment arrangements. The customer service person offered me a credit of $40 if I would pay my balance down with a post dated check. She told me that I would have the credit placed on my account the day after my check cleared and the funds would be available to me. I paid them $200 when I normally pay $20. They waited until my check cleared and then they froze my account stating that it took two weeks to verify the payment to my account. I spoke to a supervisor-Ricardo and he informed me that the service agent I spoke to lied to me to get me to make a large payment. They get commission on getting people to make payments. He said that he was SORRY but I could not access MY money until after two weeks had passed meanwhile I paid them with my gas and grocery money thinking I could use my card if I got in a bind. The only thing that is sorry is First Premier Bank. ! Cancel your card if you have one before you get screwed.
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	Ray Grebe 70 s val vista gilbert , Az. 85296 EmailAddress: rgrebe@cox.net Complaint: Southwest Airlines Visa by First USA has displayed the worst customer service I have ever dealt with. They decided, after promoting to use the transfer your balance to us, to increase my interest from 13.9% to 30% over night and with no reason or notice given. That increased the finance charges by 50% in one month! This is a nice tool, that they state they have the right to use at any time for any reason, to generate income for them with no recourse! The only option they gave me was to pay off the balance and cancel the account. I have had the card for almost two years and not missed one single payment nor a single late payment. These companies are getting us to sign-up and then once you use the services they rob you as the average person can not afford to simply pay off the debt in one month to stop the bleeding. I do have this option and will pay them the balance and the finance charge I agreed to and cancel the account!
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	Michael Church PO Box 14 Hoosick, NY, 12089 Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: I applied for a card over the phone that was supposed to have a limit up to $5000. When it came, it only had $300, of which $250 was used by there "fees". I called them and told them I wanted it immediatly settled, they told me it would be settled for $80. I gave them my account number over the phone for my checking. Two months later they called me to say I was overdue for my payments and owed over $300!!!!, I again reached a settlement of $229. They assured me over the phone that once they debited my account my card would be closed. They debited my account, but my card is still active and they posted a "deliquency" on my credit report.
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	B. Haynes Buffalo, New York Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: Dear First Premier Customer Service Dept.: I am writing to express my displeasure with the service that I have received by your company. I recently received my July 2005 credit card statement late, due to the fact that some of my mail was accidentally delivered to a mailbox belonging to another tenant in my building. I received my statement on Monday, July 25, 2005 and I immediately purchased a money order for $29.00 to cover the cost of my minimum monthly payment of $20.00 plus the applicable fees and charges that First Premier added on to the bill. I then mailed the payment (the same day) and I also called First Premier Bank to notify them that I had just received my statement and I did not want to be charged a late fee. On Wednesday, July 27, 2005 at approx. 2:00 P.M. I received a phone call at my place of employment from a customer service representative who explained to me that my statement was now $318.00 because First Premier not only charged me a late fee but, also an overdraft fee for the $8 dollars and change in fees that they added to my bill! I explained my problem to the customer service representative but, she was of no assistance. I feel that since I started my account in February 2005 I have been a loyal customer to First Premier Bank and I have paid my statements on time with no problems or complaints, but I am completely dissatisfied in this instance. I would like First Premier Bank to rectify this situation by removing the overdraft fee and the late fee from my bill. I feel that this is a reasonable request from a valued customer. If First Premier Bank cannot accommodate me, then, unfortunately I will be forced to take the appropriate measures to close my account.
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	John K. Gainesville, FL Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: The very first month, First Premier tried that "late payment" scam wiith me. From what I understand, First Premier Bank likes to try that with many first time customers. After all, it's a easy $25 and if it takes you over your credit limit, they might get another fee for that also. Luckily, I had sent my payment via EFT from Bank of America two days before it was due. I had proof and so did Bank of America that First Premier received the payment before the due date and Bank of America had electronic confirmation that the payment was received before the due date. It still took two weeks to fix and they claimed "sorry, it was a computer error"... Yeah, right! Then why did First Premier Bank reverse the late fee only AFTER Bank of America called them three times??? Now, a year later, First Premier continues their unfair and possibly illegal activities. I have talked to their agents and been told that First Premier will improve your credit by reporting your credit to the "four major credit reporting agencies" (the fourth one, for those who don't know about the new kid on the block, is Innovis, a company that compiles information to help credit providers screen their lists to decide who to not send offers to and who gets bombarded with them whether you want them or not. They also get information on anyone who moves and files change of address information). In June, 2005, I happened to pull my major 3 credit reports and discovered NOTHING about First Premier on them. I've had this account for 13 months, never late, never over my limit, always paid the minimum or more each month and nothing about this history on my reports. I complained to First Premier in June, 2005 and in July, 2005, M. Wilson of First Premier Customer Service promised me this would be resolved and to allow 60-90 days to appear on my credit report. Needless to say, as of November, 2005, still nothing on my last reports and First Premier has not responded to my second letter sent in October, 2005. My last resort, before seeking legal representation, was to file complaints with Bad Credit Cards, Consumer Affairs, Ripoff Report, the Better Business Bureau, the South Dakota State Attorney, and the Federal Trade Commission. Maybe, if they receive enough complaints, we can either get First Premier Bank to change their ways or get a State or Federal agency to investigate and prosecute them.
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	Victor EmailAddress: xx_victor_xx@hotmail.com Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: I received a call from First Premiers collection Dept. telling me I was past due and over my limit on my account and that I would need to pay not only the past due amount but my next months payment which was not due for 3 weeks. By the way I was only 10 days late at the time of the call from their collections dept. I was threatened with having this all sent to the credit bureau if I didnt comply. well I asked for a supervisor half way through our conversation I lost connection. I called back even though I had his name They would not connect me with him I was told there are over 200 people and she had no way of connecting me and that they dont have extensions. well I found out why because she stood to lose her commission if she didnt take care of me. So I ended up making a payment with her at a cost of $7 fee. But I refused to pay next months bill that was not due yet for 3 weeks. She agreed to that. When she told me what was due it didnt include the 7 dollar fee S! he said that will be on your next statemment So I said no at that time because this means now Ill owe intrest on their 7 dollar fee, But thats not all. Adding 7 dollars onto the next statement puts me back over my limit which would incure another 25 dollar fee. Now I went over my limit by 28 dollars 4 days ago. Today I received a notice from my credit report monitoring service that I was reported by first premier negativly to the credit bureau as being over my limit. 28 dollars and Ive been a customer for 6 years with this card and always make double payments. I dont know how a company of crooks are allowed to operate in the USA. STAY AWAY FROM FIRST PREMIER
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	Sarah Lawson Pendleton IN 46064 Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: I ordered this credit card because I was 19, a broke college student and my one and only credit card (a Capital One with a $300 limit) was maxed out. It seemed like a fair enough deal and I needed the "money" asap. First off, my card came with a measly $250 credit limit, most of which was already used up in "fees." I am smart enough now to know that any card worth having won't charge you $95 to get it. I kept my card up to date, making all my payments on time for about two years. I paid most of my bills over the phone, which is a mistake because they charge you a ridiculous amount of seven dollars just to use the pay by phone service. My bills were always due on the 22nd, and one month, on the 19th, I received a phone call from a very rude woman who worked for First Premier. She claimed that my card was over the limit and I had to pay $330 immediately over the phone. Not even realizing that my bill could not even possibly be due yet or wondering why in the world it was so much over the limit, I tried reasoning with the woman. I told her that I did not have that much money at the moment and would have to pay that weekend if I was expected to pay $330 right away. She responded b! y saying, "Well that's not really my problem, now is it?" She was rude, demanding, unreasonable, and condescending so I eventually hung up on the woman. I looked at my bill, which I had not opened yet, as I expected I would just pay it over the phone like usual, and the reason I was over the limit was because they had charged me my 50 or 60 dollar "annual fee" + over the limit charges ON THE FEE THEY IMPOSED. However, my minimum payment due was not $330, as the woman had told me, it was $80 and it was due on the 22nd, three days after this phone call was made. I got sucked into this First Premier scam because I had so little credit and wasn't getting any other credit card offers at the time. Now I have bought a car, paid off student loans, and would never go back to a rip off credit card company like this again. They have horrible customer service and try to screw people out of money in every way possible. Good credit, bad credit, no credit, DON'T GET THIS CARD!!! I hope this company gets sued.
