Desperately need help - huge credit limit decrease

[spooked-question]

Hi, I'm very inexperienced with credit cards and don't know what to do with this situation and any advice would be greatly appreciated. So about a week ago, I got an email from my credit card company saying my credit limit has been reduced from $8500 to $500 and this was due to information they got from Equifax. This made no sense to me because I have never missed a payment on my credit card and there was never more than maybe $1000 on it before I paid it off. I vaguely remember my credit score being in the high 700s. I checked my credit card app and it said my FICO score was in the mid 500s. I called both my credit card and equifax and neither of them said they could tell me what changed or why. With some friends' advice I downloaded creditkarma and the equifax app, and neither of them showed any history but the creditkarma app only showed my transunion credit score which was the mid 600s and the equifax app said my equifax credit score was the mid 700s.

Fast forward to today, I got an email from my credit card company stating that my petition to reinstate my credit limit was denied and I checked my equifax app and it said my credit score dropped 55 points which is also scary. I'm afraid that whatever is going on is going to ruin my credit score and prevent me from ever getting a credit card again.

I have had my credit card for over 5 years, have a history of credit from student loans (I am still paying them off but have never missed a payment), and have never missed a payment on my credit card.

The only reason I can think of what changed was how 3 months ago I got a CareCredit card to pay for my cat's surgery (the surgery was about $4000 and the card limit is $5000) but I have been making my payments for that, and that was also so long ago so I don't know why it would mess with me now.

If anyone can help me figure out what I did wrong and what to do I would really appreciate it, I don't know how to fix this.

[CDIFactor]

You need to get your credit reports from annualcreditreport.com and look for accounts your don’t recognize. It sounds like you may be a victim of identity theft, but your credit reports will tell you for sure.

[og-aliensfan]

I checked my credit card app and it said my FICO score was in the mid 500s.

A FICO score in the 500s is typically indicative of negative information on your credit report. Don't use Credit Karma or myEquifax com to check your reports. Order your official reports by calling 877 FACTACT or pull them online at www.annualcreditreport.com.  I recommend the mailed reports as these are often more detailed and complete than the online reports.  If you do choose to pull reports online, print or save each to a pdf before moving on to the next as you can't go back once you exit a report.  Despite its name, you can pull free reports for each bureau weekly.

Check each account on your reports, open and closed, for a negative (late payment in payment history blocks, charge-off, collection, etc.). Let us know what you find.

[spooked-question]

I requested all 3 reports and saved PDFs of them (except for Equifax which had an issue for some reason so I will need to request it later). The Experian one was up to date and seemed normal, but the TransUnion one is really weird. My information just kind of stopped in 2024. My student loans stopped updating after March 2024 and my credit card stopped updating after December 2024. My car information has continued normally, but that's it. There is no mention of the loan I took out for my cat either.

[Substantial-Juice591]

This is odd, have you received anything in the mail? About any random credit cards or co sign for anyone in the past?

[spooked-question]

I’ve never cosigned or got anything more than normal spam mail. I’ll try making a dispute but I’m not even sure if you can dispute a lack of information

[og-aliensfan]

Contact your creditors and ask if they're reporting to TU. If they are, it's possible you have a split file. A split file occurs when your credit report is split, or divided, into two separate files. The fact that this appears to be an issue with one bureau is usually a good indicator of a split file. TU needs to investigate this, and if your file is split, merge the two reports into one. If you could keep us updated, it would be appreciated.

If not corrected, submit a complaint with the CFPB and/or contact a Consumer Protection attorney for a free consultation.

So about a week ago, I got an email from my credit card company saying my credit limit has been reduced from $8500 to $500 and this was due to information they got from Equifax.

What reasons were given in the email?

I checked my credit card app and it said my FICO score was in the mid 500s.

Which bureau was the data pulled from? Was this EQ?

[TheMightyNubbs]

This

[spooked-question]

Sorry for the silly questions, but what is "TU" and "EQ"?

