"Tribute Crediting Payments"

Comment 1 by wildrage2

Not My Experience on 2008-07-12

I'm not doubting your review, but this hasn't been my experience with Tribute. I've sent them a check on a Thursday and I've had my account credited by Monday.

Did you send it to the exact address on the payment coupon? If you didn't, it will probably eventually get sent to the correct address, if it hasn't been lost all together. I'm sorry, but if you sent it to the wrong PO Box, regardless of what CS says, it's pretty much your fault.

I've never had a problem with Tribute.

They have also been generous with CLI's. After 4 months I got a $50 CLI, and for the next consecutuve 3 months, I've gotten $100 CLI's, bringing my limit up to $550 after 10 months. Many people on this board report CL's over $1000 after the first year, which is better than what a lot of the other companies are doing.

Comment 2 by maggie

Address on 2008-07-12

To find out the mailing address for Tribute payments, Icalled the Tribute customer service line, at 1-877-888-0084. Theautomated voiceinstructed me to press "5" forthe address. It told me very clearly, to mail payments to PO Box 136, Newark,NJ, 07101-0136. That is the address to which I sent my payment.I relatedwhat the customer service rep said to illustrate the confused nature, to say the least, of these reps in Southern Asia. At first he said I had not mailed my payment to the correct address. Then he changed his mind and said it was correct (adding that it would be transferred to another PO Box.)


I made no errors in the area of a mailing address.If Tribute is giving out an incorrect mailing address then that is their fault, not mine. What the customer service rep said is suspicious.


I am glad to hear that some people are having good luck with this card. It gives me hope that at some point, my payment will be credited, and we can terminate this card. Thanks for your response and good luck with your credit.

Comment 3 by maggie

Posting Times on 2008-07-12

PS. I would like to add that there are many, many reviews on this forum from people who have had very bad luck getting Tribute to credit their accounts when they send in payments. This problem is not unique to me. My question is, to those people who have had so much trouble, did Tribute EVER credit your accounts? Thanks.

Comment 4 by yoyo11

Hello Maggie on 2008-07-12

I'm feel so bad about your experience with this card. Yes Tribute does take forever to post a payment to your account. I had Tribute for about 14 months now. I mail my payment two week earlier with Tribute. It takes them about 8 to 10 days to post the check on card, another 2 days to show up on my checking account. If you find that the check has not posted... They will give you an extention on the due date to avoid late fees. I had to do this before... Just tell them when you mailed the check.

Wildrage2 and I had this card with pretty good experiences... I had a total of $450 credit line increase and $50 waived off the annual fee.

I know for a fact that they take forever and a day... To post a payment... Bad... Last month I mailed my check and it was returned by the post office, mailed it again... It came back from the post office... I guess the mail man read the wrong window for the mailing address. I had 7 more days to get my check posted... I took it out of their envelope and just made another one with their address on it only. It finally got there.

Note: the check will post on the website, (your card), before it show on you bank statement. Hope everthing goes well with you. I really like their card.

Comment 5 by maggie

Thanks! on 2008-07-12

I am really encouraged by these comments to hang in there and hope the check will be credited. I really want to help my daughter, who has fallen into pretty serious credit card debt due to problems she just could not predict. I hate to see someone so young get buriedin this kind of mess. Having to put a stop-payment on my check will just delay helping her and I don't want that.

I could not mail the check with a statement coupon, because it was an unscheduled payment and came from me, not the cardholder. I did write the account number on the check and I included a letter with my contact information and what account and name to credit.

I have done this with other credit cards, without any problem or delay.

Imake my living writing about credit cards and credit card issuers;I am somewhatjaded because I frankly know too much about their tricks. I am fortunate in that I have not paid any credit card issuer a penny of interest in the last 30 years. I use credit cards to MY advantage, as short-term interest-free loans plus rewards and to keep that all-important score in the850 range. But I am well aware that I have been lucky: things happen that cannot be foreseen or planned for, and credit card issuers are right there to happilyrake in the profits when people fall on hard times through job losses, divorce, or other catastrophes.

Watch out for those easy and frequent credit line increases. Any credit card issuer, not just Tribute, is hoping you will charge more than you can pay off.

Thanks again.

I do still intend to call the First Bank of Delaware. I want to know why Tribute seems to have such a problem crediting accounts when other credit card issuers just don't have any problem at all with it.

