Anybody else had Chase convert their credit card to Sapphire?

[LoneAspen]

Yesterday, I picked up my mail and was surprised to find a packet from Chase with a Sapphire Preferred chip-and-signature card in it.

I didn't request it, but the wording of the letter indicated my old Chase MasterCard had been converted. When I logged into their website, the old account number was gone, and everything had been converted to the new Sapphire account number.

I thought it was odd, because I didn't request a new card, and the old MasterCard was good until 2017.

I suspect maybe they're auto-converting certain cardholders to the Sapphire because it's a chip-and-signature card, and maybe they're trying to nudge people in that direction.

Anybody else had their Case credit cards auto-converted to Sapphire cards recently?

 

[marko]

Mine was converted. I'm pretty sure they went from Master Card to Visa but the main reason seems to have been the changeover to a chip

 

[Throwdownmyaceinthehole]

Ours were changed too. Lots of trouble to convert all my auto pays to the new card.

 

[Texas Proud]

I have had Chase convert cards in the past... but not recently.... and both times Chase pissed me off....


One of my cards gave 5% off gas, groceries and drug stores.... they decided to convert it to a Freedom Card and took away the good cash back...

But I still had a card that gave me 3% off gas and groceries..... but they cancelled that and made it a Freedom card where I have to go sign up to get 5% off certain categories every three months (like Discover)....

They then sent me a new number for this last card since I had used it at Home Depot.... and now will not let me add it to my list of vendors to pay from my online account... they say I have to pay it through their Chase vendor list... I do not want to do that since those payments do not show up on my list of pending payments....

SOOO, bottom line is that we now use Capital One and Sam's Club cards for most of our purchases...

Chase is so stupid..... and I am pissed as I own a good chuck of their stock....

 

[Dog]

My AMEX has converted to chip, but kept the same account number.


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[wingfooted]

Yes, same exact script. Old Master Card was converted to Visa and sapphire chip for 'security reasons'. I am fine with it as it is difficult to use a non chip credit card in Europe.


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[Big_Hitter]

ours was converted to visa too

 

[FUEGO]

That happened to me with the Barclay Arrival card. They changed the name and added a chip right after I got my card initially. Within a few months they changed the name of the card slightly and sent me a new card.

The options if you don't want to change/upgrade are probably call them up and switch to a different card or close the account.

I've also been "upgraded" on other chase cards (some old "cash back rewards" card to the Freedom card). Other than changing any autopay CC numbers, it's not much of a pain. I mean these guys give me 1-5% cash back on everything I spend, give me a free 1.5 months of float on my purchases, provide sometimes useful ancillary services (price protection, roadside assistance, etc), and won't charge me if someone else uses my account or my card gets stolen.

 

[youbet]

I suspect maybe they're auto-converting certain cardholders to the Sapphire because it's a chip-and-signature card, and maybe they're trying to nudge people in that direction.

No, don't think so. As mentioned by others above, they could have given you a card with the new technology but retaining your account number if all they wanted to do was give you a chip and sig card.

 

[gauss]

With the upcoming MC/VISA change in liability merchant rules, you probably will see all cards replaced during the next year or so.

Once the new rules are in effect, if a customer presents an EMV card (ie chip/signature etc) for payment, the merchant runs it via the mag strip and not a chip reader and it turns out to be a counterfeit card, then the merchant will assume the financial liability for the fraud and not the CC company.

Obviously for the banks to benefit from this, they want customers to use EMV cards.

-gauss

 

[Cat-tirement]

I recently was sent a chipped replacement for my Chase Freedom Visa. The number stayed the same, only the expiration changed.


How can you tell when a cat is retired?

 

[LoneAspen]

No, don't think so. As mentioned by others above, they could have given you a card with the new technology but retaining your account number if all they wanted to do was give you a chip and sig card.

After doing some more Googling, my guess is the real reason why they switched me wasn't so much the chip-and-signature, but their expanded partnership with Visa.

The card they retired was a MasterCard, and this new Sapphire is a Visa, and I don't think you can retain the same card number between the two, because Visa uses a different numbering scheme.

