This card is made for those with bad (or no) credit, so it does a good job of credit-building and comes backed by Mastercard, so it is widely accepted.
Image Credit: Celtic BankNo (Initial) Credit Check
Before formally applying for the Indigo Platinum card, you can prequalify to check your likelihood of approval (and the annual fee you’re likely to pay) without affecting your credit scores.
This way, you get to see if the annual fee is worth it.
Bottom Line: When you’re trying to rebuild or establish your credit, the fewer hard inquiries on your credit report, the better.
But remember that pre-qualification doesn’t mean you’re approved — it’s more of a “probably.” If you agree with the tentative terms and fees, you’ll still have to submit a full application for review, which will come with a temporary hit to your credit score.
Easy Application and Approval
As we’ve noted above, the Indigo Platinum card is designed for people with poor credit, and even past financial issues, such as bankruptcies or accounts being sent to collections, won’t prevent you from being approved for this card.
This is great news for those people hoping to improve their credit score. By making on-time payments and paying off your balance each month, you can be on the road to recovery in no time.
Credit Building
The Indigo Platinum card reports to all 3 major credit bureaus each month when your billing statement is generated. The 3 major consumer credit bureaus (TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian) calculate your credit score and good payment habits can help you build credit.
As long as you stay on track with payments, you can qualify for better credit cards with higher credit limits in the future.
Drawbacks of the Indigo Platinum Card
If you’re trying to decide if the Indigo Platinum card is a good card, you should be aware that there are some major drawbacks to this card.
Not only will you not have access to a large credit line and not earn any additional benefits, but you are unable to increase your credit limit over time.
Very Low Credit Limit
The credit limit goes only as high as $300 and is initially lower due to fees. For example, on an account that charges a $99 annual fee, your credit limit might only be $201 for the first month because the issuer assesses setup and maintenance fees.
This low credit limit makes it easy to rack up high credit utilization, which can hurt your credit even as you’re working to improve it.
Hot Tip: With poor credit, you might be better served by a secured credit card, where the credit limit is generally as high as the amount you can set up as a security deposit.
Annual Fee
The annual fee you pay (or don’t pay) depends entirely on your creditworthiness, so you could qualify for no annual fee. But if you have poor credit, you will likely owe an ongoing annual fee of either $59 or $99. For new cardholders, the $99 annual fee drops to $75 for the first year.
The higher the annual fee, the less appealing this card becomes. Basically, it’s not worth paying a high annual fee for a $300 credit limit.
No Upgrade Opportunities
Many unsecured credit cards offer the ability to increase your credit limit once you’ve built up a good payment history. Since this isn’t an option with this card, you’ll need to pay off your balance, close your account, and open a new card to gain access to additional credit.
Hot Tip: Closing accounts can hurt your credit score, so try to limit account closures.
How To Contact Indigo Platinum Card’s Customer Service
To contact customer service directly, call 866-946-9545.
When you call, you will be asked to enter your card number. If you don’t have a card, wait on the line to be transferred to a person. Customer service representatives are available to help you from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. PST.
You can also call this number to request a PIN be sent to you via mail to securely access cash at ATMs.
If you prefer to contact by mail:
Genesis FS Card Services
P.O. Box 4477
Beaverton, OR 97076-4477