Comment 6 by lindalu

Try Paying On Line on 2008-07-12

I have the "imagine" MasterCard which is the same company and bank... I just pay it on line... If I pay before 4 pm it posts that day... Except for weekends... Never had a problem with them... Just stingy on credit line increases... But most businesses I notice are like that. You have to allow 7 to 10 days for the check to post and if it goes to the wrong p. O. Box then it has to be forwarded to the right one and that also will take a few more days... Just hang in there... It is probably due to being sent to the wrong p. O. Box... If you are concerned about it showing as a late payment just pay it at their website on line... And when the check gets there just let it apply for next payment due... Just to be safe... It will be fine... They are usually a good credit card company and the customer service reps are probably only allowed to do so much.

hope it all turns out ok!!!

Comment 7 by hjm331

RE: Maggie on 2008-07-12

Does your daughter have a checking account? She can send the payment electronically through the Bill Pay service with her checking account. Banks nowadays don't charge you for using their bill pay service. I used to pay my First Premier Bank card through my Bank of America checking account Bill Pay and FPB credited my payments within one or two business days.

Comment 8 by maggie

Linda And HJM on 2008-07-12



Linda and HJM, thanks for your thoughts. If I do end up being forced to put a stop payment on my check due to Tribute never crediting the account, we will definitely pay on line at that point. I just did not know that paying by check would be such a burden for this one credit card company. I am in my fifties and have had credit cards since I was 18, and have never run across this delay in crediting before.


I insist on my daughter terminating this card. She has 2 other cards now, a Capital One and a Chase card, so she does not need this "fee" card dragging her down and taking her money.


I have always advised people to never cancel their credit card accounts because they lose that valuable credit history, but there are exceptions to that rule, and this is one of them for me. If a card issuer is difficult to deal with, slow to post payments, charges monthly and annual fees, if customer service makes a habit of hanging up on people when questions cannot be answered or a customer is unhappy, then that card is an anchor around the neck. It's worth losing the credit history in this case. Besides, she is young and doesn't have that much history anyway.


I am sorry for those who are forced to accept these kinds of terms.


I wish I could go back in time and make the payment online!

Comment 9 by hjm331

RE: Maggie on 2008-07-12

Having your daughter close the account is great idea since she has 2 other cards from good creditors that don't charge a monthly fee. As for the check, I'd make a stop payment ASAP and pay on-line.

Comment 10 by cireone

Maggie on 2008-07-12

I understand that you are trying to help your daughter out by paying her debt down. I was reading through your post and you stated that you sent it without a payment slip and gave a letter. On thing I know of sub-prime issuers is that in the fine print of their terms and conditions they state that if payment is mailed without pamyent slip, account number or proper address, payments may get delayed or not accepted. That essentially states that it is not the fault of the credit card company.

Maybe a phone payment would have been more secured but it comes at an extra cost.

I always send my payments with a money order though.

Comment 11 by thomas1

FIRST BANK OF DELAWARE-TRIBUTE on 2008-07-12

MAGGIE,

First of all, lets get the payment to the account, by doing it thru bill pay thru your bank, or whichever is the quickest route before the due date elapses is the first matter at hand. Secondly, you can stop payment on the check at your bank in which I assume the payment was sent from, they have no recourse of redepositing it once it is stopped. Of course, you'll pay a stop pay fee. Most important thing for your daughter is that there is NOT a late payment on this account. One 30 day late, will decrease the FICO score by approx 40-50 points, trust me. Thirdly, I would have her run from this bank as fast as possible, who cares if she's had the card for a year to 2 years!! Sure she will lose a couple of points for about 4 months, but if she has Cap One and Chase, she probably isn't going to need anymore new tradelines anytime soon??? Don't worry about that, some people have had good experiences with Tribute, some not. Each case is individual, and from what all I read on your post, and having years of credit dept experience at Citi, who needs a card that even gives you a feeling of having to chase the payment down, and talk to those idiots anyway... It is true that some banks DO intentionally cause cardholders to be late, just to get the late fees... Close this account and be done with it... Once a bad taste, always a bad taste... Good Luck to you!!

Comment 12 by maggie

That's Ridiculous! on 2008-07-12



Cireone, I have never heard of such a thing: that a customer is not allowed to make unscheduled payments to their credit card account. However, I have never had to personally deal with a sub prime credit card before. That is interesting and valuable information, thank you. I do believe I sent the check to the correct address, (if Tribute's OWN INSTRUCTIONS can be trusted) and it had the account number on it, plus a letter. That really should be enough to get the job done.


