Merrick Bank Credit Card: Benefits, Offers, Cashback, Annual Fee

Merrick Bank is a community bank based in South Jordan, Utah that specializes in providing credit cards to help consumers establish or rebuild their credit. They offer a variety of credit card options including secured cards, cards for bad credit, and cards to improve your credit over time. Key benefits of their cards include

• No annual fee,
• Access to your monthly credit score,
• Fraud monitoring and protection,
• The ability to graduate to higher credit limits with good payment history, and more…

However, interest rates tend to be quite high so carrying a balance month-to-month is ill-advised.

When used properly by keeping balances low and making on-time merrick bank credit card payments, these credit cards can be very useful tools for building credit. Read on for more details about their cards, features, eligibility guidelines, fees and rates, pros and cons, and more.

Types of Merrick Bank Credit Cards

Merrick Bank currently issues four different Visa-branded credit cards. Here is an overview:

Merrick Bank Secured Visa® Card

This is a secured credit card, which means it requires an upfront security deposit that usually matches your initial credit limit. The deposit helps offset risk for the bank and makes it easier to qualify if you have bad credit or no established history.

Credit limits range from $200 to $1,000 and your deposit is fully refundable after graduating to an unsecured card. It charges no annual fee and helps consumers build or rebuild credit responsibly.

Merrick Bank Platinum Visa® Card

This card does not require a security deposit. It is an unsecured card aimed at helping people with fair, poor, or rebuilding credit scores. It offers a starting credit line between $500 and $1,500.

The Platinum card has a few unique benefits like the ability to transfer existing balances from other cards at a promotional rate for the first 60 days. There is also an intro 0% APR on new purchases for the first 7 billing cycles after opening your account.

Merrick Bank Double Your LineTM Visa® Credit Card

This graduated credit card starts with a lower limit of $300 to $1,000 but gives responsible cardholders the ability to increase their limit over time by consistently making on-time merrick bank credit card payments. It helps newer borrowers establish credit and slowly work up to higher limits.

Merrick Bank Visa® Classic Card

Similarly, the Classic card is another graduated credit card that gives access to higher limits down the road through good payment behavior. It begins with initial limits between $300 and $3,500 based on your qualifications and has the same “double your line” feature to help build credit with Merrick.

Now that we have covered the four main card options from Merrick Bank, let’s go over some of the benefits and features that apply across most of their card programs.

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Benefits of Merrick Bank Credit Cards

Some of the benefits you can expect with their credit cards include:

Online Account Access

You get 24/7 access to your credit card account through their online portal and mobile app. Here you can check statements, see recent transactions, make one-time or recurring payments, set up alerts and notifications, message customer service and more.

Free FICO® Score Tracking

They provide cardholders a free look at their FICO credit score each month. This helps you monitor your progress over time as you build and establish your credit history with Merrick Bank.

ID Theft Protection

All cards come with identity theft monitoring that watches for signs of fraudulent use of your personal information. If detected, you’ll receive alerts so you can take protective action. You have $0 fraud liability as well.

Real-Time Fraud Monitoring

In addition to identity protection, all card transactions are monitored in real-time for potential signs of unauthorized or criminal use. Again, alerts are provided if foul play is suspected to limit liability.

No Annual Fee

Unlike many credit cards nowadays, Merrick Bank does not charge an annual fee to carry any of their cards. This helps keep costs down as you build your credit over time.

Balance Transfer Option

If approved, new cardholders of the Platinum card have the opportunity to transfer higher-rate balances from other credit cards or loans at a promotional rate during the first two billing cycles. This offers temporary interest savings on existing debts.

Cash Back Rewards

While not offered on all cards, some Merrick Bank credit cards provide modest cash back rewards on qualifying new purchases. This encourages usage while giving a little money back to responsible cardholders.

Introductory 0% APR

On the Platinum card, new purchases won’t accrue interest for the first 7 billing statements. Combined with the balance transfer option, this gives over half a year of interest-free usage if managed properly while building credit.

As we’ve covered, Merrick Bank cards have a nice set of features for those looking to establish or rebuild their credit without paying burdensome fees upfront or annually. Now let’s discuss eligibility and approval guidelines.

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Eligibility Criteria For Merrick Bank Credit Card

Merrick Bank credit cards are designed for customers across the credit score spectrum – whether you have bad credit, fair credit, or even an incomplete credit report. However, there are basic eligibility standards to qualify:

Must Be 18+ Years Old

You must be at least 18 years old to enter into any credit agreement with Merrick Bank or other issuers based on legal lending age requirements across the United States.

Valid Social Security Number

During online or paper applications you must provide your 9-digit SSN so Merrick Bank can pull your credit report to review your eligibility.

Stable Income Source

All credit card companies want to confirm you have enough dependable income where you can reasonably manage monthly payments. The required minimum income depends partly on your requested credit limit.

