Credit Cards

JL - posted on 05/26/2009

I do not own any credit cards and never have because I have always been weary of the fine print and the credit card companies insistance that they hold the right to raise percentage rates when they see fit. I have a friend who during the process of moving had of course done what we all do when moving canceled all her subscriptions and ect and then forwarded her new address. Well one of the mags she subscribed to had screwed up on the last billing and sent her bill to her old address. In the process of moving and dealing with everything she noticed a month later that she had not recieved her last bill, so she called the mag which informed her that they had been sending late notices to her old address which were not being forwarded to her.



She had a late notice for being a month behind on paying for a mag that she had canceled. The bill was like for 20 dollars it was nothing outrageous but because she had not paid a bill on time she was flagged which her credit card company took notice of. Now she has a history of paying all her bills on time except for in this one case. In fact with her credit card she pays it right off when she gets the bill instead of just paying the minimum fee. Yet this one indiscretion with the mag was used by her credit card company as a reason to jack up her percentage rates. She of course told them off and canceled her card, but unfortuntaly this has been a common occurrence so I see why we need some regulations to keep the credit card companies from screwing people over, but I do think that the people who use the credit cards to live beyond their means and buy crap should not be helped out because they need to learn some financial responsibility. If you have a history of missing payments often then your rates should be raised.

Gina - posted on 05/24/2009

Exactly, I am tired of hearing about the predatory lending. I understand that they gave people too much credit, but they didn't hold a gun to their heads and make them sign the papers.

Christa - posted on 05/24/2009

I completely agree with you Gina. If someone over spends on their credit cards and can't pay their bills they really have no one to blame but themselves. As for predatory companies, they are wrong, but they wouldn't exist if people educate themselves. That goes for the mortgage crisis too. I'm a little tired of everyone blaming the mortgage companies. They were in the wrong, but where was common sense. If a person makes 40K a year and they are told they can buy a home for 400K with no money down a red flag should go off. I don't care how low their payment is, they should know that there is no way for them to pay that loan off. It's simple math.

Gina - posted on 05/24/2009

I just think that people need to take responsibility for themselves. If you get a credit card with a high limit, then don't use it, or call the CC company to lower your limit so you don't get into trouble. I am just tired of people not taking responsibility for their actions, and making everyone else pay for their problems.

Sara - posted on 05/24/2009

I think it is true that this will punish people with good credit who make their payments on time. However, I think that this has been the case recently anyway. My husband and I have a few credit cards and an excellent credit score. We pay our bill every month, on time. We got notices a few months ago that our credit card interest was going up, one by 10%. To me, this was a response to the fact that so many people were defaulting on their credit cards, so they were needing to make money someplace. Honestly, I'm surprised that legislation like this hasn't come to pass sooner. I mean, at 19 when my husband was in college working at the local pizza place, he got a mastercard with a $25,000 limit. If that's not a predatory lending practice, I don't know what is. Granted, it's your fault when you fail to make payments, but I think situations like that are setting people up for failure and I, for one, am glad that is something this new legislation will stop. But, I know that we responsible people will get the shaft, with that I must agree.

Kelly - posted on 05/24/2009

It is quite possible. The head of the American Bankers Assoc. stated basically that this new legislation may force credit issuers to make their money in different ways..... annual fees are one, cutting rewards programs are another, and charging interest on all charges starting on day one is another...... I guess I shouldn't jump the gun and say its a definate, but it is a possibility. Of course credit card companies are there to make money, and if they can't make it off the people who pay monthly interest and penalties they will have to make it off their other customers.

Sara - posted on 05/24/2009

Quoting Kelly:

oh but it gets so much worse...... new legislation from our "Great Leader" will punish you even more for being responsible. Now it isn't enough that you pay your bill in full each month. You will accrue interest on each charge you make from the DAY you make the charge! You no longer have the "luxury" of waiting until the end of the month or whenever the bill is due. How do you like them apples?!?!

You make it sound like this new interest accrual thing is part of the legislation, which isn't the case.  It is something the credit card companies have talked about doing in response to the new rules.  It is not something that has some to pass as of yet. 

Christa - posted on 05/24/2009

Are you sure? I hadn't seen that. That will pis me off! We will have to completely change how we manage our finances if that's correct. I refuse to pay a dime of interest.

Kelly - posted on 05/24/2009

oh but it gets so much worse...... new legislation from our "Great Leader" will punish you even more for being responsible. Now it isn't enough that you pay your bill in full each month. You will accrue interest on each charge you make from the DAY you make the charge! You no longer have the "luxury" of waiting until the end of the month or whenever the bill is due. How do you like them apples?!?!

Christa - posted on 05/22/2009

The more I've read about it I agree with you. I'm going to be mad if I suddenly have to start paying an annual fee to make up for the loss the CC get as a result of this bill. If you can't pay your bills on time then you should pay the consequences. Anyway as long as I don't get punished as a result of this, it will probably help some. It's sort of like the foreclosure bill, it punishes the responsible, while helping the irresponsible. Why should I pay my bills on time, which means cutting a lot of things out right now, when I could just default on my mortgage and then the bank will have to lower what I owe? Frustrating!

Gina - posted on 05/21/2009

I think it's pointless, the congress again are coming to the rescue of the American people who are helpless. We need to quit letting congress fix all of our problems, and be responsible and pay our bills. If you sign something.. read it before you sign it.

Christa - posted on 05/20/2009

I'm in the middle on it. Part of me feels like consumers should be better educated on how to use credit responsibly. I have never paid a dime of interest on a credit card because I pay them off in full every month. I never spend more then I can afford. But at the same time I can see how sometimes you need to use a credit card and card companies shouldn't be allowed to triple your interest out of nowhere. But again if you are paying your card on time they don't do that. So I'm in the middle and don't care too much because it's not going to affect me. Although I will care if my cards start charging annual fees to make up for the loss profit.