Ondine Irving's article of May 10, “Credit Card Portfolio Sales Offer Members a Raw Deal” is right on the money.or should I say credit card? Credit unions should understand the ramifications of selling their card portfolios. It hurts member loyalty by making members feel like their financial business isn't important to their credit union.

A good friend of mine experienced this firsthand when her (once beloved) credit union sold her credit card to a bank. When my friend received her new “bank” statement she found that her billing cycle had changed. Her first payment was due only six days after the end of her last billing cycle. She called the bank and was told that she could pick the timeframe of her billing cycle, so okay, that was resolved, but she still had to take the time to straighten it out. She then discovered that her finance rate had gone up to 11.9%, still a good rate, but not as good as the 10.9% rate she had with her credit union's card. And, she cannot make payments on her credit card directly at the credit union anymore as she once could. Of course, she has the option of paying her credit card balance in full and switch to another issuer, but how many of us can afford to do that at a moment's notice? So, she is stuck with the new card issuer and is feeling a bit betrayed by her credit union. She feels like her credit union doesn't value her as a member. Will she remain loyal to a credit union that wasn't loyal to her? Probably not.

Jane Bailey Executive Vice President Delaware Credit Union League New Castle, Del.