{"id":548,"date":"2020-09-14T13:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-09-14T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/moneywithkatie.com\/what-to-do-if-you-get-rejected-for-a-premium-card-chase-ink-business-preferred\/"},"modified":"2026-05-06T21:50:54","modified_gmt":"2026-05-06T21:50:54","slug":"what-to-do-if-you-get-rejected-for-a-premium-card-chase-ink-business-preferred","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/moneywithkatie.com\/what-to-do-if-you-get-rejected-for-a-premium-card-chase-ink-business-preferred\/","title":{"rendered":"What to Do if You Get Rejected for a Premium Card: A Personal Case Study"},"content":{"rendered":"
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#<\/p>\n

Rejection is never fun, but it\u2019s slightly less painful when you can turn it into #content.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s right, my friends \u2013\u00a0* clears throat * \u2013 <\/em>my application for the Chase Ink Business Preferred card was turned down. The smallest violin has been hosting a concierto ever since I got the news, which was approximately 3 minutes after I submitted the application. It told me that my application had been rejected and that I\u2019d receive an explanation via mail in a few days.<\/p>\n

Stunned, I stared at the plain text announcement that might as well have said, \u201cWe\u2019re on to you and your hoax-y \u2018business,\u2019 Gatti, and we\u2019re not forking over 100,000 more points.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hardly accepting of a flat-out \u201cno,\u201d I began immediately Googling my next options. How could this be? I\u2019d been staging my coup on the coveted Ink Business Preferred for a little under a year, and when I saw the sign-up bonus had skyrocketed from its already-generous 80,000 points to its staggering 100,000, I had practically stumble-clicked my way through the application in a haze of furious greed.<\/p>\n

Turns out, there\u2019s this thing called the reconsideration line. Here\u2019s what I did.<\/p>\n

How I appealed my credit card rejection<\/h2>\n

Located the reconsideration line phone number and read an embarrassing number of how-tos from the points pros<\/h4>\n

A lot of the tips were pretty damn obvious (\u201cBe nice!\u201d), but a few were ostensibly helpful \u2013\u00a0it\u2019s bad form to mention the sign-up bonus in a reconsideration conversation, but you can (and should) mention the reasons why you want the card (apart from the utter motherlode of free travel).<\/p>\n

The cute and fun part of this story that makes it helpful is that I ran into roadblock after roadblock throughout my journey.<\/p>\n

Since I was applying for a business card, I found the business-specific reconsideration line (or so I thought) at 1-800-453-9719, that apparently operated Monday through Friday from 1-10 p.m.<\/p>\n

Luckily, I didn\u2019t have to wait several business days to read my rejection in print. It came as a secure message in my Chase account the same day. I secured the reference number from the document and wrote it down, since I figured I\u2019d need it during my call (if you\u2019re in the same boat and you have an existing Chase account, navigate to the hamburger menu on your computer, click \u201cStatements and Documents,\u201d then \u201cNotices and letters\u201d \u2013\u00a0it should be waiting there for you like a turned-down invitation to homecoming).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"<\/p>\n

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Evidently, my hardly existent business was also too \u201cnew.\u201d Interesting. I could work with that.<\/p>\n

I took my laptop and phone out to the pool, so as not to disturb my roommate (or embarrass myself whilst pleading my case) and dialed the number, exhaling sharply when the automated voice politely invited me to enter my 12-digit reference number.<\/p>\n

So far so good,<\/em> I thought.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re sorry,\u201d she retorted, as soon as I had finished. \u201cThat reference number cannot be found.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat?!\u201d I shrieked. I hung up and tried again. Three times.<\/p>\n

Still no dice.<\/p>\n

I did what any good nascent Karen would do and turned to Twitter customer service instead. A few hours passed, and they finally replied to let me know they couldn\u2019t handle this over social media and I\u2019d have to call.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m happy to call,\u201d I responded hastily, \u201cBut I\u2019m hitting a roadblock because my reference number won\u2019t work. Can you please provide a different number so I can talk to an agent?\u201d<\/p>\n

They gave me a number for \u201ccard lending services,\u201d at 888-609-7805. I strapped in, ready for a long wait.<\/p>\n

The same prompt for the reference number replayed, and I obliged, half-expecting it to kick it back to me. After a few moments, a real human named Francisco was on the line with me. Showtime.<\/p>\n

I explained I was hoping for reconsideration on my recent card application and that I\u2019d be happy to answer any questions. He pulled up my application and re-explained their reasons for rejecting it, then said he could review it again. I asked him if I could explain.<\/p>\n

What did I say on the call with the rejection appeal line?<\/h2>\n

This is an exact script. I literally read this from my computer screen to Francisco, because I planned it ahead of time. That\u2019s the confidence with which you want to enter a reconsideration call (not that it mattered, since I was declined again, but I still think I did a bang-up job otherwise).<\/p>\n

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My business is a travel blog that I operate out of my home, and I\u2019ve been doing it for a while, but I really doubled down on it in April \u2013 which is why I put April 2020 as the official business launch despite the fact I\u2019ve been doing it for years. I work for Southwest Airlines full-time, but I\u2019m ready to invest more in the site as a small business. The primary source of income will be affiliate revenue, but I know I\u2019ll need to spend time and money in order to grow it to that point.<\/p>\n

I love my Sapphire Preferred card, but it\u2019s 2x points on travel, and I\u2019d love to get 3x with the Ink. Because I\u2019m starting to see some traction with the site and investing more in it with advertising on social media and in Google, I would really like to put that spend on a proper Business Card and get 3x points for those purchases as well. Same with paying for my Internet at home.<\/p>\n

I understand that you may be hesitant to extend me another new line of credit, and I\u2019d be willing to shift some of my credit from my Sapphire, Bonvoy, and Southwest cards to the Ink Business Preferred if you\u2019re willing to reconsider.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

I practically bowed as I finished.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, ma\u2019am,\u201d he replied, unimpressed, \u201cSince this is a business card and those are personal cards, I can\u2019t transfer any of the credit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Damn it. I figured that would be my golden (blue plastic) ticket.<\/p>\n

He asked if he could have 3 to 4 minutes to review my application, and I nervously browsed the internet without actually reading anything I was looking at. He came back and asked a few more questions.<\/p>\n