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	MICHAEL WAGNER EmailAddress: the5wagners@sbcglobal.net Complaint_against: FIRST PREMIER BANK CREDIT CARD Complaint: Never late. ALWAYS PAY THE CREDIT CARD OFF IN FULL EACH MONTH. This month, I signed up for their INTERNET PAY SYSTEM, and they have suspended my account/locked up funds and I am unable to use it. They claim that they can do this for "security reasons" and that my funds will be available in 20-25 days. No one can show me where this is written in the agreement. No one will tell me SPECIFICALLY why my payment was held up this time - not a soul. It is very frustrating to have that money tied up. If I had known they would do this, I only would have paid the minimum amount due. I hope they get their asses sued. If anyone knows of a class action lawsuit against them, let me know - I'M IN!
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	Dexter Complaint_against: First Premier Bankcard Complaint: They froze my account until they can "verify" my payment. WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE THEY THINKING? IT's TIME FOR A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT AGAINST THEM AND THEIR CEO MIKE BEACOM! Dexter Atlanta, GA
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	Robert Dess EmailAddress: rdess@wi.rr.com Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: I've had this card for a while now and I have had no problems what so ever. It seems to me that you people are complaining about problems that you are causing yourselves. You know that you have a payment due every month, so if you don't get a bill, call them, look into it, just because you don't get a bill doesn't mean you don't owe them any money!Think about it people, pay the bill on time every month, more than the minimum so you won't go over with the monthly or annual fees that they add. All of the fees are stated when you sign up for a card, I've even called and asked when my annual fee is coming up and they told me. I've contacted customer service on several occasions and always dealt with polite reps, maybe those of you complaining should think about what really caused your problems. Was it First Premier, or was it something that you failed to do to satisfy your responsibilities???
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	Anonymous Oxford, MI Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: I applied for this credit card offer. I recieved in the mail 2 credit cards for my wife and I that are already active (talk about easy identity theft). This bank is going to charge me $198.00 for a $350.00 credit line.
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	Adrian Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: Well I have several credit cards, I got this one about a year ago, a pity 250 dollar credit limit with a 174 dollar transaction before I even got the thing that leaves me with 76 dollars. On top of that every other card I have ever gotten needs to be activated upon recieving so the bank can verify your the person that should be activating the card. Not in this case, card came in the mail already activated along with a statement showing several fees. Never got a bill will a card before. Don't they think it's kinda dangerous sending out an active line of unsecured credit? Here is a fee list (not all of them but just half) account setup, annual, participation, aditional card fee, and then go to the website to get your account setup well there is a fee for that. You wanna make a payment online, well another fee for that. You wanna get cash well 3% of what you borrow becomes a fee. Call to make a payment there is fee for that. If you return an item, there is a fee, want a credit limit increase there is a fee. Well ok but they are doing great things by reporting to main credit reporting agencies, never seen anything on my credit report from them (and it's been a year) So I'm going over my statements today and the minimum payment is 98$ looks like the annual fee came into place as well as a usage fee and an overdraft fee -- called a rep to dispute the charge and canceled the account, common sense tells me well I won't be using the card for another year so why do I need to pay an annual fee. Got a call about an hour later customer rep wants the money I owe them already, I told her well I'm not gonna pay the annual fee because I won't be using the card this year I just canceled it an hour ago, take away the charge and the overdraft and I'll pay off the entire statement. Then she goes on about how I agreed blah blah blah, so I tell her, all these conversations are recorded, send me a copy of a conversation where I was told there was all these hidden charges etc etc etc. She tells me I agreed to the terms on the pre qualified sheet, well I tell her I never got a sheet I got a call out of the blue on my private cell phone and it sounded like a wonderful deal at the time. So I told her off in the worst way to get it through her thick skull I'm not paying these charges and if you don't like it get a lawyer a sue me. She tells me if I keep cusing she will have to disconnect me, I tell her get me f***ing supervisor right now, she refuses to send me to a supervisor, I then hung up after arguing too long. Called back immediatly and talked to another rep, and was very polite and asked for a supervisor, well unfortunatly sir they are all busy, so I tell her ok well I'll talk to one of their supervisors, or one of theirs etc. She then tells me a supervisor will call me back, here I am typing this out waiting. I stress this to anyone my age who thinks their getting a deal do some research before you agree, normally when you think your getting a great deal, your really getting a pile of dump on your bedroom floor. I was never late on my bills, and always payed more than the min payment normally credit companies like that so they can increase your limit and live off you and everyone elses finance charges, and that is fair, but this my friends is unfair, dishonorable, grievous, illegal, immoral, improper, inequitable, inexcusable, unprincipled, unreasonable, and just down right vile. Good luck in your future endevors. -Adrian
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	RMH Midwest Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: I have a complaint against this business. I was contacted twice at my place of work by the same customer rep. Both times I asked "Nick" not to call me at my place of employment. Both times he was very nasty in comments, tone of voice, and tried to use intimidation tactics with me. He even went as far as to say that maybe he should speak to the "man of the house, to get things done" Well "the man" doesn't have his name on my account-and neither of us appreciated this comment laced with discrimination about me the "woman" not being smart enough to deal with a creditor. I remained calm with him and restated my request of no phone calls at work-a law clearly protects me. My employer even asked that he not call HIS place of business. After getting off the phone with "Nick" I called the company right away and spoke to a "Grant" who was polite and curteous. He apologized and took my work # off the contact info. We then setup a "settlement" offer to be taken care of by electronic check. As I did not have the checkbook with me at work, I promised to call back "Grant" with the neccesary info. (routing #, Account # etc.) Of course when I called back later after returning home I was told by a woman (Name??) that "There is not a Grant here." I even gave her his I! D # that he gave me. She replied, "We do not have ID numbers. I do not have any notes of your conversation with whoever it was you talked to and there is no such thing as a settlement offer. Your balance due is $360 due immediately. How do you want to pay that now?" I am VERY mad now-I politely end my conversation with her. The next day I talk to a "Abe Johnson" and he gets the settlement thing going. That was only after I tricked him into telling me exactly what "Grant" and I had discussed previously regarding the settlement offer. I feel Mr. Abe Johnson was trying to get me lost so that he could claim some other amount was due not the agreed. Anyway I was careful to inform him that our conversation WAS being recorded and that I would want confirmation numbers on the agreed payments. I had him repeat the amounts and dates that payments would come out of my checking account electronically. He then notified me that there would be a $11.00 processing fee attached to all three ! payments. Hold the phone! I was not EVER notified of that when arrangements were made with "Grant" the original dealmaker. Mr. Abe Johnson said that may have been left out of the original conversation because I was going to call back with routing/account #. This is just plain nonsense and unethical. Mr. Abe Johnson said that I should realize paying $11.00 extra dollars times the 3 payments would ONLY be $33.00 He said that it was a very small amount to pay for having the debt taken care of and cancelling card. Does anyone else realize that I HAD paid outrageous fees already. I remember the original phone solicitation was for a card with $5,000 limit. It came in the mail with a $300 limit-$150 in activation/usage fees. Be aware that this company will say and do anyhting. They are documented liars and thieves. I pray that someone somewhere reads all these complaints listed ahead of mine as well as mine and says ENOUGH! Take the advice DO NOT DO BUSINESS WITH THEM, unless you like to feel used and abused. I have wrote MANY complaints about this company to MANY places. I do not care what anyone thinks about it all being "petty". I feel I have the strength to voice my complaint and opinion. That is the one thing this corporate devil will not get, my silence!!!
