CHICAGO—A new study has found credit card companies mailed “only” 407 million credit card offers in the third quarter of 2020.
By comparison, the same companies mailed 1.1 billion card offers in the third quarter of 2019, marking a 63% decline versus last year, the Competiscan report shows.
During the same period, there was a 53% decline in mailings for the insurance, telco and financial services sectors combined, LowCards.com reported in its analysis.
The sharp decrease in mailings is most likely the result of economic uncertainty, LowCards.com stated. Earlier this year, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau also reported a drastic decline in credit card applications from March to May 2020.
“Cardholders were reluctant to take on new debt, and card issuers were leery of how their customers might pay for their bills, especially since credit card loans are unsecured. The low number of card offer mailings appear to be rooted in caution, and it’s unclear as to when that caution may subside,” LowCards.com said.