Do you usually just say I would like to cancel my card and wait for them to object, or do you say something a little more gentle like I'm considering cancelling the card due to the high annual fee and hope they'll make an offer and only threaten to cancel if they don't. If you do the former, what's your strategy if they close a card you wanted to keep without question?

Before you call, you should do some research on each company and even on the particular card you are wanting a retention bonus. There are plenty of threads on this in the credit card forum. It's important to know that different companies have different policies, and some cards are comparatively easy to get retention bonuses on and some are difficult.

Many (most?) issuers have retention specialists to deal with people like you (and me). Those are the folks who offer retention bonuses. Generally, you have to use the word "cancel," and sound like you mean it, before the agent will transfer you to one. Once you get to a retention specialist, you've won. The only question is how much.

Neither of those. You want to phrase it very carefully, halfway between the two you proposed.

Do not just say "I would like to cancel my card", because then too often they just will, and that's it, perhaps too late to do anything about it. (Certainly too late to get a retention bonus; you may be able to re-open the card with some effort, but that still won't get you a retention bonus.)

Don't necessarily say "I'm considering cancelling" either, because they may not accept that as firm enough to offer a retention bonus at all!

Say something more like: "I want to cancel my card unless..." or "I would like to cancel my card but first..." (ie, show that you're cancelling, but then show that it's only under certain circumstances in the same sentence). Saying that you will cancel and then offering a case in which you might not in the same sentence is very important, because it satisfies their need to hear you say you will cancel while putting qualifications on it that keep them from cancelling it right away (without verifying with you that you really want to cancel).

As this question relates to credit cards, it is off topic for the Info Desk. Please see the announcement at the top of the forum for guidance on which topics belong here, and see http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/infor...ion-about.html for help locating the proper forum for other topics.

Thanks.

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