My fiancee and I opened a joint checking account a few weeks ago with my bank, mainly to pay for wedding-related items. Since I was already a customer with this bank, I was hooked up to their online banking system, and when I logged in to the web interface for their online banking system, I could see the new joint account’s stats alongside that of my individual accounts.
At the same time, I noticed that a credit card account with a limit of $200 had been opened up. I thought it was just a glitch, but sure enough, two Visa cards arrived in the mail a couple weeks after our ATM cards arrived.
I never asked for a credit card. Nor was a credit card account ever a condition of or a prerequisite for opening the joint checking account. I’d rather not have the card, since I’m going to great lengths right now to examine my credit report carefully and close down any lines of credit I’m not actively using.
So I’m a little miffed that my bank is giving me credit cards I never wanted, and I’m wondering if such a practice is legal in the U.S. Can my bank simply open up a line of credit for me whenever they want and send me credit cards I don’t want or need?