Chase Changed the Terms of My Loan

First of all, Chase DID offer you 2 alternate options (read the change
in terms notice). Second, Chase did NOT change the terms of your loan.
Your loan is still at the fixed APR as agreed upon. They changed
your card member agreement (read your statement). You are upset
because they raised your minimum payment to 5% instead of 2% (which
means you over extended yourself) and actually they could raise it to
what ever they want to. By paying the 5% you will be paying off your
debt faster which is a positive thing! And the $10 service fee is to
keep the account in operation since you aren't using it.

I am in the same boat. My loan had a 2.99%, no finance charge. They
change it now to 5% of the balance (instead of 2%) and $10 finance
charge, irrespective of the fact I have NEVER used the card since I
received the original loan.
In respect to Barb A. responses - don't pay attention - the facts may
or may not be correct. I asked for the original credit card terms, and
will look it over. If Sony Card is correct in being able to change the
terms, as described by all of us, then - we can do nothing about it.
Otherwise, we can file class action suit - and there are many lawyers
that would love to get engaged, if there is a case.
In the meantime - I will probably pay the balance of the loan as
quickly as possible, and avoid Chase or Sony Card like the plague.
Not having a credit card division may allow them banks to concentrate
of core businesses, which they all forgot.

I would like to begin by stating that this IS NOT an official
statement from the bank, merely someone who knows something. The
follwing is merely my humble opinion.
I will reply to your comments one by one, because they are all . . .
I'll be nice and say misguided. One, "no doubt it was designed not to
draw my attention." Do you know how much stuff they have to put on a
monthly statement? They have a lot of laws to comply with, including
giving you 15 days notice of any changes to your account. Also, that
thing they give you each month is a statement, not just a bill. It
describes the activity and the state of your account. If you can read
your minimum payment you can read the notices.
Two, a "fixed" rate merely means that it's not variable, that it
doesn't fluctuate with the national prime which is determined by the
Wall Street Journal. A variable rate goes up or down with the prime.
It doesn't mean the card company promises to never ever change it.
I'll run the numbers for you. I'll assume you've paid regularly on
your card and you've got about 25,000 left. At 7.99 your approximate
interest for an entire 30 day period with no payments would be around
169.00. At your current interest rate, and including the new fee,
you're paying about 94.00. But it would mean taking your payments back
down to what you're budget will allow. On the other hand a 5% payment
means it's paid off that much faster. Also, the bank and the bank
alone determines the minimum monthly payment. You have a valid
complaint for being offered a low interest rate, but you were never
guaranteed a set minimum payment.
Three, the bailout was directed toward mortgages and JPMorgan Chase is
not a big player in the mortgage field, so they got a relatively small
cut. It was intended to entice the banks to invest in bad investments,
in the hope that it would reinvigorate them and help the economy. This
was not a requirement however, and many banks are holding funds until
the market recovers. I do not know if Chase practices this. But it was
never intended for unsecured, personal, credit card debt. With the
downturn in the economy people aren't spending as much, and the bank
depends on that revolving credit. Also, the bank has to borrow the
money that they loan you, at an interest of around 3%, but I could be
wrong about that. When you're paying 3.99, the bank isn't making much,
if anything. And with things the way the are right now, Chase and all
the banks have to start hedging for the future. That's why they have
that clause in your cardmember agreement. It's in contents IV of your
cardmember agreement.
This isn't personal, it's business. (A side note, your credit card is
*a contract!* Like any contract,if you don't read your contract
carefully sometimes there are unpleasant surprises. The banks are
trying to weather this storm. Also try to remember that there are
millions of jobs to protect in this industry.

For those of you that want to call and chew out Chase, I can't stop
you. But please remember that the voice on the other end of the phone
belongs to a person who has bills to pay like everyone else. The
people taking the calls didn't do this they're just getting paid 10 to
tell you what happened. Yes it sucks, and yes, I'm sure it feels like
a slap in the face. But understand that this is a last resort. No
one's sitting in a shadowy room gleefully rubbing their hands
together. Stay calm and reassess. No one will blame you for
transferring your balance to another company.

Chase has done exactly same thing to me. It is just amazing how they
can get away with this. How can they blatantly alter the contract
which they thought is good in the begining? This is the classic 'heads
I win tails you lose' philosophy.
Basically, it seems like crooks and fraudesters get bailed out and
average guy gets screwed.

I agree 100%! Let us now if you have any luck with them. I would
think some lawyer would have filed a class action lawsuit on this one
for sure. If they do count me in! I'm in the same boat.

As I said in another post, it was not the bank that did this, it was
the government. They instituted a minimum monthly amount.