You have a card you no longer want. You also have a pile of points or cash back you earned. Before you close the account, it helps to know what the rules say about those rewards, and what they do not say. Let's walk through it one step at a time.
What the CFPB says about earned rewards
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is the federal agency that oversees many consumer finance products. In Circular 2024-07, it said card issuers and their service providers may break the law if rewards a consumer already earned are devalued. The same goes for rewards that are revoked, canceled, or blocked because of buried or vague conditions. The circular ties this to the ban on unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices, often shortened to UDAAP.
One detail matters a lot. The circular says this applies even when an issuer follows its own rewards terms. So the fine print is not the end of the story. Conduct by a third party, such as a merchant partner, may also be covered.
Keep the limits in mind. A circular is guidance. It shows how the bureau views possible violations. It does not decide what happens to your account. Use it to ask better questions, not as a promise.
Four problems consumers report
The CFPB also published an Issue Spotlight built on several hundred consumer complaints. It found four repeating problems that left people without rewards they had been promised.
- Unexpected promotional conditions. A reward you thought was secure turns out to have strings attached.
- Devaluation. Points or cash back you already earned are worth less than before.
- Redemption problems. You try to use rewards and the process fails.
- Revocation. Rewards are taken away after you earned them.
Each one is a reason to read the program terms closely. Each one is also a reason to keep records, such as balances, statements, and messages with the issuer.
How redemption failures can happen
A rewards problem does not always come from broken terms. The circular says trouble can come from how a program is designed, marketed, or run. A program can be built so its benefits are hard to use, even if no single line of fine print is violated.
The circular gives one concrete example. You redeem points through a merchant partner's system. A technical failure occurs. The points leave your balance, but the promised benefit never arrives. The circular describes that as a potential violation.
If this happens, compare three things. Look at the points deducted, the value shown on your statement, and the benefit you actually got. Write down the date and details of each attempt. That record makes it easier to raise the problem with the issuer or a regulator.
Questions to ask before closing
The big question is simple. When the account closes, are earned but unredeemed rewards forfeited, paid out, or converted? The sources reviewed for this article do not answer that. Check your card agreement and ask the issuer directly. Ask for the answer in writing if you can.
A second question is whether any conditions are hidden or left to the issuer's discretion. Look for wording that lets the issuer change or cancel rewards at will. The circular's examples suggest that kind of language deserves a close read.
Timing matters too. Is there a deadline to redeem before you close? Must the issuer warn you first? Those rules were not covered in the sources, so confirm them in the card agreement and with the issuer.
What this article does not cover
Two general guides on canceling a card were reviewed, one from Experian and one from Bankrate. The text available contained only site navigation, so it offered no usable steps. This article therefore does not explain how to close an account, or how closing affects credit history or credit utilization (the share of your limits you are using).
It also does not compare how cash back, points, and miles are treated at closure. Those differences may matter. The sources do not speak to them.
For scale, the CFPB's 2025 credit card market report, published December 30, 2025, reports through a law firm summary that 78 percent of U.S. adults have at least one card. Balances passed $1.2 trillion in 2024. Many people are in your position. The report does not tell you what happens to your rewards, so your card terms and your issuer remain the place to look.
Please seek a professional. This article is general information, not financial, tax or insurance advice. Please seek a licensed financial, tax or insurance professional about your own situation.