I guess there's nothing I can do right now since it's nearly Sunday. Monday, however, is another story. I like the way you think, Thomas and HJM. What's another 30 bucks from my wallet (for the stop payment.)


We're in no immediate danger of a late payment. Nothing is due until August.


You're all very kind to offer your suggestions.

Comment 13 by wildrage2

I Dunno on 2008-07-13

I dunno guys. I live in NJ, so the whole postal delay is taken out of the equation.

I've sent nothing more than the check, with the account number written on the 'memo' line, and have always had the account credited within 48 hours.

Sorry that you're having a problem with them...

Comment 14 by rob72830

Lost? on 2008-07-13

I would put a stop payment on the check because it maybe got lost in the mail or delivered to the wrong address. I would hate for my check to end up in the wrong hands since then they would have my checking account number. I pay all my credit cards online except First Premier which charges $7.00. I do mail them a check but I have never had a problem of my check not getting there or being posted. If they didn't charge that $7.00 I would pay them online too. I actually feel safer paying online than with a check.

Comment 15 by hjm331

RE: Rob on 2008-07-13

Does your checking account come with a Bill Pay feature online? Which bank is your checking account with? Most major banks offer free bill pay service.

Comment 16 by wildrage2

Bill Pay on 2008-07-14

I have paid this account through billpay, but Tribute does not do electronic transfer - so the bank is pretty much just cutting them a paper check anyway.

Comment 17 by maggie

Followup On Tribute on 2008-07-17

I want toupdate this forum on my continued efforts to get my daughter's Tribute card paid off.

Although I got very good advice from several people on this forum to put a stop payment on my check, in the end I decided to give it a few more days.

Tribute finally credited my check to her account sometime after midnight, July 17th.Literally 10 business days, to the second, even though they were in receipt of my check several days, at least, before that.

On July 15th,I called the First Bank of Delaware, the bank that issues this card. "I would like to speak to someone in your card department who is in charge of the Tribute Mastercard," I asked the operator. She said, "One moment," I was put on hold, and the person who picked up the call? You guessed it, a repin Southern Asia, the same people I have talked to numerous times without any luck. Since I had her on the phone, I asked what the latest $11charge to the account was (every day morefees and interest appeared,all of which would not happen or would be less,if they would have just credited my check to the account!)

Then I asked thequestion I ask every time I talk to them, which was, "why is it taking so long to get this account credited?" and got the standard reply that "It takes 7-10 days, and this is the 10th day (huh? My calculations say it is the 12th day) so please call back tomorrow and I'm sure your account will be credited."

Then, since there was suchambiguity concerning the mailing address, I asked her to tell me the mailing address. She replied by asking me where I had mailed the check. I read off the address that Tribute gave me, and she explained that I had mailed my check to the "OLD" address. She said,"No worries, it causes a delay, but the check will be transferred to the new address."I asked why Tribute was giving out an "old" address as its currentmailing address, whichcauses delays in creditingaccounts. She asked me when I called to get the address. I said I called on July 1st. She paused, then she said there was no record of me calling on that date. Itold her I had called, and had called many times since. Then sheexplained thatsince I got the address from the automated system, which has not been updated, it was not their fault.?????Apparently,Tribute does not take responsibility forupdating its telephone answering system.

I hung up and called the First Bank of Delaware back. This time, I explained to the operator that I did not want to be connected to, that I wanted to speak to someone IN CHARGE of the Tribute card there at that location. She got annoyed, by the tone of her voice, and explained to me, very coldly, that the bank finances the card, but does NOT maintain it, and that there is no one there to speak to about it, and that the number I was transferred to is the only number that they have. I asked her if the First Bank of Delaware is a member of the Federal Reserve System. She did not know what I meant. She thought I was asking if our accounts were federally insured.

At that pointI got the bright idea to call MASTERCARD. Surely Mastercard, the Mother-Ship, so to speak,would understand what is going on with Tribute and would have all the answers. I could not have been more mistaken. I called Mastercard and spoke to a rep named Pernelle, who assured me that she was in the United States.Iexplained that I was trying to pay off my daughter's credit card and was having a lot of trouble doing it. I asked whether or not I am allowed to make advance payments. Without answering the question, she said she would "connect me with Tribute's customer service." "NO," I said. "I have talked to them already, many times. They cannot answer my questions." Nevertheless, this Mastercard rep insisted upon connecting me to Southern Asia again. I tried several more times to get her to answer even one of my questions. She would not.She stayed on the line, assuringme that she would get me to a manager, who would speak English, and who would be able to answer my questions. There was a rather lengthy runaround as we tried to get connected to a manager. The rep obviously had been instructed to not allow this if possible. After about seven minutes,we were connected, and the Mastercard woman hung up immediately. I figured, what the heck, I will ask this person, "Julie,"another question I've got, and that is, "What procedures do we need to follow to terminate this card completely?" She told me that all the cardholderneed do is give them a call. I sincerely doubt it will be that easy, especially after reading comments on this forum where many people said they canceled their account, only to be charged more fees, after being told their account was canceled!

