Washington Mutual - Providan - WAMU Interest rate increase for no reason Seattle Washington

I have had a Providian/WAMU card for several years, over the past several years they have decreased my credit limit and increased my interest 'based in part or whole on my Transunion Credit report'

I had paid the card off over a year ago and just kept it for emergencies.

In nov 2007, after it had been paid off for close to a year, I sent them a message on my online account message board asking about a credit increase since my credit is not bad.

(fact: I have a number of other credit cards, including several for businesses, which have recently gave very generous increases on)

I was told they could not increase it, and do review it periodically.

Ok, I used it in Nov to pay for a hotel room & expenses while on a business trip, and planned on paying the balance off in two months which is now Jan 08.

Yesterday, I received my january statement, normally I don't look at the paper, since I pay all online, this time I opened it and in tiny print in the important mesages it states that my "APR for purchases is 31.99%

prime rate plus 24.49 whichever is greater" CAsh is the same, which I never use.

I logged on and looked at their stupid 'message center' and there is nothing there about this.

Since the payment is not due until Feb 7 2008, I will pay this account off before then and figure I will get hit with the 2 cycle interest crap.

I make good money, have two mortgages (two homes), purchased a new car in October ($60k), several credit cards personal and several that are business but I am the responsible part for them and NONE of them ever late.

A number of myc redit cards are with capitol one, who (and this might be a separate complaint about unfair FICO scores) do not report the credit limits, which makes me wonder how watered down fico scores are when they dont' show limits only balance and payment info.

I will be cancelling this jacka**card and writing the BBB, and my senator, I had this experience several years ago with Chase when the bought out Bank One, they raised my interest to 29% for the same reason when my other cards were raising my limit.

I have NO bad items on mycredit at all.

Our government needs to put a choke hold on these companies, with all the crap of the subprime markets and the economy doing so bad, companies should not get away with screwing consumers.

Especially when they have done nothing wrong. I could understand a 'default' rate of maybe 24.99% if someone was not making their payments on accounts or whatever but for a loser company such as this to rip people off based on a credit score (mind you that hasn't changed much for the past several years) it is just wrong.

Sidenote: my roommate has a providian/wamu card, he makes a third of what I do, they keep sending him hefty increases in credit, and his interest rate is like now 22%.

Funny thing, his statement looks completely different than mine they were both providian cards that WAMU acquired when they bought them out.

Would be curious how many people out there have had this problem and what recourse we have and why the government has not done anything about this out of control gouging.

Mark
e carondelet, Illinois
U.S.A.