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	k H EmailAddress: khabash@msn.com Complaint_against: first premier bank Complaint: Alert! First Premier Bank Visa Card has to be a scam! They issued me a card with a limit of $250 but billed me for approximately $200 immediately for fees, memberships .etc. They have fixed monthly fee even if the balance is zero. They charge for everything under the sun. On top of that, they have horrible customer service and they are dishonorable in their techniques. They sound more like pawn shop or a bill collector even when your bill is not late yet. My card was stolen from the mail and used by someone else for a small amount ($70.00). They canceled the card and issued another one. I followed all the steps to dispute the charges and asked them to close the account after I found out more about them (before I made any charges to the account of my own) They instantly declared that I was responsible for the charges, and therefore, responsible for all the other associated fees. I did pay all these fees well ahead of the any deadline but I need help! Does anyone know what I can do to drag them to court, have them reverse these decisions or find a louder platform to expose them?
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	Disgusted in California Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: I received a $300 credit card from First Premier Bank. I made my fist payment over the phone in mid-October. Well, I received a call today that I'm late on my payment. I told them I paid a few weeks ago. They said they never received anything. I called my bank, and my bank confirmed that First Premier did in fact receive payment. I called Premier bank and told them what my bank had said and they said my bank was lying to me! And they demanded payment! Well I cancelled the card immediately right there and then.
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	Anthony Coral Springs, Fl EmailAddress: aitaliano@aol.com Complaint_against: First Premier Complaint: I recently had a problem with the company when I had booked a room at Disney on the card and Disney charged 3 seperate times on my card as payments for a reservation and when the day of the reservation I decided not to stay at the hotel, Disney refuned me in full the amount of the room for 705 but First Premier decided that this was a fraud credit since they refunded me in one large amount instead of in small payments. They shut down my account and reported to the credit agancy fraud activity. Their customer service was rude and did not want to help, I had to find a way to get in touch with Disneys accounting so that they may prove why they had to credit the account. I've come to realize that this company is developed from a bunch of shysters. I'm still dealing with the situation. I have always paid my card in full at the end of every month and to be treated like a criminal is unreal. Even Disney could not beleave what is going on.
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	yuni gonzalez OLLOW FIELD cypress tx 77433 EmailAddress: yunigonzalez@sbcglobal.net Complaint_against: firts premier bank Complaint: becarefull with tis credit card they charge you to much fee once i got tis credit card they charge me$75.00 dollars i did pay on time and i ask then you wont charge the late fee and they say no but they still did it so i have 300.00 dollar limit and they frozed my account until i pay most of my account they're a fraud so watch out people don't apply for this credit card i try tomake payment online and ican't find it why, cause they want tocharge you late fee they liar''
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	Anonymous Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: Well from what im reading about the company all the stuff you people are complaining about is stuff that you failed to read or failed to do and your just blaming the company. Ive been with Premier bank for 3 years now and ive never had a problem i understand what they are doing and have read all of the terms and conditions of the credit card where it says everything about the fees and the payment holds that they do. They list the fees on the application and also notify you of them when you apply over the phone and online, you really can't miss it. And even when they send the credit card to you they have the initial start up fees listed right to the left of the credit card in bold and fancy letters! I mean seriously, you really don't have to treat the workers that way either they are just doing they're job, they just happen to pick up your call. Im glad to be with First Premier and continue to refer my friends to they're company
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	David Paynter Complaint_against: First PREMIER Bank Complaint: Four years ago I had credit problems and no credit card. Aware that I really needed to begin building some positive credit history, I signed up for a secured MasterCard with First PREMIER. The one positive of the secured card program was that I avoided most of their ridiculous start-up fees. I only had to pay the $40 yearly fee and the $1 monthy fee. But I also had to send them $200 of my money to open the account -- money they assured me would earn interest and be returned to me if/when I closed the account. (As mentioned in other comments, the $7 fee for making an online payment is one of the most insulting things I've ever seen. Any other credit card issuer encourages online payments because of how quickly and inexpensively they can process an EFT. But PREMIER charges you $7 for the priviledge of getting their money from you faster and cheaper. It should tell you exactly what kind of company they are.) Four years later, my credit is in good shape and I now have legitimate cards through real banks -- banks whose sole aim isn't to nickel and dime you for every fee they can think up. I paid off my balance with PREMIER in October, then waited a month to make sure no other charges were going to post. As soon as I received the November statement showing only the $1 monthly fee, I paid it immediately. On November 13th -- once I was sure that payment had processed -- I called PREMIER customer service and canceled the card. I asked how quickly I could expect a refund of my $200 deposit (plus almost $19 in interest it had earned). I was told -- get this -- 30 to 60 days! I wasn't happy, but I didn't push the issue -- getting the money back was my primary concern. Still, I really expected it to be closer to 30 days than 60. I work for an insurance and financial services company that is far larger than PREMIER, and I know how long it takes to process these things. To even say 60 days leads me to believe they think their customers are complete idiots who don't understand how things work. By January 10th -- about 57 days later -- I still don't have my money. During this time I have received two monthy statements from PREMIER indicating that they owe me a refund, but they can't seem to process the actual check. So I call PREMIER customer service back and explain this, and ask why I haven't received my money yet. The customer service rep then tells me that it actually takes 60 to 90 (!) days for deposit refunds, but she would be happy to go ahead and expedite that check so I get it within 7-10 days. I thanked her and got off the phone, shaking my head at the ever-changing story. Well, now it's January 18th -- still no check, and two more days to see if they live up to this latest promise. If they don't, I will file a complaint with the BBB. I am no longer a PREMIER customer (and haven't been in over two months), yet for some reason they think it's appropriate to keep hanging on to my money. That $219 should be earning interest for me, not for them. Bottom line, I wouldn't do business with PREMIER again if they were the last credit card company on earth. They are the worst kind of predatory company, claiming to help people re-establish credit when all they're really doing is charging outrageous fees to take advantage of those who can least afford it. If you're a good customer who pays your bill on time, you aren't any more valuable to them, because they aren't set up for good customers. They don't know what good customers are. PREMIER views every card holder as a high risk proposition who deserves to be gouged. Avoid them at ALL costs. BTW -- for all unhappy First PREMIER customers, the President and CEO of Premier Bankcard is Miles K. Beacom. I'm sure he can be reached using the 900 W Delaware Street, Sioux Falls SD 57104 address on the website. I encourage everyone to write Mr. Beacom and tell him what you think of First PREMIER's business practices.
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	Anthony Zaradich, Jr. EmailAddress: sephyz0r@gmail.com Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: First off, I'm 19 years old. New start, new beginning, new world. I knew there were Credit Card scams, but nothing to this extent. I figure myself an intelligent person, but since I'm inexperienced financially I had no clue what to do. To the people who are thinking about getting this card, don't. I knew the card limit was going to be low due to my credit, age, etc. So when I got a limit of $250 I shrugged it off and thought it to be normal for someone in my case. I then opened the papers with the card and saw that there was a bill. $174 dollars in processing fees. Again, I thought in order to establish credit with a cardholder like this you had to pay certain one-time fees along with it. Monthly statement comes around and I send in the payment that was required. I get a call from a representative a week later saying they never received the payment. I checked my statement with Chase and the check I sent them had cleared. I called them back and told them that the bill was paid and I had proof that the check with them cleared. They then try to sucker me into paying the full balance, saying that if I don't then they will have to charge me an overdraft fee and some other processing fees. I mean, what the hell? I had proof I paid the bill. Today, I am calling and cancelling my card before they can charge any me anything else. I feel sorry for anyone who fell into this scam like I did. DO NOT get this card. You will be paying out the ass for it.
