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You can always get the money back from the state by applying for it. It's that people die with forgotten bank accounts. If you're not dead, deposit a buck and reset the clock.
Credit card companies only have so much money so if you've got a credit limit of say $10grand and don't use it.. that's $10grand that they can't use for someone who might actually spend that much.
I've had 2 major credit cards closed due to inactivity. It could impact your credit score due to the credit to debit ratio.
It seems far more likely to me that inactive credit cards accounts are closed as a fraud prevention measure.
If you don't use a card, you might not notice fraudulent charges.
You can check unclaimed property held by your state online and make a claim for it. When a person dies and they might have had an old small bank account somewhere that was inactive and nobody knew of it, it will eventually end up as unclaimed property. The heirs can make a claim but it can get complicated if you wait too long and one heir dies or one chooses not to participate. I think the money eventually gets sucked into the state treasury if no one comes forward. If you look at the amounts they are often under ten dollars and not worth the red tape hassle to claim.
While you are at it, check your credit bureau record to make sure you don't have something odd or that you are not reported as dead.
I had this happen with an old credit card that I wasn't using. The bank sent me a letter stating that it was going to close the account due to inactivity. I hadn't used the card in several years. I was surprised, but apparently banks don't want "inactive" accounts on their books. This is different from your situation since there weren't any funds to send to the state. But it was the first time this has happened in my case.
I forgot I even had a credit card with a bank where I had long since closed my account (WF). They warned me they were going to close my CC account for inactivity and I thought "Fine, I never use it". I didn't even have the physical card anymore. WRONG!! I let it close and my credit score dropped like sixty points! It went back up after about 6 months and when I opened a rewards card account, but sheesh I was stunned.
My husband checked on his deceased brothers account and found $ being held by the state, but since his brother had no will when he died, it was a complicated process to get the money.
Fear not. If you choose to ignore the letter and the money escheats to the state, it is not lost. You can claim it. Every state has a website that lists unclaimed money and you only need to offer proof of owner ship to claim it.\
You should actually go now to the site for your state and see if your name might be there. Myself, I looked a few years ago, just on a lark, and I found $68. give or take. I sent the required documentation and they sent me a check. Easy Peasy..
WARNING: Don't sign up for "help collecting funds" because they'll take a cut and it isn't hard to handle it on your own.
I did the same thing. I had an over payment on an auto loan from a number of years before. Never knew about it, until I got a letter in the mail from a company saying the state had the money, and for a small fee, they would do all the paperwork and stuff to get it. I found the state website for claiming the money, and after about 10 minutes, and I think one stamp, the state sent me the money.
I have cc with a large limit that I never use. Like for 20 years, I mighta used it once a year.
Never closed.
I think the key phrase in your post is that you did use it even if it was only once a year. The two that closed on me were one I never used because the interest rate was high. I had that one for almost 20 years too.. and the other was tied to my Costco membership and apparently Costco changed whatever CC company they were accepting so I would have had to switch over the new one, and since I never get to Costco anyway, I didn't even bother.
Any major cards that I have now, I try to use. One of them I use strictly for Netflix renewals, another one has my auto insurance so I do use them but only to keep them open and active, and I always pay the balances off every month. I like to keep my excellent credit rating. I don't know what having an excellent credit rating and 100% on time payment history will do for me in retirement exactly... except for giving me some bragging rights.. Lol but who knows.. I may have to take out a loan one day or something and having a decent credit score will come in handy.
I have a CC that I only use for my monthly $14 Netflix account, and I have auto-pay set up for that card. It allows me to keep the card open and maintain a very low overall debt utilization ratio as a result.
I think the key phrase in your post is that you did use it even if it was only once a year. The two that closed on me were one I never used because the interest rate was high. I had that one for almost 20 years too.. and the other was tied to my Costco membership and apparently Costco changed whatever CC company they were accepting so I would have had to switch over the new one, and since I never get to Costco anyway, I didn't even bother.
Any major cards that I have now, I try to use. One of them I use strictly for Netflix renewals, another one has my auto insurance so I do use them but only to keep them open and active, and I always pay the balances off every month. I like to keep my excellent credit rating. I don't know what having an excellent credit rating and 100% on time payment history will do for me in retirement exactly... except for giving me some bragging rights.. Lol but who knows.. I may have to take out a loan one day or something and having a decent credit score will come in handy.
People with excellent credit ratings are charged lower insurance premiums for one thing.
And what was REALLY scary is that it came in an unremarkable envelope that could have just ended up in the trash as junk mail!
You would think that it would need to come certified mail in order for them to seize your money. You have done nothing wrong except leave the money in their bank. For storage units to go up for auction there is a whole process of certified letters and phone calls that have to be documented first. And the storage company has to sell the unit not seize it.
Amazing how banks have such leeway on these kinds of things. This has to be a huge cash cow for them.
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I don't know what having an excellent credit rating and 100% on time payment history will do for me in retirement exactly... except for giving me some bragging rights.. Lol but who knows.. I may have to take out a loan one day or something and having a decent credit score will come in handy.
