Juniper Bank provides credit card services to some of the top organizations in the United States. Among these organizations are AirTran Airways, Caesars Entertainment, and Best Western.
An internet search for Juniper Bank credit cards yields several web pages with consumer reviews for credit cards offered through the bank and its partners. Consumers have numerous complaints about the credit card from their policy of holding payments for a few days or more to “verify funds” to increasing fixed-interest rates without notice and closing accounts without notice of those cardholders who they deem as being a risk.
Consumers also have complaints about the customer service offered through the 1-800 number provided on their statements. Reviews say that the touch tone dialing system is so inundated with options that that it is difficult, and seemingly impossible, to reach an actual person. Even after reaching a customer service representative, consumers find it is sometimes difficult to understand what the representatives are saying because of language differences.
It seems that Juniper Bank has a policy of holding payments made via check for a period of time to make sure the funds are available. Cardholders have received late payment fees for this holding process even when the check has been cleared for several days in their own checking accounts. Requests for reversal of the late fees are met with “these are the rules” responses from customer service representatives.
AirTran cardholders experience some difficulty in redeeming their points for airplane tickets. After redeeming the points for a travel voucher, cardholders find they must then call AirTran to make the actual reservations. Some cardholders recommend calling at least six months in advance of your planned trip because of limited seat availability and blackout dates.
Long time cardholders of credit cards backed by Juniper Bank say that their initial experience with the company was positive. However, in recent years the customer service level has dropped significantly. Perhaps, the drop in customer service was experienced as a result, direct or indirect, of Barclays acquisition of the company in August 2004.
Whether customer dissatisfaction can be attributed entirely to the acquisition is questionable. However, it is evident that Juniper credit cards are not the best available. While some consumers boast a quick approval and high credit limit, some of the same consumers complain about their credit limits being decreased without notice or explanation. The icing on the cake – cards with rewards are only offered when the cardholder pays an annual fee.