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	Bob Pierce Oklahoma Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: I could go into a long similiar story of First Premier Bank card like others on here. Let me say this, I have several other bank cards the best is HSBC or also known as Orchard Bank. They don't charge a stupid $7.00 to $11.00 to make a payment. IT's FREE. Online or by customer service. They don't lie about their interest rate like First Premier. Think about it. 9.9% interest but you get charged to make payments. They hold your money for nearly 30 days. If you are late by a day, you get charged a $25.00 late fee and if you are close to your credit limit they charge the late fee first then your charges then charge you a ridiculous amount for going over your limit. You will take a $200 balance to a $300.00 balance just by the way they post payments. DON'T USE THIS CARD!!! They tell everyone they are credit rebuilding company. If this is credit rebuilding--don't want it. Also, if you have to many accounts that hurts your credit and you will have to have more than one ! account because the biggest credit line they give is $300.00. What the heck does $300.00 buy these days? A doughut and a tank of gas. First Premier's customer service majorally lacks professionalism. They assume everyone they deal with is a crook like them. You see in others what you see in yourself. They are unprofessional, uninformative and lack in genuiune concern for their fellow Americans. If you sincerely want to better yourself and your spendability...close your accounts ASAP.
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	Anonymous Complaint_against: First premier bank Complaint: I received a belligerant message on my cell phone from someone with premier bank. After trying two days to contact them to let them know they had the wrong number and to let a supervisor know the nature of the messages that were being left, I was told the message was of a private nature! Oh really? Then don't a message with the wrong number. I offered to forward the message so a supervisor could listen to it, but they were not interested. The message was very offensive and threatening. I don't even have an account current or in the past with this bank! The supervisor informed me I can disregard the message, but I wonder what happened to the credit of the person they were trying to get. In addition, at the end of the phone call with the supervisor the two bankers I had talked to were still talking to each other on the line and validated that it was the wrong number after they thought I had hung up. I'm sure this is all taped if someone were interested. They called from
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	Deborah Los Angeles, CA 90031 EmailAddress: smarttech2121@yahoo.com Complaint_against: First Premiere Visa Complaint: I received a credit card from First Premiere. First Premieresent me information about getting insurance on the card which stated that for a monthly fee of $5.99, if I ever became unemployed or disabled they would make the monthly minimum payment. I became unemployed and contacted them immediately, like the next day. I spoke to a reprenstative named Mike and he told me not to worry about it that he would take care of it. I did not even think about it until 2 months after that phone call I got a bill from them and it should that I was 2 months behind and there was a service fee. I then contacted them again and spoke to someone named Susan and she stated that the previous person I spoke to did not put down that I was unemployed. I explained to this representative that I could make a minimum payment of $25.00 per month since I had not yet found a job and was only getting unemployment. She told me that the $25.00 payment would not be enough to satisfy the $650.0! 0 debt on the credit card. SO I said that was all I could afford and she ended the call. She did not even help me come up with a solution instead they sent my account to collections eventhough I was paying for this service. I was a customer of theirs for over 5 years and this is the way they treat you! BEWARE OF THEIR OFFERS BECAUSE THEY DON'T BACK THEM UP!!!
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	roger franklin austin, TX 78759 EmailAddress: treyfranklin@msn.com Complaint_against: FIRST PREMIER BANK Complaint: First premier bank is a company that issues credit cards to people who have credit problems. They billed the annual fee against my credit card, per the agreement. I called in to cancel this account and pay off my little 112.00 balance in full. They admit that the annual fee is billed for the upcoming fiscal year. Since I want to cancel, I would like to get the prorated portion of my 11 months of credit. THEY REFUSE TO GIVE ME A PRO-RATED PORTION OF MY ANNUAL FEE BACK. So, in short, they are charging me an annual fee for a period of time that I will not even have the card......These people scam consumers who have no place to turn when trying to rebuild their credit, responsibly.
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	anonymous Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: They froze my account because (and this is what they said) I made two payments on the card in one month. Why would a credit card company want to PUNISH a customer for making good on a payment? I've never been late and I had the money so I wanted to make an extra payment. This company is nuts and needs to be taken down and out of commision. While having my account frozen - they've continued to charge me for other little things, a dollar here, a dollar there. I have faxed their company a copy of the checks of the payment that has been taken out of my bank account. They HAVE my money, but will not credit my account. WTF is going on here? The check has cleared. They have my money! Yet, I am unable to use my credit card. I just don't get it. They say it takes another five days to handle it after another girl yesterday told me it would only take a day. I'm ready to drive to Sioux Falls myself and pay a little visit to their offices. I am closing my account and ! paying it to zero the second I get my next paycheck.
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	Kenny TX Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: I got suckered into what seemed like good intro rates. I realized that this was not the case after I set up my internet acces and got all sorts of fees which is usually free with my other cards. I cancelled my card after about 6-8 months. I paid over 400 in fees and other misc charges for a card where I only charged about 200. It was a hassel to cancel and during the process another monthly fee shwed up after I paid account in full i paid it to keep the account clear. I hope they get what's coming to them with all of the law suits.
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	Anonymous Complaint against: FIRST PREMIERE BANK Complaint: FIRST, I DIDNT COME LOOKING TO COMPLAIN, JUST TRYING TO UNDERSTAND MORE ABOUT THIS COMPANY. I HAVE READ AND SEEN ALOT, HAVE NO IDEA WHATS TRUE, WHATS JUSTIFIED, ALL I KNOW IS WHAT I HAVE EXPERIENCED AND IT IS CERTAINLY CONSISTENT WITH THE MAJORITY. NOW I FEEL ABSOLUTELY COMPELLED TO BESTOW ANOTHER WARNING ABOUT FIRST PREMIER. ALTHOUGH MY ACCOUNT HAS BEEN PAID IN-FULL EVERY MONTH THAT I HAVE HAD THIS CARD (2 YEARS), THESE IDIOTS CALL ME CONSTANTLY SAYING THEY HAVENT RECEIVED A PAYMENT,AND IF I DONT PAY IMMEDIATELY VIA PHONE, THE ACCOUNT GOES TO COLLECTIONS. SINCE MY PAYMENTS ARE MADE DIRECT DRAW, I DISPUTE THEIR CLAIM AND PRESENT TO CONTACT THE BANK TO VERIFY AND WILL RETURN THEIR CALL WITH A TRANSACTION NUMBER. THEY TELL ME THEY WILL NOTE MY ACCOUNT AS "UNCOOPERATIVE" BECAUSE I AM UNWILLING TO SET UP PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS. ON TWO SEPERATE OCCASSIONS I ASKED THE REP FOR A RETURN NUMBER AND WAS REFUSED, SAYING "I'LL JUST CALL BACK LATER."(DOES THIS SOUND LIKE A CC SCAM TO ANYONE? PLEASE REPLY AT THE SITE) THESE PEOPLE ARE CROOKS, TOP-OF-THE-LINE-CHEATERS-THE MANY, MANY, COMPLAINTS HERE -AND ON NUMEROUS OTHER SITES -ARE A TESTIMONY TO THAT. TO THE (FEW)PEOPLE THAT HAVE SPOKEN DEFENSIVELY FOR THIS COMPANY, YOUR VOICE DOES NOT STAND AGAINST ALL OF THESE VICTIMS AND THEIR SIMILAR EXPERIENCES WITH FIRST PREMEIR. GOOD FOR YOU THAT YOURS IS A GOOD EXPERIENCE. LIFE MUST DEFINITELY BE ROSES FOR YOU. BUT YOU HAVE CRITICIZED THE REST OF US FOR NOT BEING AS FORTUNATE. YOUR BEST DEFENSE TO ANY OF THESE COMPLAINTS IS STEREOTYPING THE VICTIMS INTO LESS THAN CREDIBLE PEOPLE. ARE YOU SO NARROW-MINDED TO THINK THAT BECAUSE ONE OR TWO PEOPLE CAN HAVE A GOOD EXPERIENCE WITH THIS COMPANY THAT EVERYONE ELSE IS FULL OF MALARKY? OR TO MAKE IMPLICATIONS ABOUT OUR TESTIMONIES BASED ON YOUR BIASIES? THAT SOUNDS AWFUL RIGHTEOUS TO ME. IT SEEMS YOU SHARE THE SAME LACK OF COMPASSION AND SYMPATHY FOR OTHERS THAT FIRST PREMIER HAS. SO MY HOPE FOR YOU IS THAT FIRST PREMIERE RECOGNIZES YOU IN THEIR POOL OF FOOLS AND WAVES ANOTHER YEAR OF INSOLENT FEES AND HARASSMENT FOR YOUR LOYAL SERVITUDE TOWARD THEM.
