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Mintel Comperemedia, best known for its quarterly reports about U.S. credit card issuers' direct mail solicitations for new accounts, has noticed an increasing number of issuers using direct mail to communicate bad news to existing cardholders. More mailings include notices of higher or variable interest rates; lower credit ceilings; and higher fees for cash advances, balance transfers and late payments, Stephen Clifford, vice president of financial services for Chicago-based Mintel, tells CardLine. Mintel has not compiled precise statistics on the trend yet, but "we're going to keep an eye on it," Clifford says. He says all major issuers have been using direct mail in recent months to communicate such changes in account terms, according to mailings sent to members of an 8,000 to 9,000-member consumer panel Mintel draws each month from a pool of some 200,000 U.S. households. Clifford says that while issuers must manage their risks amid worsening consumer credit and economic conditions, they should try to communicate with cardholders in a "customer-centric" way. "Issuers run the risk of alienating their customers when they're taking actions like reducing credit lines or increasing interest rates and fees," Clifford adds.
