Can you wait until after the annual fee shows up in a statement before cancelling a card (will they always refund the annual fee?) or do you cancel the month before the annual fee shows up?

I made a mistake in cancelling a United Mileage Plus Visa before my statement w/ the annual fee showed in a month that I made a lot of charges, and forfeited all the points which hadn't posted yet plus forfeited all the "bonus" points that I was suppose to get much earlier but never did They kept wanting me to switch to one of their zillion other cards (mileage earning & otherwise) --- but I didn't & wonder if I did switch accounts (vs cold turkey cancel) if the miles would have finished transfering?? Anyone know?

I really am just wondered if some places will refuse to refund the annual fee once it posts if you cancel after the fact...

It depends on what it says in the cardmember agreement. This is the minimum level of generosity you can expect from the card issuer. For instance, in the Citi agreement says the fee "is non-refundable unless you notify us to cancel your account within 30 days from the mailing or delivery date of the billing statement on which the fee is billed." So you can cancel after you're billed. In fact, people report that Citi will give you a pro-rated refund of the annual fee if you cancel in the middle of the year so they're actually more generous than their stated policy. But, of course, that can change without notice.

The UA Visa card has similar language except it adds the condition that you must pay your balance in full to get the fee refunded.

Here's a scheme I've heard people use.

Call the issuer a month before the fee is due--tell them you want to cancel.

They will likely offer you a few thousand miles to keep the card. Book those miles then call back when the bill with the fee comes and cancel anyway.

Do you wait until AFTER annual fee charges?

Visa Chase/BankOne wrote me: No refund or prorated credit.

I have had dozens of Chase/Bank One cards and they have always refunded the annual fee when closing the account. The goes for Citi AA MC and the US Bank WP Visa.

I have never been told no. Most of the time they remove the fee without me asking. A few times I have had to ask. Twice, with Chase, I have even paid it and they sent me a check for the return.

I recently closed a Chase account with an annual fee and had no problems getting it refunded. The representative told me that I have 30 days from the billing date to cancel and get a full refund.

So at the end, you dont owe the fee.

Not for me. Here is the e-mail:

I am very surprised to hear that the OP's origianl bounus points were revoked, I have neer heard of that before, especially with the UA credit cards.

The points had not posted to ET's UA account yet so Chase never sent the request in. I've had this happen once before.

chase charges the annual fee right away, by the first billing statement

Let the annual fee charge, then cancel the card. As stated earlier, you are much less likely to lose the bonus points in this way, and that's the whole point of having the card in the first place, right? So play it safe, and just request the fee back within 30 days.

TT

Its not too hard to figure out when the fee will be on the statement, So all I do is to cease using the card around 2 weeks or so before I know the fee will be charged. there are many times that the posting can/will be delayed and if it hits after the Statement with the fee closes you wont get the miles etc from it.

also its best to cancel or not set up any automatic billing to a card you dont plan to keep.

All card companies let you dispute charges on your card that you did not receive the products/services for.... so if they charge you the yearly fee and you cancel, you're paying for, say 11.5 months of that you will not be receiving.

Can you charge back a charge from your own bank?

Indeed, you can dispute a charge from your own bank as a billing error. Do it in writing to the billing error address within sixty days of the day of mailing of the statement with the disputed charge. SEe the Federal Fair Credit Billing Act.

But, I would ask customer service for a credit first.