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	Anonymous complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: First of all, this isn't a complaint, but I don't have any other option for that. I'm actually an employee for Premier Bankcard. I work in customer service and all around am nice to everyone I speak to. Yes, there will be some reps with every company who aren't so nice, which isn't good. Everyone's first complaint about the account are the set up fees. Yeah, $178 is a lot of money. If you don't want to pay, close the account before you use it, then you're not held responsible for the fees. Another option is to call in and complain about the fees and say you want to close the account, the customer service rep will then usually transfer you to retention where they will offer to waive part of the fees (usually around $50-$70, but still better than paying for it all). Every month on the account there is a servicing fee of $6 that will bill. This one fee is worth it as this is what allows premier to report every month to the bureaus. Someone said in an earlier post that it wasn't showing on their credit report, in response to that, you would actually need to file a dispute with the bureaus to get the info updated. On to the payment holds which is also another huge inconvenience. The first payment you make on the account when you open it WILL have a hold on it for up to 15 days. If you're account is over the limit or past due when you make a payment, these will also be held for up to 15 days. The reason it's 15 days, as I was told by a manager anyway at premier, is because you can have the payment returned as unauthorized up to 15 days after it's cleared. (I, however, am not entirely sure if that's true or not) No, the hold will NOT be taken off early for you even as a one time courtesy. The only way it will be taken off is if the payment you made was either a western union quick collect or a bank wire as those are guaranteed funds. Big inconvenience, I know. Unfortunately, we can't help you at all when this happens. If you go over the credit limit, it WILL report negatively to the credit bureaus. If you go over the limit by less than 10% you will NOT be charged an over limit fee. If you miss one payment, you will NOT be reported to the bureaus. If you miss 2 payments it will show on the report as 30 days late, 3 payments missed shows as 60 days, and 4 shows as 90 etc.. Late fees and over limit fees. A lot of people say something along the lines of 'I'll never be able to pay the account off if you keep billing me these fees!' Ok, if you're billed 2 late fees, and it goes late again, you will NOT be charged another late fee. Same for over limit fees, if it's over the limit 2 mos in a row, you'll get the 2 fees, then on the third month, you won't. The company is an anal-money-hungry giant, but, they aren't completely heartless. Don't use this card as you're 'be-all end-all' credit card, you have to be careful with this one. Yes, it WILL help build you're credit, but if you make a habit of not paying on time and going over the limit, it will also destroy you're credit. I may not agree with a lot of the things the company does, but what they say they do is true. I know this sounds stupid, but, I personally had horrible credit, I couldn't even get a debit card for my checking account.. I had opened an account with premier before I worked for them, and still have it today. But, originally, after having the account opened for around maybe 18 mos, my credit score was 760. The account I have with premier has never been over the limit, and I have never been late, so in other words, they've done nothing but report positively for me every month I've had the account open. If anyone has any questions, just make a post and when I get a chance I will reply. Please no 'You work for the devil!' or calling me names and such. I hear enough of these while working! ;)
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	Mark Conley oklahoma city ok 73112 EmailAddress: MarkStevenConley@aol.com Complaint_against: First premier Bank Credit reestablishment credit cards Complaint: Oh, i d say they do have a distinctive style. I have been whamed twice by first premier. the first time was to restablish credit after a bankruptcy in 2002, the second time is recently. the first time, i was required by my state job to have a credit card to provide for my expenses to out of state classes, and to fund overnight stays for inspections and the like. because of a bankruptcy in 1997, i had lost all my credit, and didnt figure anyone like a bank would offer me one. then i saw the on-line adds for first premier bank. they had starter credit cards, with some really steep fee, but never the less i took a chance, and ordered a visa and a master card from this organization. since i needed all the available credit, i went to my bank and using my car for colataral, secured a personal loan to pay off both cards. every thing was set. that is, till the first hidden rule came into effect. my wife had taken out several of these cards, in my name: instead of two cards, i had five. and thes cards were in over their limit. before i applied for the other cards. now, what type of organization, that has your social, address, and the like, knowing that you supposadly have three bad credit cards in your possesion, would give anyone two more? you guessed it. First Premier. Only when those three other cards went into problems, they froze all the card accounts. all five of them. especially after id payed the two off. I only found out about this when i went to use the card, and it wouldnt work. Surprised number 2: they will give the cards to whomever has your history, and without asignature. all my wife had to do was make sure i never saw the mail, and she used those cards hot enough. right up till they went over the limit, they kicked in those special fees, and she decided she wasnt goint to play. so with in their rights, they froze my accounts too. I spent two miserable years driving my car out of state and living in it for all those special schools i had to attend to keep my job. it was a final school of three weeks in june that was the straw that broke the camels back. in 2006, after the second bankruptcy, i decided to try and get a credit cardit. so like an idiot, i found the only person that would take a chance on me was...first premier bank. only now they were just chock full of fees. but a card is a card. well like an idiot, i was near the credit limit, and they popped that 48 dollar anual fee on me. not only did it push it over the limit, it insituted the 25 dollar over limit fee, the shut down the account (immediately i might add) and acording to the online statement, i had until 1 sep 2007 to pay it. first they called. then they sent the letter. by then, i had already used the online feature to schedule a payment. it showed their bank had received it. yet the customer service rep said it would be a week before they could verify the amount, and the account would remain closed until then. by the way, they had already reported the account closed, to all three credit groups. exactly on the 8-7-2007 when the over limit happened. such efficent people they are. the account is still closed as of 8-21-2007. they arent going to work for my benifet. but its their world, and they can have it asd deep and far as they want to push it. in my opinion, you can get a much better starter card from orchard bank. at least they dont try to screw you without kissing you first. Let the young ones beware: dealing with First premier Bank and their credit program is like waiting for an accident to happen.
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	Martha Sioux Falls, South Dakota Complaint: What you people complaining about First Premier Bank don't know is that Miles Beacom, one of the honchos at the bank, has recently been honored by having the business school at the University of South Dakota named after him. T. Denny Sanford, who made billions by milking his customers, donated a big wad to the school and insisted that it be named for his right hand man. Sanford's name is plastered on everything else around here. He got his start in the credit card industry by getting in touch with the Citibank president twenty years ago who'd just been fired and having him instruct him in how to set up one of these operations. Our newspaper just did a big feature on the misery that credit cards have brought to so many people, and First Premier was front and center. Citibank came to town when the legislature voted to dump the usury limit. We also offer reliable employees who work for lousy wages. The credit card business has really helped Sioux Falls grow, but at what cost? The whole thing makes me sick. And never would I consider sending a son or daughter to the Miles Beacom School of Business at USD!
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	joyce chase tulsa,okla 74112 EmailAddress: joyinokla@yahoo.com Complaint_against: first premier bank Complaint: ive had a first premier bank card for several years paid it off several months ago and cut the card up and mailed it back to them and they keep sending me statements for yearly fees for over $76.00.i keep sending the statements back with notes telling them i sent it back and i dont owe them a thing but they are not bright enough to read i guess, dont ever get a card from them , they are to dumb to understand anything you tell them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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	Dimitri B. Queens , NY, Complaint_against: FIRST PREMIER BANK ,Sioux Falls,57117 Complaint: FIRST PREMIER BANK located in Sioux Falls,57117, send me a statement credit card account of $ 250.00 credit line without having my request to open this account and with a balance of $ 170.00 charge already and a bill to pay $ 25.00 first payment. I never received a credit card from FIRST PREMIER BANK for this account and the bank statement show a balance of $ 170.00 . This is a example of credit card abuse and steeling money from people. I will post very soon the bank statement. Thank you,Dimitri B.
