Wells Fargo Business Card Approval Delay
This story is not quite Citi level disfunction but it is right up there. If you read my post about turning an $1800 win into an action packed road trip then you know I recently grabbed a Wells Fargo Business Platinum credit card. My business banker said I was preapproved for it while signing up for a business checking account to grab that juicy $1500 bonus. Hey, if Wells Fargo wants to throw another $300 bonus on top who am I to stop them? The banker said I should get the card in 1-2 weeks. So I waited, and waited and waited. It went on so long that it was laughable. To say I had a Wells Fargo business card approval delay would be an understatement.
My Application Timeline
My appointment to set up the new business checking account was on May 6th. Before going I had heard reports of many being targeted for the Business card offer when setting up the bank account. It wasn’t a great offer, $300 after spending $3,000 within the first 3 months, but I’ll take a guaranteed approval all day, every day. Plus, I hope it will help me get approved should I decide to go after the new Wells Fargo card they will be launching.
I was approved on the spot, as expected, and awaited my new card so I could knock out the spending fairly quickly. This would add $300 nicely to my $15,000 yearly goal tally. As they say, best laid plans and all. The days went by, then weeks and then over a month without a peep.
Here is how my Wells Fargo Business card approval delay timeline went:
- May 6th “approved” in branch.
- June 3rd Letter dated May 31st arrives in the mail congratulating me on my May 30th approval. (Huh, strange)
- June 6th a note arrives with some card perks and telling me my card should arrive soon.
- On June 10th I get a note in the mail with my Wells Fargo Business Platinum card’s pin (things are looking up).
- June 13th my card finally arrives in the mail.
You read that right, it took 38 days from branch approval to have my new Wells Fargo card in hand. That is ridiculous! I don’t blame the card processing department because it came around two weeks from the time they show I was approved. The issue happened during the time I was “approved” in branch and the time I was showing “approved” in their system. For some reason it took essentially a full month for that to happen. I am not sure what the hold up was but that is ridiculous.
Wells Fargo Business Platinum Card’s Rewards Structure Double Whammies Me
Wells Fargo didn’t stop there though, they threw some salt in my wound and grinded a bit. The Business Platinum card’s rewards structure is a strange set up. By strange, I mean kind of horrible. I’ll go into more detail on it tomorrow but they pay out rewards quarterly instead of monthly. Wouldn’t you know it, my June statement closed the day before I got my card. Convenient, huh? Now I will have to wait until September to earn my $300 welcome offer.
Wells Fargo Business Card Approval Delay: Final Thoughts
Luckily the spending required for the offer is only $3000 and I had some bills already lined to hit the spending. Because of that the delay isn’t a huge deal. Although, I imagine the clock officially started on May 30th when the official approval letter went out. I still would love to know what happened from the branch approval to when the company shows I was approved. What exactly caused my Wells Fargo Business card approval delay? It is all water under the bridge now, but if you have had to wait forever for your new Wells Fargo card just know you are not alone. I’ll take this cherry on top of the $1500 checking bonus (which just started posting for some people the other day).
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Maybe they used a stagecoach to deliver the card as a tribute to their storied frontier history.
Ha, I made that exact joke on the podcast recording today 🙂