In the world of points and miles, the rules are constantly changing. Cards that used to be churnable have new restrictions and banks are starting to crack down on new accounts. Bank of America used to be a great bank for churning. You could open multiples of the same card, even on the same day!
Last year, Bank of America stopped approving applications if you applied for the same card in the past 90 days. A little annoying, but workable. However, their most recent rule only allows you to hold four cards at a time. Unfortunately, this makes churning at Bank of America a little trickier.
The other night when Bachelor in Paradise hadn’t started yet I was feeling particularly bored, I decided to apply for another Alaska Airlines card. I’d opened one last February so I was well out of the 90-day window. I already had four cards but figured I’d try anyway. Sometimes we like to think rules won’t apply to us, but I think you can guess what happened…
Instant denial. When I called I was told I had a sufficient number of accounts with Bank of America. I asked if I closed a card and called recon again, would they actually be able to reconsider my application? The customer service rep couldn’t give me a straight answer. Since this has turned into a little experiment, I closed my Alaska Airlines card and may try calling back to see if I can get the new application reconsidered.
Final Thoughts
As Bank of America starts to crack down on churning, it’s best to play by their rules to avoid wasting hard pulls. I may try recon again or I’ll just wait a few months and reapply. Not my most strategic application so let’s chalk this one up to Corinne and DeMario’s hook-up me being bored…