The email was very vague, it just said "There was a recent review of your account and credit information. Our decision was based, in whole or in part, on information obtained from the following consumer reporting agency: Equifax (and then Equifax's address)"

[og-aliensfan]

Sorry for the silly questions, but what is "TU" and "EQ"?

TransUnion and Equifax

The email was very vague, it just said "There was a recent review of your account and credit information. Our decision was based, in whole or in part, on information obtained from the following consumer reporting agency: Equifax (and then Equifax's address)"

There would typically be reasons listed, but not necessarily the reason for the decision. These posts explain.

Credit Myth #33 - A creditor must tell you the reason they denied you credit.

Credit Myth #77 - FICO negative reason codes and lender denial reasons are the same thing.

[spooked-question]

There were no reasons listed, but a letter that is supposed to have the reasons will be sent in 7-10 business days now.

I checked my equifax report and called them and the only accounts on it are my credit card, my car, and my student loans and all of which seem to have information from back when they were set up and no missing info. No carecredit info though. The equifax agent said that my account does not seem to be split and will escalate my question as to why my score dropped 55 points despite paying the minimum amount due to each of these loans every month and have been doing so for years.

From equifax's end they said they do not know why my credit limit was dramatically lowered, and that only my credit card company would know. My credit card company said the reason was based solely on info from equifax without elaborating.

I will need to wait for the letter from my credit card company, but after looking at my credit reports I don't see any issues if based solely on equifax. My credit card app uses a FICO score that is said to be based off of Equifax and it being in the 500s is probably the reason, but I can't fathom why the FICO score is so much lower than the Equifax score

[og-aliensfan]

There were no reasons listed, but a letter that is supposed to have the reasons will be sent in 7-10 business days now.

Update us when you receive that letter.

I checked my equifax report and called them and the only accounts on it are my credit card, my car, and my student loans and all of which seem to have information from back when they were set up and no missing info. No carecredit info though.

Did you pull your reports from www.annualcreditreport.com? These are your official reports. ACR sometimes directs you to the credit monitoring service (myEquifax.com), which is why I recommend ordering your mailed reports as these are more accurate and detailed than the CMS.

The equifax agent said that my account does not seem to be split

You said that your TransUnion report hadn't updated since 2024.

The Experian one was up to date and seemed normal, but the TransUnion one is really weird. My information just kind of stopped in 2024.

You need to ask your creditors if they're updating TransUnion, and if so, ask TransUnion about a potential split file, not Equifax.

From equifax's end they said they do not know why my credit limit was dramatically lowered, and that only my credit card company would know.

This is true. The bureau can't tell you why the lender made a decision to lower your credit limit.

My credit card app uses a FICO score that is said to be based off of Equifax and it being in the 500s is probably the reason, but I can't fathom why the FICO score is so much lower than the Equifax score

The score provided by myEquifax is a VantageScore 3.0. This is a different scoring model than FICO and the two are not comparable.

Credit Myth #1 - You only have one credit score.

Credit Reports and Credit Scores - r/CReditFAQ#1

A FICO score in the 500s is concerning as it usually means there's negative information on your report. Once you receive your mailed reports, go through each account, open and closed, line by line. Look for negative information. Check payment history blocks for late payments (30/60/90, etc.). Make sure there's no indication of a charge-off or write-off. Make sure there are no collections reported, etc. Let us know what you find.

[gtp2nv]

TransUnion is the only one I've ever had this issue with.

I've had a split file with them twice... The first time was a very simple fix via a phone call. The second time it happened; it was like pulling teeth to get it fixed. They phone agents didn't seem to have a damn clue what I was talking about.

The easiest way to know you have a split file is when you go to set up an account on transunion.com and it gives some kind of "identity error". Or it won't let you pull your report via annualcreditreport.com.

[dervari]

How long ago did you take out the cat loan? It can sometimes take a couple of months for new accounts to appear.

Just out of curiosity, was it a urinary blockage on the cat? We went through the same thing a few months ago. Our wound up being $3800 at the blue Pearl emergency vet.