My phone rang on July 15th. My caller ID identified it as a call from New Jersey 201-793-1694. I answered it. A man with the same heavy accentas all the other customer service reps I have spoken to (Southern Asia)said he was calling from Tribute Mastercard,that he was in receipt of my check, and he needed the account number so that he could credit the account. I told himthe account number was on the letter attached to the check. He said the letter must have gotten separated from the check (wonder where that is now?) and since I had only written the last 4 digits of the account number on the check, he didnt know who to credit it to. (I have heard differently on this issue).I asked him how he was calling me, since my phone number was on the letter, not the check. He said they have programs that pull up peoples addresses and phone numbers, (he was hard to understand) to which I commented that my phone number is unlisted. Nevertheless, according to this customerservice rep, who identified himself as "Michael,"they had ways to look up this information (something my husband later confirmed.) Then I asked him where he was calling from. He said Atlanta Georgia, yetmy caller ID said he was calling from New Jersey.I received another explanation for that, which I could not understand any better than the previous one. (His accent was extremely heavy.) I was suspicious, but in the end,I took a chance andgave this man the account number. He immediately saidmy daughters name, which wasreassuring. Then he informed me that it would take 7 to 10 days more for the check to be posted. Outraged, I said, No way. It has already been 10 days, I mailed it on the 1^st of July. No way are we going to wait another 7-10 days. At first, the man insisted that it would take 7 to 10 more days. Then, as I in my turn insisted that thiswas not acceptable, he finally said he could see that I had mailed it on July 1^st, and that he would credit the account immediately. I said, So I can get online today and the account will be credited? He said, "Yes."

That was a lie.The account was credited on July 17th.

This man'saccent was so thickthat I had to have him spell his name.Here is a list ofthe names of all the customer service reps I have spoken to this week: Pedro, Julie, Michael, Bill. The customer service reps for Tribute Mastercard are routinely giving fake names to customers who call in. That should be a red flag to everyone who is considering this card.

All this brought me to the conclusionthat no one is willing to take responsibility for the Tribute card, not even Mastercard itself, certainly not the financing bank, First Bank of Delaware. There is, apparently not one single person that one can approach in America who knows anything about this card.

On 7-16-08I called customer service again since the account had not been credited as promised. I got a rep who identified himself as Bill. Bill did not care that "Michael" had promised to credit the account on the 15th.He asked that we wait one more day, because in his estimation, the 16th wasthe 10^th day, and apparently, even when Tribute is in receipt of payment, they will not credit until that magical 10^th day. He refused to acknowledge Michaels promise.

Before I was connected to "Bill," I was invited to stay on the line in order to participate in a brief survey. How funny was this? Yet after "Bill" and I were done speaking, hewould nothang up. I finally had toask him to, so that I could take the survey. He then said he would connect me to the survey. The first question on the survey was How satisfied, overall, are you with card services? Press 1 for not at all satisfied, and 9 for very satisfied. I hit 1. The voice said, You chose 1 for not at all satisfied. If your answer is correct, press 1. If you want to change your answer, press 2. I pressed 1. Then is when it got funny. We did not record your answer. Please press 1 if your answer is correct, and 2 if you want to change your answer. Again I pressed 1. Again, the voice said it could not recognize my answer. After three more tries, the surveytold me to try again another day, and hung up on me. I'm sure "Bill" had something to do with that glitch.

Interestingly, within just a couple of hours of crediting the account, my check also cleared at my bank. I only wish I could have informed Tribute that "Sorry, but it will take 7 to 10 days for that check to clear."

Does anyone reading this really want to sign up for a card that apparently has absolutely NO representation in the United States whatsoever? Apparently, not even Mastercard itself, the supposed overlord,can deal with Tribute.

If this is literally the only card you can get, keep it just long enough to qualify you for another card, then do whatever has to be done to terminate the Tribute card. And know the whole while that somebody, I am not sure who, is raking in enormous profitsat your expense.

