Consumer Reports Readers Rate Best & Worst Credit Card Issuers
Filed in archive Credit on September 4, 2007
For its October, 2007 issue, Consumer Reports surveyed 36,000+ subscribers to find out which credit card issuers were best and which were the worst. The results are interesting, but like any best/worst list, I think they are somewhat flawed.
Remember this is a list of the card issuers in terms of overall customer satisfaction, not individual credit cards. The rankings for best:
1. USAA Federal Savings
2. Navy Federal Credit Union
3. Other credit unions
4. Cabela's
5. Nordstrom
The rankings for worst (with worst being first):
1. Providian
2. Direct Merchants
3. Capital One
4. MBNA (now part of Bank of America)
5. jpmorgan Chase
It seems as though the biggest problem people reported was with interest rate issues. They don't specify, but I'm guessing that means having their interest rates jacked up after late payments.
The problem I have with this survey is that it is hugely unscientific. Yes, they surveyed over 36,000 people, but all of those people were Consumer Reports subscribers who volunteered to answer a questionnaire. A scientific survey would've randomly contacted people to question them about their credit cards, not surveyed the subscribers of a magazine that spends its time testing product/service quality.
I have no data to back this up (although I surveyed my wife and she agreed), but I'm guessing that the Consumer Reports subscribers who were willing to take time out of their lives to answer an online questionnaire about their credit cards are more likely to be extremists, overplaying the goodness or badness of something. In other words if they like a credit card issuer, they're more likely to be jumping up and down giving them the highest rating, and likewise jumping up and down screaming about how bad their least favorites are.
I could be wrong, but with the absence of any scientific data, we'll never know.
I also tend to think lists like this are prone to favor smaller issuers like USAA, which only issues cards to military personnel and their families, meaning you probably can't get one. I find it more interesting to see which of the big dog issuers ranked well-in this case, American Express topped the heap, with Discover close behind.
Which credit card issuers make you happy/angry?
Tags: creditcards credit card issuers best credit+card card+issuers consumer+reports
Vote for Consumer Reports Readers Rate Best & Worst Credit Card Issuers:
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Rating: 6.00 out of 4 vote(s) cast.
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Response from:
Justin
(09/04/07 8:20pm)
Wow. I had no idea that Cabela's issues its own Visa card, from their own bank.
Response from:
Tony
(09/20/07 6:25pm)
I've got USAA (through my father, a former Army officer), and I can say they're incredibly good. I use them for retirement, credit cards, and insurance. Their rates are low, customer service is excellent, and they don't have that kind of "us versus you" mentality. They're not out to bleed you dry either. For instance, they wouldn't try to convince me to sign up for a sales-loaded mutual fund with an expense ratio of 1.85%, like Citi did.
Response from:
Dylan
(09/21/08 3:36am)
I could not agree more with the survey - and I don't even have a subscription to Consumer Reports.
USAA is by far the best Bank I have ever worked with. You have to qualify for membership through ties with the military, but in every aspect they provide superior customer service and are a pleasure to deal with. As a loyal customer for 12 years, I've even gone out of my way to visit the HQs and take a tour - I think I'm the first person to ever do that!
On the other end of the spectrum, I can see the irritation with Capital One. I have a new Capital One card that I use all the time. It’s a great deal getting two percent back on gas and [most] groceries, but the best thing is they don’t charge a foreign currency transaction fee. Plus, and they don’t advertise this, they have enough military benefits built-in that actually beat the USAA Card, but the problem is Capital One’s Customer Service is awful. You call and speak to someone in India who has to transfer you, their customer service o the web is non-existence, and they are deceptive. So they would be on my list of most hated banks, but I end up using them the most often.
Customer Satisfaction is important, but I suspect a lot of us are willing to put up with other crap if we’re being compensated. I would have liked to see that same group of people comment on which cards they are actually using the most.
USAA is by far the best Bank I have ever worked with. You have to qualify for membership through ties with the military, but in every aspect they provide superior customer service and are a pleasure to deal with. As a loyal customer for 12 years, I've even gone out of my way to visit the HQs and take a tour - I think I'm the first person to ever do that!
On the other end of the spectrum, I can see the irritation with Capital One. I have a new Capital One card that I use all the time. It’s a great deal getting two percent back on gas and [most] groceries, but the best thing is they don’t charge a foreign currency transaction fee. Plus, and they don’t advertise this, they have enough military benefits built-in that actually beat the USAA Card, but the problem is Capital One’s Customer Service is awful. You call and speak to someone in India who has to transfer you, their customer service o the web is non-existence, and they are deceptive. So they would be on my list of most hated banks, but I end up using them the most often.
Customer Satisfaction is important, but I suspect a lot of us are willing to put up with other crap if we’re being compensated. I would have liked to see that same group of people comment on which cards they are actually using the most.
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