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	T. Hodges Lowestoft EmailAddress: trevor@oultonfinance.com Complaint_against: Premier Solutions Complaint: Please be wary of these people they will take your money by card they cant provide the services they state they can do which is to promote your web site to a top rating and I have an email where they state this quite clearly. They mess you around promise to refund and todate we ahve received nothing and the take your money by card but state they can only refund by cheque which nodate has not happened.
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	annonyms Complaint_against: first premier bank Complaint: This is not a complaint!!!!!!!!!!! Don't you people realize if you screw up in the credit world you have to pay for it!!! Come on none of you seem very educated. When you file bankruptcy 2 times what do you think!! You are all called HIGH RISK CUSTOMERS. I am a credit specialist and I like to read these websites and see just how ignorant people in the world are. You complain about checks being held until they clear hello so you can go charge up the card and have your check come back nsf and then what, not only that but it also depends on how long it takes for YOUR bank to clear the check completely which can take up to 21 days!!!! Wake up and realize the company isn't screwing you over you are just to dumb to understand simple facts of life!!!
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	Jane Complaint_against: Premier Bankcard Complaint: I received a card that has already been activated and I didn't apply for it. I don't want this card so I called the phone number on the enclosed letter butr it is automated and I can't talk to anyone. Does anyone have a phone that I can call and talk to a "real" person?

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	Chris EmailAddress: cayers71@msn.com Complaint: This company scams vulnerable people! I applied for this card because my credit is below average, and I agreed to the gross fees and disadvantageous terms because I need help rebuilding my credit. Long story short, Premier Bankcard's business practices are geared toward making it difficult to maintain an account in good standing, and furthermore, are downright despicable. My evidence... Fact: Premier Bankcard (PB) charges a fee for accessing your account online. Ok, I can live with this one...I mean, these guys loaded my $250 credit limit with $170 in fees right out of the gate, so no surprise here. Fact: PB charges a setup fee for online payment and a $7 fee every time you make a payment online. This makes no sense. Online payments lower overhead for the card company, and virtually eliminate returned payments...why would they penalize their customers for saving them money? Fact: PB will hold cleared/verified electronic payments for up to 15 days. Why is this? Fact: I submitted an electronic payment to PB that did not reach my bank for payment for 11 days. Again, why? Electronic payments can be virtually instantaneous. Not to mention that the online payment system botched my first payment after issuing a payment confirmation. Fact: PB's privacy statement reads "we may disclose [nonpublic] personal information about you~" Indeed, I began receiving SPAM in my email inbox and junk mail in my mailbox immediately after opening my account. There is more, but I will spare you the details. Shame on me, Caveat Emptor and all that...next time I will be sure and research more carefully, but as you can see, this is not a company you want to do business with. They do not respect their customer's privacy, do not practice above board business ethics, and take advantage of the very people that need a helping hand. Stay Away!
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	c vasquez Complaint_against: Premier Mastercard Complaint: sable withiI was thrilled when I originally got the credit card offer. After paying off a bankruptcy, I had waited several years to try and get credit again. I started by getting a decent loan to replace my 20-year-old car, that finally died. After that, I started thinking about buying a home, and decided I needed to build my credit. I got an Aspire Visa card, and have had absolutely no problems with them, although their interest rate is 19%. I was so thrilled to get the offer from Premier Mastercard, because their offer was a 9.9% interest rate. My problems started when I made my first payment. On January 5th, 2006, I went online to pay what I knew I owed. I had kept my credit card receipts, and was aware of exactly how much I had charged. When I tried to type in the amount I owed, I got an error message that I could not pay that amount, because I did not owe that amount. ($203.17) The credit card company believed I only owed $186.00. So, I proceeded, and just paid the $186.00, electronically. With Aspire, payments made online are posted in 10 days. I assumed the same would hold true with Premier. I waited 10 days, and tried to use my card. "Card Declined." Kind of embarrassing, at the check-out line of your second job. At this point, I emailed the company. I was told it took 20 days to process a payment. On January 25th, I tried to use my card again to pay my tuition bill, at my school (please note, 20 days had passed since I had made my electronic payment.) I had also checked my bank account, and my payment had been debited on the same day I had paid, January 5th. At this point, I was a little irritated. I called the company. The operator who answered couldn't find my account because there was a completely bogus phone number accounted to it, and she continued to give me a rough time, acting as if I were suspect of something. She also stated that my card had "lots of charges from a foreign country on it." I asked where those charges had occurred and she stated "State College, PA." I live in State College, PA. I told her what the problem was, and she assured me, my card would be un 1-2 hours. The next day, I tried to pay my tuition bill again. Do I need to tell you, my card did not work? On January 26th, I called and asked for a supervisor, and spoke with a "Judy" and a "Tim". I was told that when I had called in the night before, someone realized that my attempted overpayment should have put my card in a "security hold" status, while the credit card company contacted my bank to make sure my account was legitimate. However, back on January 5th, when my account should have went to security, it never did. It finally went to security on January 25th, when I called in. I was told it would take 24-48 hours for my card to be activated again, after my bank was called. I spoke with my bank on January 31st, and they noted on my account that they had told the credit card company that my account was valid, three days previously. Today is February 1. I tried to pay my tuition bill again...You got it! My credit card still doesn't work!!!! I am so frustrated, I entirely anticipate contacting the Better Business Bureau, and perhaps an attorney. Any suggestions the community might have would be greatly appreciated.
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	Anonymous Complaint_against: PREMIER Bankcard Complaint: When you open the card you can range from fee's between $155-$199. On top of that if you do a check over the phone with a rep its $11, with the automated system or online is $7. Then you cant do a Money Gram only Western Union Quick Collect and thats $12.95 plus state tax. the only way you wont get charged to make your payment is if you send it in. If you miss one payment they call you the day after your statement prints. They demand the balance in full with a check over the phone. if you cant do that they want you to post-date one in which they pull it a day early. If you need to delete it you have to call in a day ahead of time or they wont do it. They tell you they cannot wave the check by phone fee, which is a complete lie. the representatives can give you a credit up too $100 but they say how much of a payment. they manipulate you into a higher payment for a credit. they said they wouldnt give me my late fee back unless i paid at least $100 when it! was the first time i was late and the minimum due was only $40. They dont care if you dont recieve your statement in the mail. Its funny that if you dont recieve there statement its your fault but they dont recieve your payment its your fault...sounds contradicting! They are the biggest scam, liars, and think of you as a number not a person.
