US Credit Card Mail Volume Declined to 3.8 billion in 2008

US households received 3.8 billion offers for new cards during 2008 according to Mail Monitor, the credit card direct mail tracking service from global market research company Synovate. This represents a 27% decrease, or 1.4 billion fewer offers mailed in 2008, from the 5.2 billion offers consumers received in 2007.

Other tracking firms have projected a figure of more than six billion card offers in 2008, which paints an inaccurate picture of mailboxes across the nation stuffed full with solicitations despite an acknowledged decline.

“Some projections are not accurately reflecting the extent of the cut back,” said Andrew Davidson, Vice President of Competitive Tracking Services for Synovate’s Financial Services Group. “Even households with stellar credit scores are receiving what amounts to a trickle of offers these days compared to the flood of offers received in previous years. A number like six billion just doesn’t make sense in the current credit environment,” he added.

Out of the top 25 mailers of card solicitations the only banks to increase their mail volumes in 2008 were US Bank (+29%) and Barclays (+27%). US Bank broke into the top 10 for the first time in 2008 replacing Credit One, a subprime issuer (Barclays is ranked 9th).

“Credit card mail volume has always been a great barometer of the health of a credit card company,” said Davidson. “US Bank received less money from the TARP than some of its competitors but, unlike others, is one of the only banks to begin lending again. Barclays has continued its aggressive and successful drive to establish itself as a top player in the industry. The strong performance of both of these companies is reflected in the Synovate Mail Monitor mail volume statistics,” he added.

Initially it was subprime issuers and a selection of firms who were most exposed to the credit crunch that were driving the decline but as the economic situation worsened the entire industry, with one or two exceptions, began cutting back on direct mail.

“The souring economy and industry consolidation have driven volumes down to levels not seen since 2000,” said Davidson. “Card issuers are taking a more cautious approach with lower income and high risk households receiving fewer offers or no offers at all. As a result the majority of offers are now only going to households with high credit risk scores.”

The card issuers that cut back solicitations the most in 2008 versus one year ago were HSBC (-61%), Citibank (-44%), Chase (-32%) and Bank of America (-30%).

About Mail Monitor
Synovate Mail Monitor tracks credit card acquisition volumes and response rates throughout the US, and evaluates attitudes, behaviours, terms, and usage for each card in consumers’ wallets. It is a service of Synovate’s Financial Services Group, which generates consumer insights that drive competitive marketing solutions in the banking, investments, insurance and payments industries. For more information about Mail Monitor visit www.synovate.com/mailmonitor.

About Synovate
Synovate, the market research arm of Aegis Group plc, generates consumer insights that drive competitive marketing solutions. The network provides clients with cohesive global support and a comprehensive suite of research solutions. Synovate employs over 6,000 staff in across 62 countries. More information on Synovate can be found at www.synovate.com.