I am sending my experiences with Tribute to the Federal Trade Commission, the Federal Reserve Board, and Mastercard. I encourage anyone else who has a bad experience with Tribute to do the same. You can find the addresses and helpful information at: http://www.federalreserve.gov/pubs/shop/complaints.htm

Comment 18 by rob72830

Tribute Is Screwed Up on 2008-07-17

Maggie, thank you for sharing your experiences with this card and bank. Everyone rebuilding their credit or even thinking of rebuilding needs to read this. I do not need this card but if I did, I would run as far as I could away from this monster after reading your post. This almost makes Orchard and First Premier look good. Good luck to your daughter in getting better cards.

Comment 19 by hjm331

RE: Maggie on 2008-07-17

I hope you will make your payments electronically from now on to not put up with their hassle.

Comment 20 by maggie

Pay Online on 2008-07-18

Yes, HJM, only one more payment needs to be made to Tribute, to cover the interest and fees that were added after I mailed my check. We will make that payment online and then it's goodbye to Tribute! We'll have to break open the champagne when that day comes.

I don't pay any of my credit card bills online. I've always paid by check without trouble. By the way: when ATA Airlines went bankrupt and the only people who could hope to get refunds were those who had charged their airline tickets, Chase (Amazon) refunded us with just a 5 minute phone call. Now that's a good card.

Comment 21 by thomas1

TRIBUTE on 2008-07-18

WOW!!! Maggie, what a disaster you had to go through... Really absolutely no excuse for it!! I can almost guarantee that the payment was there LONG before it got posted... In order for a cust svc rep/supvsr to credit an account immediately, he would have had to have verified payment was actually there because he was going to credit here account on 7/15. Reps can call the payment department also, as I did a lot at Citi. What can I say, some banks, i. E., Tribute are only in it to rake in huge fees and profits, thus hurting the cardholder with overlimit and late fees in the end. Thank god there was no negative reporting with a late charge on her account. That would have hurt her a great deal, and I doubt that they would have acknowledged any wrong doing nor fix it. I assume you have closed the account, or have her do it, before more fees are assessed to her account... Run as fast as you can from them!!! If her scores are in the 600 range, have her go over to Capital One, BOA, Chase, or Citi depending on her scores (check board for score requirements first) Or apply to HSBC/Orchard if she is establishing more lines of credit. Maybe after all this, you may want to go on vacation for awhile, lol. I feel so sorry for you both that you had to even go through such a travesty! It makes me so mad!! Good luck in whatever you both decide to do, but please keep us all updated... Take Care, Thomas

Comment 22 by cireone

MAGGIE on 2008-07-18

Thats the problem with sub-prime lenders. They claim to help people build or re-build their credit but put all the hassles on. Although Orchard Bank isn't that great of a card I would choose it over Tribute. Its issued by HSBC which is a internationally recognized bank. Tribute, Salute, Rewards660, Total are issued by banks that are specific to a certain region in the US and like what was stated have no control over the way practices are conducted. I believe theres a court case with a credit card processing company and its card issuers that they have lossed and are currently trying to appeal. Not to sure if Tribute is one of them but Aspire and Imagine are a part of it.

Comment 23 by carond

Your Payment on 2008-07-21

I am so sorry to hear that you are having trouble. I was VERY wary about this card in the beginning but I have had a very pleasant experience. I make my payment straight out of my bank account via Bill Pay, may I suggest you use that option. My account is credited the same day that I asked bill pay to pay it!! I must admit when I had a problem activating the card, dealing with the reps is impossible, thank God I haven't had to deal with them since. I have had the card for 5 months and paid all my purchases within the grace period, I haven't paid any finance charges AND my credit score has improved 75 points since I had this card. I hope you get your issues resolved, sending checks to PO boxes is scary...

Comment 24 by ladywrenn

Online Payments on 2008-08-23

Please keep in mind that if you do a straight payment from your checking account these people DO charge a fee of $4.99 for not having to worry about a lost check.

There is also a 9.95 monthly maintenence fee. With the high interest rate I just felt like they were going overboard asking for an additiona $15.00 in monthly. I feel it's just greed. I got approved for the Am. Exp. Blue Sky Card transferred the balances form 2 other cards and closed them out. I did start out with a $1,000.00 CL with this card and 6 months later was up to $1,500.00 I am just not willing to give them that extra $15.00 per month. Good luck to you.

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