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	anonymous SD EmailAddress: javah_40@hotmail.com Complaint_against: not a complaint -Premier Bankcard Complaint: Well, I am actually an employee of Premier Bankcard Inc, stop there and before you bash me listen to what I have to say! I completely agree with some of the complaints posted here! However keep in mind this card is directed towards people who need to improve there bad credit or build on to non-existing credit. Being a single mom I understand the need for credit because who can afford paying a high-interest car or house loan. 1st thing to keep in mind is that when we basically hand out low limit credit card to people who have 1,2,3 or more charged-off accounts or a couple of bankrupty reports then we have to have our own insurance. The start up fees on the account are a little much usually $178 for a $250 limit which leaves the consumer only about $70- $80 available. Its not much but so many times I have seen consumers charge it up in one day to McDonalds, Walmart, Liquor stores, etc. Then before you know it you either forget or just don't feel like making the minimum $20 monlthly payment and BAM you get a $25 late fee and $25 overlimit fee. Fees are assessed on pretty much any type of loan yet customers can't seem to understand why they got it!?!?! Get a Clue!! Also, as long as you have never had a previous returned payment you shouldn't ever have to worry about waiting 15 days to use your credit card. Check that limit occasionaly because chances are if you have been late or over the limit and you haven't callrd customer service then your card will have a temporary FROZEN status! This may also be for your protection. How many times have you lost a credit card or your wallet and worry about someone using your credit card? Well our security department keeps tabs on all suspicous activity on every credit card and will most likely put a halt on someone else spending your dough. So again, the card does come w/ a price and maybe some long delays with payments or using the card, but if you use it the right way you won't have to worry about most of these things! So if you have bad credit and can handle the start up fees I know for a fact that this card can help you. Also you have to pay the rest of your bills on time!!!!!! And a note to all the scammers out there. If you tend to open a lot of credit cards and charge them up and never intend on paying on them, this isn't the card you want to scam! $70 in purchases turns into $400 of debt in about 6 months and trust me once the card charges-off and goes to and outside collection agency you aren't gonna be cut any breaks and will have to PAY UP! So use it right and reap with the rewards/ or abuse the priveledges and PAY THE PRICE!!
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	anon Complaint_against: not a complaint - Premier bankcard Complaint: I have this card. Fees fees fees! Wow, they can get you on about everything, and i see why. I am a financial consultant. I got this card before i started my career after a few slip ups with bad debt. i would have never been able to pursue this career had i not recieved this offer. You have to know what you're dealing with. Face it, your credit sucks. would you offer $250 to someone who may likely decide to blow you off. Educate yourself. Pay on time. and keep an eye on your account. It's simple! the 19.9% APR is actually the penalty rate. It starts at 9.9% ans stays there until you screw up. even then paying off your balance or making some consecutive good payments will drop it back down. all im saying is you need to realize by mistakes you have made you become a risk to a companies finances.
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	antionette williams benton harbor michigan 49022 EmailAddress: amwilliams@aep.com Complaint_against: premier bank Complaint: Premier Bank are liars they tell you can get a credit regardless of your credit history that you will be approved. Well I felt out an application and was denied. Even Orchard bank to are liars. I know that there are other credit card companies that will be able to help us with our credit to me that false advertisment.
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	jason Complaint_against: first premier Complaint: to deborah, who left a complaint regarding the insurance on her credit card. Premier Credit Protection is an optional service that is billed at .89 cents per $100 of the balance you owe, and it is not billed at a standard rate of $5.99 per month. I am an employee of First Premier Bankcard, and we do, by law, have to notify our customers of our Payment Verification Process, alot of customers call in to complain because of set up fees, annual fees, and other complaints. We do notify our customers of annual fees being billed on their prior statements, so be responsible and read your statements. The late fees are billed just like any other company, if your payment is late, expect a fee. The terms and conditions of the card are not hard to understand, its people who apply for the credit card who dont read the terms are leaving all the complaints. get real people and pay your damn bills
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	Trish H. North Carolina Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: I've had my meager little First Premier card for exactly one year...have always made my payments early and ALWAYS pay much more than the minimum payment. My card was mid-billing cycle in May, when I happened to look it up online and see that it was over the limit by $45. I had just been hit by my annual and monthly fee, and the card had already been close to the limit anyway. Without hesitation, I made a $100 payment online (I always mail my payment in to avoid that nifty $7 service charge for online payments, but saw this as urgent even though it was well before the due date). Well, no sooner do I make my payment than a notice arrives in the mail a couple days later that my account has been CLOSED by the credit grantor!! My first time EVER over the limit and they close my account?? No phone call whenever it went over, no notice in the mail, no chance to make the minimum payment that HAD been scheduled for May to bring it back under the limit?? Next thing I know, I get a notice from my credit monitoring service that it has also been reported to the credit bureaus that this ridiculous company has closed my account! Obviously my credit scores had been a little shakey to begin with, but I worked hard to rebuild them over the past year or so...this will damage them by many, many points now. AVOID this credit card company by all means...if the up-front fees don't scare you away to begin with, they will get you down the road with their wrongful practices...and believe me, they will ultimately hinder, NOT HELP, your credit as they promise.
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	Premier Bankcard Employee Complaint_against: Premier Bankcard Complaint: I'd like to offer an alternative point of view than the one presented by my coworker. Although Premier can do wonderful things for people's credit, this can only happen if that person is lucky enough to navigate through Premier's complex system of deception and fees. To begin with. Premier Bankcard usually only offers cards with limits of 250 dollars, however, these cards begin with a balance on around 170 in fees alone. Now lets do some math--170/250=.68. That means that 68% of the potential balance exists solely in fees. What is surprising to me is that people ever agree with this to begin with. Some people may argue that these fees offset risks, but in reality, they do no such thing. All the fees do is discourage potential customers, if someone really does not intend to pay their credit card bills off these fees will do nothing to discourage them, they'll just get the card, charge it up on the weekend when they can easily exceed the credit limit (which Premier does nothing to stop, by the way--but I'll get to that later) and then never pay for the card; I have seen this through my work at Premeir and I know for a fact that these people were not discouraged by the 170 dollar start up fees. If the company really wanted to offset r!isk it would make all of its accounts secured, that way people can build credit and maybe not have such ridiculous fees, but it won't because Premier exists to make money. And perhaps that's my biggest issue with Premier. The entire company is filled with this big "we're helping people" propaganda bullshit entreage of slogans, posters and constant reminders of "do what's best for the card holder" (it's funny that that always seems to be getting a payment for the balance in full), and it's obvious to anyone working there that the company basically exists to make money off of frivilous fees and screw just about anyone and everyone it can, all in the name of turning a quick buck (anyone interested in further reading on this subject should do some research on Premier's owner: the "philanthropist" T. Denny Sanford). The fees associated with the card are ridiculous. 25 dollar late fee, 25 dollar over the credit limit fee, a 48 dollar annual fee, 11 dollar fee for checks over the phone (which cardholders are practically forced to do since employees are practically forced to coerce people into paying that way), 7 dollars for an internet payment, 3.95 to even look at the account online, a 6 dollar monthly participation fee, and the 170 dollars in start up fees. As one cardholder once said to me: "I have paid for my purchases on this card four times over..." (Oh and this is just a side note, someone above said that interest rates start at 9.9 and increase punitively to 19.9--WRONG, many cardholders begin at 19.9 and then increase punitively to a ridiculous 23.9--robbery). Now, many people who have not had "Premier" experiences may say that those fees do not sound to ridiculous, because as long as you make your minimum monthly payment, and stay under the credit limit, your fine right? Wrong. Enter the world of the "Premier" labyrinth of what I like to call "one-two-punch fee combinations." What T. Denny likes to do is not remind his cardholders that they will be receiving their annual fee (as any honest businessperson would do) and unfortunately, many people simply forget that that fee will be billed to the account. When that fee is posted to the account, for some it spells disaster as the account will then be put over the credit limit. And that means an over the credit limit fee. Here's where it gets tricky, and where T. Denny makes his real money. When the accounts go over the credit limit there will ALWAYS be an over the credit limit fee, however, that fee does not post to the balance until the end of the billing cycle during which the credit limit was exceeded, this sounds insignificant but let me explain. When a collections representative calls a card holder to try to set up a payment, they will push for two things, first they will (usually unsuccessfully) attempt to get the balance on the account, then when this fails (and it usually does) they will accept a minimum payment on the account