A Warning to Credit Card Holders

I have been meaning to post this for some time now but have been forgetting.

You all probably know this by now since it has been all over the web but just in case you are not aware let me tell you my story.

I had a credit card that I was saving back for "in case of an emergency" this card had a higher limit and a low or zero apr (at moment don't recall what it was). I never used it because it was my high limit card which made it great for say my vehicle breaking down or me needing to deal with another dreadful custody battle (since I do not make the kind of money to afford that $275 an hour fee that lawyers just love to charge).

All my other cards I used and always paid on time. I either paid the min. or more than the min. and again always on time (same with any of my other bills). I recently paid off my cards when I got my income tax back.

Well, one day in the mail I got a letter stating that since you are not using your card we went ahead and closed your account. Not , if you do not use your card in x amount of days we will close your account but it is closed as of now. I was very upset (as one can imagine) but it got worse. I did try and call them though the # of the back of the card was no longer in service. So then I emailed them with them telling me there was nothing they could do. I emailed them again and they told me I would have to write a letter to them. I did. That was back in March and I have still never gotten any sort of reply or response whatsoever.

This still is not the worst of it.

My credit score went down almost 40 points. It went from good (on the lower end of good but still good nonetheless). Now my credit is considered bad. It went from good to bad just like that. I never missed any payments, was never late, was not into debt up to my armpits (in fact I am at zero dollars owned currently thank you very much) but I still have bad credit all because I didn't use a card.

I have no problem with the fact that they decided to close my account (o.k. I am lying I do care) but the fact that my credit is now bad is my real issue and concern. I prided myself in even though I am making very little money I still know that my bills come first and I do everything in my power to pay them and pay them on time.

My dreams of owning a home are more than likely shot because I have no clue as to what I can do to make my score go up. I can't get anymore cards because of the current economic nightmare which has now made buying a home harder for people who have bad credit (which again I just didn't use a card - I didn't go on some spending spree).

So I just wanted to warn others out there that hey, if they haven't closed your account and ruined your credit hurry and go out and charge! Seriously, let's punish those who are being responsible. It is beyond idiotic. I read some article online that said something along the lines that if that person has never used their card and then all of the sudden is well, that is a bad sign. They need to be worried about the people who spend, spend, spend and who owe more than they make then the ones who keep their cards for emergencies. Crap, charge a monthly fee if the person doesn't use it don't ruin their credit. Send them a letter saying that if you don't start using your card in the next x days then your account will be closed. Do these before ruining someone's dreams.