Cannot Exceed Maximum Number of Cards

If you already have an active Merrick Bank card, you’ll have to close your existing account first before opening another. They allow a maximum of one credit card per customer.

Review and Accept Cardholder Agreement

Finally, make sure to carefully review the terms in the cardholder agreement during the application process. You must agree to all policies before obtaining approval.

Meeting these standards is important for approval. Another key eligibility factor is your credit report and scores, which directly influences decisions made by Merrick Bank’s underwriting department.

For unsecured cards, you typically need a credit score in the fair to average range. With bad credit or no credit history, a secured card with refundable deposit is recommended to increase approval odds.

Annual Fees

An advantage to Merrick Bank credit cards is the lack of an annual fee, but there are still interest charges and other fees to pay attention to if you don’t pay on time:

Purchase and Balance Transfer APR

On every card except the secured option, expect a variable Purchase APR between 15.99% and 21.99%, depending on the specific card product. This rate also applies to transferred balances after promotional periods expire.

Cash Advance Fee and APR

Cash advance transactions incur a fee equal to 4% of the transaction (minimum $10). The cash advance APR ranges between 17.99% to 23.99%.

Balance Transfer Fee

While there is an intro 0% APR for 60 days on the Platinum Card, balance transfers after that period incur interest fees between 15.99% to 21.99% variable APR.

Late Payment Fee

Paying late comes with a fee up to $37 per incident. Repeated late payments will negatively impact your credit score progress and can trigger penalty rate hikes.

Returned Payment Fee

If your payment doesn’t go through due to low account funds or inaccurate details, expect a returned payment fee up to $37. Make sure your payment and card information is always current.

As you can see, while annual fees are waived, missed or late payments can become expensive in addition to deferred interest charges. Pay your statement balances in full each billing cycle to avoid setbacks while improving your credit with Merrick Bank.

Now that we have covered costs and requirements in detail, let’s outline the major pros and cons of using credit cards from Merrick Bank.

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Pros & Cons of Merrick Bank Credit Cards

The Pros of Merrick Bank Credit Cards

There are many good reasons to consider a Merrick Bank credit card if you have bad credit or want to establish a history:

• It helps build your credit history – Since Merrick Bank reports your monthly activity to all three major credit bureaus, maintaining several months or years of positive payment history will raise your credit score over time.
• No annual fee is required – Annual fees imposed by other credit card companies can negate rewards or make maintaining the card costly in the long run. Merrick Bank waives annual fees completely.
• Free access to your FICO score – Tracking your real FICO score monthly makes it easy to quantify credit building progress rather than guessing if the card is working.
• Fraud protection and monitoring – Robust monitoring helps detect criminal activity while $0 fraud liability protects the cardholder from unauthorized charges.
• Can graduate to higher limits – Meeting payment milestones over time allows credit line increases to demonstrate larger borrowing potential to other future lenders.
• Balance transfer deals available – Depending on creditworthiness, new cardholders may qualify for 0% intro APR balance transfer checks from other high-rate cards and loans.

For people struggling with bad credit, Merrick Bank cards present an attainable opportunity to build positive history and improve your financial standing over time.

Potential Cons to Consider

However, there are also some downsides of using Merrick Bank credit cards like:

• Credit limits start small – Initially low limits may not meet spending needs for some borrowers depending on eligibility. However, this can prove creditworthiness over time.
• High ongoing interest rates – Unless qualifying for limited-time intro offers, expect lofty interest rates between 15.99% and 21.99% on purchases and transfers.
• Must pay deposit on secured card – The deposit needed on the Secured Visa Card isn’t refunded for 7-12 weeks after graduating and closing the account.
• Limit increase process not guaranteed – Meeting payment requirements helps qualify for credit line increases but approval isn’t assured and requests can be denied after evaluation.
• Carrying balances is very expensive – Given astronomical interest charges it’s critical to pay statement balances in full to build credit cost-effectively with a Merrick Bank card.

Evaluate both positives and negatives before obtaining one of their cards. The biggest advantage is building credit without annual fees if payments are made dutifully to avoid deferred interest consequences.

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Our Final Take – Are Merrick Bank Cards Worth It?

At the end of the day – are Merrick Bank credit cards ultimately worthwhile for less-than-perfect credit? We believe the answer is yes with some warnings.

These cards can kick-start credit building as long as balances remain low and full payments are made every billing cycle. High ongoing rates make it mandatory to avoid interest accrual. With excellent money management, these cards make credit improvement achievable.

However, if you tend to carry balances month-to-month or occasionally miss payments on other accounts, tread carefully before applying for any credit product with rates touching 20% APR or higher. Additional interest expenses could negate the benefits and sink your credit further.

Frequently Asked Questions