Card Portfolio for Context
- Axis Bank - Neo (LTF) & Airtel (Paid) - Rs. 4,00,000 combined.
- Federal Bank - Imperio (LTF) - Rs. 1,86,000
- HDFC Bank - Millennia (Paid) + Swiggy (LTF) + Tata Neu Plus Rupay (LTF) - Rs. 1,00,000 combined.
- ICICI Bank A-Pay (LTF) - Rs. 3,40,000
- IDFC First Bank - Select (LTF) - Rs. 3,00,000.
- Kotak Mahindra Bank - Zen Signature (LTF) - Rs. 42,000
- SBI Cashback (Paid) - Rs. 20,000
Iām stuck in a frustrating loop with HDFC Bank and could use some wisdom from this community. Iāve got three HDFC cards: Millennia (paid), Swiggy (LTF), and Tata Neu Plus RuPay (LTF), with a combined credit limit of 1 lakh. Sounds decent, but itās choking me, and HDFCās refusal to budge on a limit increase is driving me up the wall.
It all started in May 2022 with an IndiGo 6E Rewards card, limit 25k. For two years, I begged the Chennai office for an upgrade, sending emails and couriers like I was auditioning for a persistence award. Finally, in May 2024, they threw me a bone: upgraded me to Millennia and bumped my limit to 1 lakh. Fast forward to now, May 2025, and Iām still capped at 1 lakh across all three cards. In the past year, Iāve spent over 3.5 lakhs on these cards, hitting the spend milestones for Millennia and Swiggy cards. Iām not defaulting, paying on time, and my CIBIL scoreās a solid 777. So why the hell wonāt HDFC increase my limit?
Iāve requested a limit enhancement twice since May 2024, sending two or three couriers to the Chennai office (wasting good money on postage). Each time, I get a vague āinternal policyā rejection with zero explanation. Itās like talking to a brick wall (named Bhanu Rekha) that occasionally emails you. Iām starting to wonder if my accountās been shadow-banned or flagged. Hereās where it gets spicy: I had a bit of a spat with my old RM a while back. Heās now some credit risk officer in my city (thanks, LinkedIn stalking). Could he be screwing with my profile? Do RMs or credit officers even have that kind of power to mark an account as risky or block limit increases? Or am I just paranoid?
Iāve emailed the Principal Nodal Officer, the Priority Address Desk, you name it. No dice. Iāve got my salary slips ready, a great track record, and a portfolio of other cards with way better limits (SBIās an exception, those guys are a mystery, & Kotakās in another league). This 1 lakh limit is a joke for my spending needs. Just yesterday, I wanted to buy home appliances worth 1.5 lakhs, lured by HDFCās offers and cashback. But my limit laughed in my face, and I had to pass. Plus, my credit utilisation ratio is creeping up, which isnāt doing my CIBIL any favors long-term.
So, hereās what Iām dying to know:
- Why is HDFC stonewalling me? Is there something specific theyāre not telling me? Has anyone else been stuck like this?
- Are there RBI guidelines that force banks to justify limit increase denials or ensure fair evaluation? Can I appeal to the Banking Ombudsman over this, or is it just HDFCās internal policy playground?
- Has anyone successfully escalated to an āMD Deskā or some higher-up? I read a thread here about someone getting an Infinia issue resolved by emailing an MD Desk. Does that even exist, and if so, whatās the contact?
- Could my old RM-turned-credit-risk-officer actually be tanking my requests? How do I check if my accountās flagged?
- Any pro tips to get HDFC to take my limit enhancement seriously? Iām not chasing a 500-rupee bump I need a significant increase to match my spending (3.5 lakhs in a year should count for something).
Please drop your advice. If youāve got stories of fighting HDFC, Iām all ears.
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