I have HDFC credit card for past 5 yrs and I have had good and bad experiences. Bad experiences include that if we pay by cheque even 5 days before due date they will wait till due date and then charge you will late fee. In the initial days, I realized the hard way that as long as you dont pay the full amount dues in the statement they will keep charging you retail charge for the whole amount and also for new billings. For every questions ask they will give some reasoning. Multiple times I have asked for the way they bill me the retail charges for carry forward of dues for more than 1 month or more. They say they cant do that.
I maintain a excel spreadsheet where in I have all entries and formulae which gives my position at any given time, current outstanding, balance available, etc.
Recently I took a loan and they said the repay will start only in oct, ie i would have got 2 months gap, since I took the loan right after the bill date. But to my surprise they charged it in sept month itself. when i asked the according to new policy i will come in next billing cycle. If we have to argue, we can go on, but there is no use. Since I had to pay it anyday, i let it go.
Good points are that one gets loan whenever one needs money. Give give 5% cash back on select grocery purchases, reward points. Though I must mention here, the points they take for the rewards is usually nearly double the value of the item and additional Rs 75 for shipping etc.
Only two years ago I got trapped in the category of a Debit&Credit Card Holder of Bank of India and that too five years after my retirement from Central Govt.Service at age 60.Only recently I got a monthly statement containing an amount of Rs.650/-paid to a mercant Banker with whom I have had no transaction whatsoever nor I had even heard of that party.Since,my credit card is linked to my Savings Account with the bank,the amount shown in the statement is being debited to my S.B.Account after 51days if purchases are made using the card on or after the 16th.of every month.To avail of the 51days credit facility,I also use the credut card only on or after the 1th.of each month.When I found an item not pertaining to me,I had to send a xerox copy of that statement containing the disputed amount as well as a xerox copy of my letter detailing all the facts about my case by Fax only to The Cards Branch of the Bank in Mumbai as instructed by them over phone when contacted as soon as it happened.Now they have said that 45 days time is required for them to inform me whether my plea will be accepted or rejected based on the response from the merchant whom I do not know at all.It is really strange why make me wait when I have already proned that I had had nothing to do withat merchant to whom the bank has paid supposed to be on my behalf though actually it ought to pertain to another Credit Card Holder-account holder of the Bank of India like me and that it would have been easily clea
as it is true a coin has two face so is true with credit card also. so don't make it a habit for every need but try to avail the maximum of it in a time interval.
If you read his statement, its purely fictious and trying to boast sbi card, he saiys he tried a hand loan, but out of blue FAIRY named SBI land and hands him loan, what a joke?
IN our country this credit card ppl are worst than loan sharks. If you happen to read recent supreme court order in ICICI bank being responsible for suicide of defaulter, now they play holy ppl giving compensation..is there no value for life?
Very soon you might come across lot of news reports aka farmers suicide.
RE:RE:sbi agent --Mahesh Mishra
by neil oneil on Sep 28, 2007 10:07 PM Permalink
i fully agree with u,the amount u pay back in emis is more than twice what they give u
We should have only one credit card and should not take more than that. As per my exp. i have three at the moment and going to cancel other two and will retain only one that too from ICICI.
I found that i am leaving a lawless country recently when my car was seize for a Loan which i had cleared from HDFC bank .I had prepaid my loan and was yet to take the release certificate since HDFC bank had messed up with some cheques which they were bouncing even though they were encashing alternate cheques i had given them . One fine day they seized my car on the basis of the old cheques i had given them and which they had returned back to me . I went with my lawyer and showed them the complete details .They said that they would settle the issues and send me the car back to my house and now i have found that they have sold the car to a dealer and i have now gone to court and have filed a case both in the consumer court and a civil court .Looks like i am in for future trouble since for no falut of mine i have under go all this hell. Please be very carefull with HDFC bank .Looks like this bank and the institution itself is run like a criminal enterprise . Even their ULIps sucks and i have found that you lose your capital if you invets in their ULIps .Beware of this bank and it is better to dela with Banks like some good co-operative banks for any needs .
RE:HDFC Bank is a Criminal Enterprise
by Rajesh Saphare on Sep 28, 2007 08:45 PM Permalink
Anil, I thought to take a auto loan for a new car from ICICI Bank..... but after your experience I will buy the car without any loan from any bank.....may be i have to wait for an year.....will do so
RE:RE:HDFC Bank is a Criminal Enterprise
by Vijay Shankar on Sep 29, 2007 08:01 AM Permalink
For whatever its worth, please put in complaints and use media where possible. Only public shaming and exposure will teach these big banks a lesson. If people like you keep quite then others will also falll into same traps. Thank you for sharing your experience. We are all wiser now. I saty abroad and have many friends who have invested in the ULIPS in the banks you mentioned. I am afraid what will be the outcome.
RE:RE:RE:HDFC Bank is a Criminal Enterprise
by satish kumarj on Sep 29, 2007 05:05 PM Permalink
Hi You are right,since ulip charges more than 50% as initial charges.to get your capital back..its entirely luck..at lst u will end up n getting only capital or may not satish
RE:HDFC Bank is a Criminal Enterprise
by PG on Sep 29, 2007 05:35 PM Permalink
My husband's account was in HDFC and once they bounced his cheque given to his client even the enough money was available in hios account. When he complained, the manager replied very harshly. He filed a case against the bank in consumer court. He won the case and the court ordered the bank to pay him some amount. Even after that the bank is not ready to pay. How ridiculous this bank is!
RE:HDFC Bank is a Criminal Enterprise
by madhur malik on Sep 30, 2007 08:59 PM Permalink
Its very true. I had a major problem with HDFC Credit Card & Demat A/c. HDFC is not a good bank at all. There systems are hopeless. Once you fall in their marketing trap with rosy clailms, u are sucked for life. If you open any account they will do so in a day but when you wish to close the same you are in big trouble. It took me one month & 12/15 letters to close my credit & demat account each.
HDFC won't b able to survive if this continues for long. They are getting exposed & media soon will do the rest.
Hello friends, Pls don't use citibank credit card for god sake.It's a big nightmare. The service is worst when compared to all others I would suggest.... never ever use a citibank credit card
RE:citibank credit card
by Srihari on Sep 28, 2007 07:57 PM Permalink
I second this opinion on citibank. No other bank - indian or mnc can go worse like citibank in their service or mis-treating their customers. NEVER NEVER NEVER choose citibank CC or anyother schemes that has citibank as the sponsor..like buy a post paid connection & get a citibank CC free and so on...
RE:citibank credit card
by Vijay Shankar on Sep 29, 2007 08:06 AM Permalink
I use a credit card from HSBC and we specify that at the end of the month all credit card bills are to be paid, they automatically deduct the amounts, so no hassles of personally depositing cheques/paying before due date. However, all the bills are to maintained and cross verified with the statement. Also, I use another low value credit card for internet banking.
1. Remember your due date and pay on time, they send the statement late intentionally.
2. deposit at bank branch, because at other places they take three days, again intentionally.
3. Can also pay onlie after registration.
4. Never carry forward the balance, pay 100% on due date and not the minimum amount due.
5. Keep the credit card limit within 2 months salary income.
I had a bad experiance with my credit card company also.
They increased my credit limit from 30000 per month to 1 lac per month, without informing me when i called them they said its a letter.
Being a financial guy insreasing creidt limit is an offer was like a shck to hear.
then they asked my to give a written letter for reversal of the limit, a phone call would not do and then a mail would not do, that call centre guy irretated me badly by asking for a written letter without which would not decrease the limit.
i wrote a mail to top most offical of the company/ bank, then there was a series of mail with apology and reveral of limit back to 30000.