to bring it "current." The problem with this minimum payment is that it truly is minimum and many times will only leave the card with 20 dollars in available credit. Have you caught it yet? When the cards have 20 dollars in available credit, and then they are billed a 25 dollar late fee, they again exceed the credit limit (information which is usually not disclosed to the card holder--usually because the representatives dont realize it themselves), exceeding the credit limit means another 25 dollar over the credit limit fee. So, just with that one scenario, a cardholder has been billed 100 dollars in fees simply ! because he or she was not reminded of the annual fee, or other times they may end up paying 50 for going over the credit limit simply because they think that they are "saving" the account when in reality they are just setting it up for another iminent trap. Another of the combonations in fees comes when a late fee puts the card holder over the credit limit. You guessed it, the card holder then receives not only a late fee but also an over the credit limit fee (which again will conveniently not appear on the minimum payment). So just there we have two examples of Premier Bankcard actually using fees in order to generate more fees. Someone above mentioned fee credits. The truth is that yes, we can offer up to 100 dollars in fee credits but we are limited in the number of fee credits that we can use in a month, I save mine for single mothers and never use them to "bump" payments, since I beleive in actually helping people who need it and not in just increasing my dollars collected so that I can get a larger incentive check. Oh yea, that's another thing, the reason that collections representatives from Premier try to force you to pay the balance, or set up multiple payments (which there is absolutely no legal basis for doing) is because 1. The Bank Requires it and 2. We are incented on how much money we collect, not how many accounts we save or how many people we help (honestly, helping people? Who gives a fuck, right?) Another way that Premier will rip you of is by systematically increasing the monthly minimum payment on the card to make it nearly impossible to make the payment after just two months of delinquency. Here's how Premier does it: The Minimum Payment in collections includes the amount over the credit limit and the combined 20 minimum payments of the months in which payments are not made and the current month. What happens with accounts is they usually start out with the minimum payment jumping from around 20 dollars to 70 dollars (an average one month late account that is over the credit limit by around 30 dollars, 25 of which is usually Premier's late fee), however, after the third month the minimum payment drastically increases to around 150 dollars, since the account will accrue 50 dollars in late and over the credit limit fees as well as another required 20 for another month missed. Now, to many people reading this 150 dollars may not sound like much, but to someone living on a fixed income, who is used to making the 20 minimum payments, and probably just sent in a payment that was lost in the mail (which card holders are still penalized for, even if they can prove that the payment was sent), that 150 dollars turns into a brick wall. The account continues to accrue fees and will eventually charge off--but not before Premier has nickel and dimed the cardholder with small payments that do not satisfy the minimum payment and do nothing but pay off a few fees (only to make room for more). When the account charges off that charge off status will hurt the cardholder's credit just like a bankruptcy would. Kind of funny for a company that exists to "help" people "better their credit." My last issue with Premier lies in the way that collectors are trained. They are actually trained not to care about card holders issues. During training the prospective collector is made to practice responding the detrimental statements made by the card holder, For example, if the representative is told that the card holder is in the hospital, he or she will not ask if the person is okay (as any person with a heart would) but rather "does anyone have power of attorney" (aka-I dont really care about that as long as I can get a payment). Tonight at work I actually found myself responding "okay" when someone told me that their husband had died and then moving on as if nothing had happened (needless to say I logged off my computer and had a long come to jesus talk with myself in my mind before returning to work). In fact, the desensitizing of employees goes so far that employees have to be reminded again and again during training that "they must provide empathy when told of a card holder's death" (as if this is something that must be taught, but apparently after a few months of working for Premier, people just seem to forget). Well this turned into a long rant but I want anyone considering opening this card to run away before it's to late.

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	C.E Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: I was sent an active Credit Card by First Premier Bank, that I never requested. It had a limit of $250 dollars. Yet they charged me $178.00 in setup fees. I called them and they were unsure how this happened and told me someone must have applied online. Well, that someone wasn't me. I found this very strange. Has this happened to anyone else???
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	Anna Masden Sturgis, SD 57785 EmailAddress: amm0101hd@rushmore.com Complaint_against: Premier Bankcard Inc Complaint: First Premier Credit Card Rebuild your Credit with a First Premier Bank Credit Card. First Premier Credit Card Rebuild your Credit with a First Premier Bank Credit Card. This is how Premier advertises on the internet. Well here's a little information for the public, i was once an employee of First Premier Bank Inc, and we as collectors were advised NOT to tell cardholders that having our card 'would' improve or rebuild their credit, because there was really no way for us to guarantee that. If we were monitored and had inadvertently said this to a cardholder then we would be docked in our quality because we were giving misinformation. Unfortunately First Premier bank is located in SD ~ where we are a RIGHT TO WORK state. this sucks. I was employed with Premier Bank-card for 4 1/2 years and had continuous good monthly one-downs with supervisors. I went on vacation in June for 17 days , came back and was fired because of some crappie misexcuse of Premier Bank-cards violation of Code of Ethics and confidentiality policy claiming that I communicated improperly with a card holder. ! There was no proof of this presented to me @ the time of my suspension, and never once did they to pull a recorded call with the person lodging the complaint to let me defend myself. Premier preys on individuals who are financially challenged, people who they know cant even read ow write. People that they know are on SSI, unemployed, and have very little income and yet they still charge them the fee's and high interest to line their own pockets. They expected us to collect , bring down their delinquency, collect so much per day and even rallied to do so once a week thru what they called a soap-box meeting. "one team! ~ one goal ! ~! NO EXCUSES " was their moto. They gave us a job, encouraged us to get the accounts rolled from one department of delinquency to another. You as cardholders think that we as collectors pushed and harrassed you to pay your bills, well guess what ? We were constantly threatened with our jobs if we didn't do what was told of us on the job. There was never any commisions involved, they preferred to call it an incentive. I could go on and on about the harrassment that the employee's get dished out to them from certain supervisors there @ Premier Bank, but most of you are only concerned about the fact that many of the fee's, and continuously changing policies are not explained to you or the fact that you are lied to by many inexperienced representatives. This much is true, that is mainly because many departments are NOT cross-trained which they should be in this kind of business so that everyone is on the same page. Be careful doing business with this company!I have been denied unemployment benefits, and have been advised to go thru proper channels, do what I can on my end, and if nothing comes of it, to go on~ like my wounds and go on. Your truly ~ FORMER EMPLOYEE OF PREMIER BANK CARD.
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	joyce chase tulsa,okla 74112 EmailAddress: joyinokla@yahoo.com Complaint_against: first premier bank Complaint: ive had a first premier bank card for several years paid it off several months ago and cut the card up and mailed it back to them and they keep sending me statements for yearly fees for over $76.00.i keep sending the statements back with notes telling them i sent it back and i dont owe them a thing but they are not bright enough to read i guess, dont ever get a card from them , they are to dumb to understand anything you tell them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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	Laurel Seattle, WA Complaint_against: First Premier Bank Complaint: If you want to make First Premier pay attention to these complaints, then as a group we all need to file complaints against them with both the Attorney General's Office of South Dakota and your state's Attorney General's Office. This is how the New York city lawsuit began that caused them to have to pay $4.5 million to people they defrauded. They won't pay attention until you complain to agencies that will actually go after them. Also it does not hurt to file a complaint with the Comptroller of the Currency and the FDIC.
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	RKF Outside Chicago EmailAddress: RKF325@yahoo.com Complaint_against: First Premiere Complaint: First of all - "Thanks, Lauren from Seattle" for posting the Atty. General's website. I, also, got my 1st statement reflecting the following fees: over-the-limit, program fee, acct. set-up fee, annual fee, monthly service fee... BUT - THIS IS A NEW TRICK (I think): I made my 1st payment with a money order. The next month I paid extra to do a payment over the phone and gave them MY checking account number. They ended using the routing and checking account number from the money order of the previous month! Of course it wasn't authorized by the currency exchange (OR ME!), so they closed my credit card account saying I tried something fraudulent when THEY did it! After months of disputing and being told that if I just pay it off they'll request their "Security" dept. to reactivate it. So I paid it off Fri 4/11/08 (including "over the phone" fee). Tue 4/15/08 they said they can't reactivate because it's been over 3 months - BUT I CAN REAPPLY! (Right - and pay ANOTHER $300 for a card I only got to buy $56.63 worth of stuff) CAN WE SAY CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT?! My friend at Bank of America said same thing happened to him, too.