How Do I Remove Myself as an Authorized User on a Credit Card?

Someone added you to a credit card as an authorized user. Perhaps a parent, a spouse or an ex. But you want to remove yourself as an authorized user on that credit card.

Maybe you don’t trust that person financially. Or perhaps the average age of your lines of credit is getting dragged down by the new card and you want out of it.

In any case, what do you do to remove yourself as an authorized user? That’s what a listener of the Clark Howard Podcast recently asked.

How Do I Remove Myself as an Authorized User from a Credit Card My Ex Controls?

How do I remove myself as a credit card user on someone else’s account? That’s what a listener asked on the May 8 podcast episode.

Asked Matt in Wisconsin: “My former girlfriend of several years added me as an authorized user to her Costco credit card. We are no longer together. She refuses to answer any communication (call, email, text) from me in regards to removing me from it. It is still showing up on my credit report.

“The balance is roughly $4k. This amount has not fluctuated much since us being together. What am I to do? I have no idea how to have this removed from my name.”

Citibank issues the Costco Anywhere Visa® rewards credit card. The good news is that if you no longer want to be an authorized user on the card, you can contact Citibank and ask them to remove you.

“You just say, ‘I’d like to be removed as an authorized user on this account.’ You’ve got the account number. It should be pretty easy,” Clark says.

“If they ask you, don’t give them the full soap opera version of what happened with your relationship. Just say, ‘We broke up and I’ve been unable to reach her to talk about this. I just would like to be removed as an authorized user.'”

Why It Should Be Easy To Remove Yourself as a Credit Card User

The good news for your credit, if you’re only an authorized user, is that any negligence on the part of your ex (or whoever holds the designation as the card owner) won’t blow back on you.

If you were to charge the card, or if there’s a balance your ex isn’t paying, they get stuck with the bill (and any potential credit hit).

The upshot is that Citibank and other credit card issuers should be accommodating to you as an authorized user.

“The credit card companies are generally very cooperative on this because they don’t want someone to say, ‘Alright, they’re leaving me there. I’m going to do some revenge spending here.’ Because you don’t get stuck with the bill as an authorized user. The person who added you does,” Clark says.

“And so the credit card companies want to prevent that. And that’s why they’re generally cooperative.”

Final Thoughts

If you want to remove yourself as an authorized credit card user on someone else’s account, take heed. You can call the credit card issuer and ask them to remove you.

It’s also possible for the cardholder to remove you from their account, assuming you have a good or civil relationship with them.