Senate Passes Credit Card Bill

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Pat D. of AZ @ Jun 06, 2009 18:03:39 PM

credit card bill

I, like most people have a few credit cards, however shortly I too will decrease my ownership down to as few as possible. In the past I will admit I had problems paying bills on time, exceeding credit limits and so on so my interest was always on the high side, As I have grown older I have slowly increased my credit limits and decreased the interest I pay and I make sure my payments if any are made in a timely manor. Now, after all my hard work all the credit card companies are converging on me and have increased my rates on my cards back to the old days. One Major Department Store here in Wisconsin now is lowering every cardholders credit line by several hundred dollars. I was informed of this when I called to check on something I felt was inaccurate on my monthly statement. I do not know if this is really true or not because when I look at my past history I know it is not the best, but I do not believe that this Major Department Store is just now looking at individuals credit reports to see who they can target and then eliminates part of your credit line. About a year ago I received a letter from this Store indicating they were increasing my credit line. They did not just increase it a few hundred dollars they doubled my line of credit. I was really surprised since I did not ask for it however, I feel I had done my part and I deserved it. This is why I am so angry because I worked hard to fix my credit and then I get this notice informing me that my new credit line is less than it was previously. Apparently, I was suppose to receive a letter notifying me of the decrease in my credit line rather than just the monthly bill indicating that I am such a wonderful customer and my credit line has increased by several hundred dollars less than the last bill I received. It is not fair for these companies to come in and have no interest in your personal history, in seeing how you maintain your accounts. We have no protection what so ever over what these companies are allowed to do and it appears that nobody does either and it is time for some decent regulations to be put in place to control what is being done to us as customers. The Businesses think that as long as they keep having sales the customers will keep buying, but the customers are getting smarter because we know that in order for the Businesses to survive we know they are increasing the prices before the sales which is the only why they can survive and stay in business.

L Zuehlsdorf of WI @ May 23, 2009 16:13:12 PM

I actually love my credit cards...

It's only natural that the credit card bill gets passed (obviously, it's not quite done yet). After all, which representative is going to say no? His/her opponent will have a field day in the next election when the time comes.

Of course, it is only expected that banks are taking issues with this. There is no reason for them to go quietly. People use their credit cards and it will be difficult for anyone to abandon their cards just because they take a different stance.

I actually love using credit cards to accrue cash back and it's easier to track expenses. Something that cannot be easily done or as well done with a debit card or cash. I simply pay it off every month.

I also pay off the entire balance every month to avoid any fees whatsoever and absolutely refuse to carry any balance. There is just no point in doing so. If I cannot pay it off in full, then I wouldn't spend the money at first place.

Online websites for research and finding good deals is another way I stretch my dollars farther. For example, I recently came across an interesting table that details the discounts on Amazon at:

http://www.uberi.com

I imagine other people will find it useful too.

John of WA @ May 19, 2009 18:47:51 PM

Credit card bill

I, not unlike most Americans am the proud owner of a few credit cards. We have widdled our cards from 8 or 9 to basically 3, and will eventually have only one. We have always paid our bills on time and usually extra each time, never defaulting. However we saw our card rates jump from 7 percent to 25 percent because we were suddenly deemed a credit risk as the above article mentions. One credit card defaulted our rate to 29 percent because we were one day late. The due date was over the weekend and although they said my bill may have been paid in time, it was not processed in time therefore the rate hike was warranted. After a little back and forth it was reduced to 17 percent. We no longer have that card. While you may work hard to protect your credit, let it be known that the credit card companies have no interest what so ever in seeing you maintain that rating. The rules are set up to protect them and what ever profit they feel they need to make. Businesses no longer need to earn your business. They just take by charging more. Having the credit card companies cry foul after what they have done to there customers in the past few months is poetic justice.

Joe Zimmer of WI @ May 19, 2009 16:52:40 PM

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Alpha Consumer

Kimberly Palmer, senior editor for U.S. News & World Report, writes about how to save money, avoid scams, manage debt, and be a savvy shopper. Send your personal finance questions to her for expert money advice.


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