What does a suspended credit card mean?
If you try to use your credit card and it’s declined, it might be because your card has been suspended. A credit card suspension happens when a credit card issuer temporarily locks or freezes an account.
Find out why a credit card account might be suspended or restricted. And get the lowdown on potential fixes and impacts on credit scores.
What you’ll learn:
- Credit card charges might be declined if your credit card has been suspended or restricted.
- Your credit card might be suspended or restricted because a new card hasn’t been activated, there have been unusual transactions, payments are late or you’ve exceeded your credit limit.
- You can contact your credit card issuer to learn why your card has been suspended or restricted.
- Credit card suspension on its own may not affect your credit scores. But your scores could be affected if your credit card suspension is related to late payments.
Why was your credit card suspended?
There are several reasons why your credit card may be suspended. Here are a few things it might be related to:
- Fraud: If there are suspicious transactions, your card could be suspended to help avoid charges you didn’t authorize.
- Late payments: If you fall behind on payments, your card could be suspended. That’s one reason it’s important to try to make at least the minimum payment on time every month.
- Credit limit: Making a purchase that puts your credit card balance over its credit limit might prevent you from using your card until you pay down your balance.
Keep in mind that a suspended card doesn’t mean the account is closed. It could just mean you’re temporarily unable to use the credit card.
What should you do if your credit card has been suspended?
If your card’s been suspended, you can contact your credit card issuer. It should be able to tell you why it was suspended and what options you have. The ability to reactivate suspended or restricted accounts might depend on the issuer’s policy and the circumstances of the suspension. Capital One cardholders can sign in to their account to check the status of their card.
If your card was declined because it expired, you may simply need to activate your new card before you can continue using the account.
If you’ve missed payments, you might need to pay the overdue amount or figure out other arrangements.
If you’ve reached your credit limit, you may need to pay down your outstanding balance before you can resume using your card.
Eligible Capital One cardholders may be able to exceed their credit limits. And if your account has access to the Confirm Purchasing Power tool, you can check whether an over-limit purchase may be approved. You also have the option to disable the ability to exceed your credit limit in your over-limit preferences. Plus, Capital One never charges over-limit fees. View important rates and disclosures.
Does credit card suspension affect your credit scores?
In some cases, credit card suspension could lead to the account being closed. That may affect multiple credit-scoring factors, including credit age, credit mix and credit utilization ratio.
Payment history is another credit-scoring factor. So if your account was suspended because of late payments, that could also affect your credit scores. Plus, those late credit card payments can stay on your credit reports for up to seven years from when they were reported. And if you don’t catch up on payments, your account may become delinquent, which can also hurt your scores.
How can you avoid credit card suspension?
To help avoid the unpleasant surprise of a suspended credit card, here are some steps you can take:
- Make your payments on time. Late or missed payments can cause your card to be suspended. And missing payments for an extended period of time could lead to a permanent suspension of your account.
- Keep an eye on your spending. Paying close attention to your balance can help you avoid credit card suspensions related to exceeding your credit limit.
- Sign up for fraud and security notifications. Depending on your issuer, you might be notified of suspicious transactions, such as large or unusual purchases.
- Notify your lender if you’re planning to travel abroad or make an unusually large purchase. Capital One and some other issuers don’t require it. But it’s worth checking your issuer’s policies because it could help to make sure there are no blocks on your account that might cause trouble.
Suspended credit card FAQ
Here are some frequently asked questions about suspended credit cards.
Can a suspended credit card be reinstated?
Credit card suspensions may be temporary. But whether a suspended credit card can be reactivated depends on the issuer’s policies and the circumstances of the suspension. Contact your issuer to find out why your card was suspended and what you can do to reactivate your account.
What is a delinquent credit card?
When a payment is late, even by a day, it could be considered delinquent. Depending on how late the payment is, issuers might report delinquent accounts to the credit bureaus—and eventually close the accounts and send the debt to collections.
Key takeaways: Suspended credit cards
Credit card suspensions can happen for a variety of reasons, including expired cards, suspected fraud, late or missed payments and exceeded credit limits. Contact your issuer to find out why your card was suspended and what you can do to move forward.
You can check the status of your Capital One card by signing in to your Capital One account. And if you want to dig deeper into your credit, you can sign up for CreditWise from Capital One. It’s free and available to everyone, even if you don’t have a Capital One credit card. And using CreditWise won’t hurt your credit scores.