Or something like that...

In any case, I'm not too bothered by it, because I don't really rely on credit card benefits too much. Cash back, mileage awards, etc...it's all just "meh" to me. I don't travel enough to make travel rewards worthwhile, nor do I charge that much on credit cards.

As long as it's a credit card with a decent line of credit (for emergencies), and it works where I shop, that's all I care about.

One thing I do like better, is that the numbers on the new Sapphire card are "engraved" into the metal (at least, the new card seems like it's metal). I got tired of the old embossed numbers on the plastic card wearing off, and then it was a pain to try to read them.

 

[FUEGO]

Is the sapphire card the one that's metallic inside? I've had more than one cashier ask me something like "wow, I've never seen one of these. Are you famous or something?". Lol. That was a few years ago, maybe they are more common now.

 

[winger]

I'm on my third Chase Freedom account number in the last 6 months. Had a few small charges on the old cards that Chase security found. They caught it before me, and I check every morning through Mint. Newest card is still Visa Freedom, but it has a chip. No hanky-panky since I activated it.

 

[LoneAspen]

Is the sapphire card the one that's metallic inside? I've had more than one cashier ask me something like "wow, I've never seen one of these. Are you famous or something?". Lol. That was a few years ago, maybe they are more common now.

It seems to be made of some kind of metal. It's definitely not plastic. And the numbers and letters on it are "engraved" rather than raised/embossed.

I used it for the first time yesterday. Was a little dubious with it being a new account number, but the charge went through. Which I'm sure they want in order to get more money out of me

 

[Lsbcal]

Is the sapphire card the one that's metallic inside? I've had more than one cashier ask me something like "wow, I've never seen one of these. Are you famous or something?". Lol. That was a few years ago, maybe they are more common now.

I really like the Chase Sapphire card. It's a small conceit. I joke with the clerks that it's still just dumb plastic. If you have a problem with the card you can immediately get a smart person on the phone that speaks good English. Yes, there is an annual fee but it's one thing I try not to skimp on. Have used it in Europe and all went well.

 

[FUEGO]

I really like the Chase Sapphire card. It's a small conceit. I joke with the clerks that it's still just dumb plastic. If you have a problem with the card you can immediately get a smart person on the phone that speaks good English. Yes, there is an annual fee but it's one thing I try not to skimp on. Have used it in Europe and all went well.

Woah, are you famous?

I can't recall any big benefit it had over the freedom card or the 2% fidelity cash back. We did use it this past summer while vacationing in Canada. No foreign transaction fee. After getting really crappy forex through the ATMs (plus high fees), I figured out the credit card was the way to go.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

The Chase Marriott card is the similar metal/engraved card. I've had more comments about that card than any other card I've ever had. Still have a freedom card, but I haven't used it in quite a while, So it may be converted to the sapphire card.

Sent from my mobile device so please excuse grammatical errors.

 

[Sarah in SC]

The Sapphire card is the only card I keep year after year. I must admit I also like the heft of the metal and the number on the back instead of front as well. And since you can roll points from other Chase cards to your Ultimate rewards to it, it is easy to keep track of them in one place. I have the same number on my new card, but it was a visa from the start.


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[FUEGO]

The Sapphire card is the only card I keep year after year. I must admit I also like the heft of the metal and the number on the back instead of front as well. And since you can roll points from other Chase cards to your Ultimate rewards to it, it is easy to keep track of them in one place. I have the same number on my new card, but it was a visa from the start.

Do you have the annual fee version of the sapphire? I just realized we still have a sapphire floating around somewhere (signed up last June for the 45,000 bonus pts and no foreign transaction fees). I think it is preferred that has the annual fee.

 

[Sarah in SC]

Yep, mine is the annual fee one. I will probably get one in DH's name next year when the bonus is good, since I cancelled his last year.

He's using it in Chile right now, though he better not be charging too much on it!

 

[bgscms]

We did as well and needed to contact all vendors with the change. They told me the old card will be terminated in March.