I am calling a customer who maxed out their credit card within the first month of having it but hasn’t made a single payment back in the last four months.
Customer: “Hello?”
Me: “Hello, is this [Customer]?”
Customer: “Yeah… what do you want?”
Me: “This is [Credit Card Company] calling about your account with us. It’s currently overdue for a payment, and—”
Customer: *Click*
No surprises there. I call back to give the customer the benefit of the doubt that it was an accidental disconnect. When I call back, I get an older-sounding man on the phone.
Customer’s Dad: “This is [Customer]’s father, and I will not have you scammers harassing my daughter! Lose this number now, or I am calling the police!”
Me: “Sir, I can assure you that I am not a scammer. I am calling from [Credit Card Company] about your daughter’s account. I can’t discuss any matters with you about this as an unauthorized user, but again, I can assure you that this isn’t a scam.”
There is a moment of silence, and then I can hear the father speaking to his daughter.
Customer’s Dad: “Did you get a credit card with [Bank]?”
Customer: “Yeah, but they said it was interest-free! I shouldn’t have to pay that back!”
Customer’s Dad: “That’s not what…”
There is the sound of a massive sigh from the father, and I can almost see him face-palming as he processes this information.
Customer’s Dad: “You still have to pay the money back. Interest-free just means there’s a period where they won’t charge interest while you pay it back.”
Customer: “Nuh-uh, Sharon told me it means you don’t have to pay it back.”
Customer’s Dad: “Sharon doesn’t have two brain cells to throw together.”
The customer’s dad returns his attention to me and asks if I can tell him information about the situation if his daughter authorizes him over the phone. I say I can, and he gets her to do so.
I then explain how the credit card was maxed out within ten days of activation and now needs to start being repaid.
Customer’s Dad: “How was she authorized for a credit card in the first place?! She doesn’t even have a job!”
Me: “She marked herself as employed when she made the application, and our records indicate that she received monthly payments for the last three months that matched her stated salary.”
Customer’s Dad: “Were those salary payments from [Company]?”
Me: “They were.”
Customer’s Dad: “She was fired from that job for not showing up. She hasn’t worked for months.”
Me: “That is unfortunate, and we can discuss an extension of her payment plan if that is the case, but I’m afraid we do need to settle on a confirmed plan today to stop her account from moving into debt collection.”
He turns his attention back to his daughter.
Customer’s Dad: “[Customer], you need to start paying this card back. How much can you start paying back today?”
Customer: “I have like… $3 in my account.”
Customer’s Dad: “I’m not loaning you any money.”
Customer: “But Daaaad! Make them go away! They’re giving me anxiety!”
Customer’s Dad: “You went ahead and signed up for a credit card under your own name, maxed it out, and ignored it? I can’t make them go away! I can’t make them do a d*** thing! You need to go out and get a job and pay it back.”
Customer: “But that’s not faaaaair!”
Customer’s Dad: “You’re eighteen; you’re an adult now. Welcome to the real world.”
He handed the phone back to his daughter, who started crying as I tried to go through the legal specifics with her. In the end, we came up with a plan to call her again next week so she could aim to have a source of income, and then we would discuss a new payment plan.
The credit card was only for about $1,000, so not a huge sum, but enough to hopefully teach her some financial responsibility in the future!
Related:
This Is Why We’re In A Recession, Part 116
This Is Why We’re In A Recession, Part 115
This Is Why We’re In A Recession, Part… *Quiet Sobbing*
This Is Why We’re In A Recession, Part 114
This Is Why We’re In A Recession, Part 113
