Ethical credit card?

[Number_35]

Originally Posted by hallstevenson
Ooooh, I was soooo mad, I e-mailed them....

Pick up the phone and TALK to them. Put your money where your mouth is and cancel the card. You can tell them why but they generally won't care. The credit card isn't really "Canadian Tire" in 99% of cases, it's operated by a bank or finance company that has an agreement with Canadian Tire to use their name.

I express myself better in writing than when speaking ... and if I'd phoned, I'd have likely gotten someone at an offshore call centre.

 

[Garak]

Writing is probably best. Yes, phone calls will go offshore to someone who'll try to sell you a card.

This certainly wasn't a good situation, but CBC does like to rile people up about these things. In reality, we either need to do what they did in the UK or keep letting it slide. CBC will drop the story soon, and then be after the telecoms again for a period, then go back to banks and their RRSP sale, then go after the credit card companies again, then back to telecoms, just as they always do. The telecoms are a good one for CBC to clickbait for Christmas, given the number of cell phones given for Christmas gifts. Late January is a good time to go after the credit card companies, when all the Christmas bills land in the mail box.

 

[Number_35]

True enough, the fact that the CBC is publically-funded does not mean that it does not pursue sensational stories to boost its ratings. Their Marketplace hack job on spray-foam insulation was not fair but sure attracted a lot of viewers. (For one, they had reported on how the new house was contaminated with substances which are not even present in spray foam.)

 

[Garak]

They've been doing that with things like Marketplace and the Fifth Estate for decades; they've just migrated it the web, now, too.

All in all, we have to realize that credit cards are simply tools, and tools require proper use. Yes, unfortunate things happen. The companies are there to make money. I don't think there's a credit card company on the planet, much less just in Canada, that hasn't denied insurance coverage to someone, that hasn't gone after someone for insane late fees, or that hasn't charged someone a significant amount of interest. I have a few, but never carry a balance; they're tools for me. For the most part, they're interchangeable. Some have better benefits than others. If I ever had to recommend a credit card, the customer service experience of Capital One is hard to beat. The security people are amazing, the telephone people are helpful, and their online experience and statement options are second to none.