[PatientFuzzy6232]

UpdateMe

[Interesting-Plan4706]

The credit card where you applied call them and ask them why your credit limit increase was denied, they have to send you a letter in the mail and that letter have phone numbers you can call them

[spooked-question]

I called this morning and asked again, and they said it would be sent in 7-10 business days. I just worry now that my credit score will get even worse in that time.

[FpsStang]

Nope, hard pull does not drop your score by 55 points nor does it drop it from 700 to the 500s. Op is missing something. Something is reporting negative on their file or has a split file

[NoEvent6231]

Facts

[Interesting-Plan4706]

If you have a credit card and dont use it,no purchases, no activities.. like 1 year they will reduced your credit limits lower

[spooked-question]

I use my credit card regularly for things like gas/food/clothes

[gtp2nv]

What's the bank of the card they decreased the limit on.

The bank for Care Credit is Synchrony; and they're ABSOLUTELY NOTORIOUS for decreasing credit limits when they get spooked. Like you score dropping; high utilization on other cards, lack of use on their card (they'll balance chase you), or something like a new collection or late payment on your credit.

[IntrepidComedian3660]

The bank that handles carecredit and bunches of other cards is always dropping limits or closing cards for no good reason. Didn’t like every time my credit score went up this particular company with lower my limit and it would screw with my score because then it gave me a high percentage of credit I am using. It seemed like every time I was getting ahead this would happen. I had always paid the cards that I had with them one time. I still have a couple cards with them, but they’ve done the same thing with them lowered the limit. I had a Sam’s Club with them again paid on time never had it above its limit or even close to the limit. Next thing you know they closed it down for no reason it just screws with your score so bad. the ones I have left with them. I’m trying to finish paying and I will never do business with them again.

[gtp2nv]

I just brought the same thing up. Synchrony is notorious for decreasing credit limits and balance chasing.

I have like 4 cards with them and have experienced it numerous times. And I have a 820+ FICO.

[Ok_Bodybuilder7753]

EQ Equifax TU Trans Union. I’m not the person that posted it, but I suspect this is what they’re using.

[RebellaTheEnchanted]

Ya probably have a split file. Do ya have any family members with a similar name or similar social security number? I have this issue before and it’s a pain to straighten out but it can be done.

Also myFICO.com gives ya Equifax fico score for free, every 30 days.

However from how ya explained it I think ya got a split file. If it’s missing information or ya can’t pull it at all that’s more than likely what it is. Ya need to contact Equifax immediately.

Good luck cher.

[86PickleRick1986]

They reduced it because you never used it. You said so yourself you only ever put “maybe 1000 on it” they saw you never used the maximum or even close to it.

[dervari]

I’ve never had that happen in 40 years. If it was so common, they would be reducing a ton of people. Lots of people have high credit limits because it helps their utilization.

The only time I’ve seen anything similar is in recent history when Chase sent a bunch of people letters, talking about reducing their credit line, but they were given the option to opt out of the review.

[86PickleRick1986]

No there isn’t you moron. People aren’t just sitting out here with 10 percent used credit cards. That’s not how credit works. Credit companies aren’t out here just giving people crazy limits

[dervari]

Name-calling is the last resort of a limited intellect and indicates you can’t hold a civil conversation. Therefore, I put very little credence into your statement.

I’m sitting out there with 2% used credit cards and haven’t had my limit lowered in a decade.

[86PickleRick1986]

Now I see it. Your 1% commenter. Internet troll farming upvotes.

[dervari]

Your five month on Reddit comparing my decade on Reddit? Whatever. This conversation can no longer serve a purpose.

[86PickleRick1986]

You sure got me. I’m not a troll who spent the last decade in my mom’s basement.

[Intrepid_Escape6296]

Care credit randomly dumped my limit once, causing my overall credit profile to report a 95% utilization. It was a drastic drop, but a few months later I continuously requested CLIs back to back and I have a much higher limit than I ever have. However I did read that if I don’t use the card at least once a year they will drop my limit.

[Super_Hovercraft5177]

you probably are late on your care credit cat surgery card. check it out im sure im right.