Subprime Woes Cause Credit Card Mail Decline: Survey

Credit card direct mail volume declined during the fourth quarter, as issuers were strained from the fallout of the subprime mortgage crisis and unsure about the economy, according to Synovate.

Specifically, mailers sent out nearly 1.29 million offers, down 14% from more than 1.5 million offers in the prior year. Response rates were flat at 0.5%.

Overall credit card mail volume for the year was 5.2 billion, down almost 10% from 5.8 billion in he previous year.

"Driving the decline are issuers that target subprime customers and those exposed by the mortgage meltdown," said Andrew Davidson, vice president of competitive tracking services, in a statement.

Card issuers that cut back solicitations the most were Washington Mutual (-73%), HSBC (-34%), Citibank (-52%) and Discover (-50%), according to Synovate, which noted that Washington Mutual and HSBC, in particular, targeted subprime customers. While not necessarily targeting this group, Citibank and Discover both experienced financial difficulties as a result of the crisis.

However, Chase, in an effort to take advantage of the situation, increased its mailing volume 62% over last year, because it limited its exposure to the mortgage crisis.