First PREMIER Bank on Your Credit Report
In short: First PREMIER Bank is a South Dakota state-chartered bank headquartered in Sioux Falls, operating under FDIC certificate 6085 on a charter dating to 1914. Through its PREMIER Bankcard arm it is one of the best-known issuers of credit cards to consumers with deeply damaged credit. South Dakota's absence of a usury rate cap is the reason many card issuers locate there. Information that is inaccurate, incomplete, or unverifiable can be disputed under the FCRA. Outcomes depend on what the furnisher can verify, and results vary.
Who First PREMIER Bank actually is
Charter details above are from the FDIC BankFind public database.
What makes this creditor different
First PREMIER Bank runs its subprime card business on FDIC certificate 6085, a Sioux Falls charter established on January 1, 1914 — over a century old, and by far the oldest charter of any major subprime card issuer, predating the credit card itself by roughly four decades.
How First PREMIER Bank appears on your credit report
Accounts frequently report under 'PREMIER Bankcard' rather than 'First PREMIER Bank', and consumers often do not connect the two. They are the same institution. A consumer who sees both names and assumes two separate accounts may dispute a legitimate tradeline as a duplicate — check the account numbers and open dates first.
Names it may report under
Products that commonly show up
- ◆PREMIER Bankcard Mastercard accounts
- ◆First PREMIER Bank credit cards
- ◆Secured and fee-based rebuilding cards
Grounds to dispute a First PREMIER Bank entry
Each of these is a reason a First PREMIER Bank tradeline may be inaccurate or unverifiable. None of them assures removal — they are the angles worth checking on your own report.
- ◆Same account appearing as both 'PREMIER Bankcard' and 'First PREMIER Bank'
- ◆Program or setup fees charged at account opening reported as an unpaid balance
- ◆Account reported as charged off while a payment arrangement was active
- ◆Account balance or credit limit reported incorrectly
- ◆Payment reported late when it was made inside the grace period
- ◆Date of first delinquency re-aged to extend how long it can report
- ◆Account still reporting as open after it was closed, or vice versa
- ◆Duplicate tradeline for the same account after an internal transfer
- ◆Account belongs to someone else with a similar name, or is the result of identity theft
Disputing an original creditor is not the same as disputing a collector
First PREMIER Bank is an original creditor — the institution whose name was on the account when it was opened. That matters for two reasons. First, the FDCPA, which governs debt collectors, generally does not apply to a creditor collecting its own debt in its own name, so the “debt validation” request that works against a collection agency is not the right tool here. Second, as the furnisher of the tradeline, First PREMIER Bank has direct obligations under FCRA §623 to investigate a dispute you send it and to correct or delete information it cannot verify as accurate.
Dispute with the bureaus — FCRA §611
File with Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. They must generally investigate within 30 days and tell the furnisher. Free, and you can do it yourself.
Dispute with the furnisher — FCRA §623
Send First PREMIER Bank a direct written dispute. It must investigate and must not continue reporting information it knows is inaccurate. Keep copies and proof of delivery.
First PREMIER Bank questions, answered
Is PREMIER Bankcard the same as First PREMIER Bank?
Yes. PREMIER Bankcard is the credit-card operation of First PREMIER Bank, which holds FDIC certificate 6085 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Tradelines can report under either name, so seeing both does not necessarily mean you have two accounts — but it can mean one account is being reported twice, which is worth checking.
Why are so many credit card banks in South Dakota?
South Dakota does not impose a general interest-rate cap on bank lending, and a 1978 Supreme Court decision in Marquette National Bank v. First of Omaha allowed a bank to apply its home state's rate rules to customers nationwide. Several major issuers relocated their card operations to South Dakota and Delaware as a result. First PREMIER's Sioux Falls charter long predates that shift.
Can I dispute First PREMIER fees?
Fees that were properly disclosed and correctly applied are accurate information and are not removable through a credit dispute. A fee charged in error, charged after a valid closure, or one that generated a delinquency reported inaccurately is a different matter and can be disputed on accuracy grounds under the FCRA.
How long does a First PREMIER account stay on my report?
Up to seven years from the date of first delinquency if the account went delinquent and was never brought current. If the account closed in good standing, it can remain up to ten years and continues contributing positive payment history. The seven-year clock runs from the original delinquency, not from the charge-off date or any later date a furnisher supplies.
Other creditors on credit reports
This page is general information about consumer rights, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Crowned Credit is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by First PREMIER Bank; company names are used only to identify the institution a consumer may see on a credit report. Crowned Credit does not promise any particular outcome; results vary by individual circumstances and by what a furnisher is able to verify. Accurate, verifiable information generally cannot be removed from a credit report. You have the right to dispute inaccurate information yourself, for free, directly with the credit bureaus and with the furnisher.
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