Having just received the bill for the $85 annual fee for my Chase Marriott Rewards Premier Card, I knew I wasn’t going to pay this fee. I called Chase to see if they would make me a retention offer. They didn’t, nor would they downgrade the card to a no fee version. I therefore opted to cancel the card. I decided paying the $85 was not worth it to keep this card for the following reasons….
1. I do not use this card enough to justify paying the $85 annual fee.
2. A downgrade option (good alternative to canceling) to a no fee card was not available.
3. I was able to move the credit line on this card to another one of my Chase cards. Remember, DO NOT CANCEL A CARD WITHOUT TRYING TO MOVE YOUR CREDIT LINE TO ANOTHER CARD. Lower credit lines, negatively affect your utilization ratio which leads to a lower credit score.
4. Rob has one too (he has the business version) and it is so easy for us to transfer Marriott/SPG between our two accounts, that it is unnecessary for both of us to have a Marriott card. In addition, I just got an American Express SPG Luxury card, and the points earned on this card are the same ones earned on the Marriott one, due to the recent merger between Marriott and SPG. The currency is now the same.
5. My credit score will drop but only a little bit and it rebounds pretty quickly.
Bye Bye to my Marriott card. I am sure I will get you again in about two years when I am re eligible for another bonus.
