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12
Credit Card Secrets Banks Don't Want You to Know
1. INTEREST BACKDATING
Most
card issuers charge interest from the day a charge is posted to
your account if you don't pay in full monthly. But, some charge
interest from the date of purchase, days before they have even paid
the store on your behalf!
REMEDY: Find another card
issuer or always pay your bill in full by the due date.
2. TWO-CYCLE BILLING
Issuers
which use this method of calculating interest charge two months
worth of interest for the first month you failed to pay off your
total balance in full. This issue arises only when you switch from
paying in full to carrying a balance from month to month.
REMEDY:
Switch issuers or always pay your balance in full.
3. THE RIGHT TO SETOFF
If you
have money on deposit at a bank and also have your credit card there,
you may have signed an agreement when you opened the deposit account
which permits the bank to take those funds if you become delinquent
on your credit card.
REMEDY: Bank at separate institutions or avoid delinquencies.
4. FEES ARE NEGOTIABLE
You may
be paying up to $50 a year or more as an annual fee on your credit
card. You may also be subject to finance charges of over 18%.
REMEDY: If you are a good customer, the bank may be willing to drop
the annual fee, and reduce the interest rate -- you only have to
ask! Otherwise, you can switch issuers to a lower- priced card.
5. INTEREST RATE HIKES ARE RETROACTIVE
f you
sign up for a credit card with a low "teaser" rate, such
as 7.9%, when the low rate period expires, your existing balance
will likely be subject to the regular and substantially higher interest
rate.
REMEDY: Pay in full before the rate increase or close the account.
6. SHORTENED DUE DATES
Most
card issuers offer a 25 day grace period in which to pay for new
purchases without incurring finance charges. Some banks have shortened
the grace period to 20 days--but only for customers who pay in full
monthly.
REMEDY: Ask to go back to 25 days.
7. ELIMINATING GRACE PERIODS
That
fabulous offer you received in the mail for a gold card with a $10,000
credit limit and lots of features may not be so great. The most
common "string" attached is the card has no grace period.
You are charged interest on everything from the day you buy it,
even if you pay on time.
REMEDY: Throw the offer out!
8. DISAPPEARING BENEFITS
Many
banks enticed you to sign up with extra benefits such as a lifetime
warranty, a 5% discount on all travel, or protection if an item
purchased is lost. Now, some banks have cut back on these extras
without the fanfare that launched them.
REMEDY: Read all notices regarding changes to your account and switch
cards if need be.
9. DOUBLE FEES ON CASH ADVANCES
Most
credit cards impose both finance charges and a transaction fee on
cash advances. Interest starts from the day of the advance, and
the transaction fee can be up to 2.5% of the amount taken. Beware
of cards advertising "no finance charges." Transaction
fees may still apply.
REMEDY: Limit cash advances.
10. FEWER RIGHTS ON DEBIT CARDS
Some
cards with Visa and MasterCard symbols are not credit cards and
will have payments deducted directly from your checking account.
These are debit cards. Under federal law, you do not have the right
to "charge back" problem purchases to a debit card as
you do with a conventional credit card. Also, if a debit card is
lost or stolen, you can have unlimited liability for losses if you
do not report the problem within 60 days, which is different from
the $50 maximum liability on credit cards. (Exception: the $50 limit
applies to debit cards as well as to credit cards in Massachusetts.)
REMEDY: Know your card. Is it a credit cards or debit cards? They
can look alike.
11. MISLEADING MONTHLY MINIMUMS
You may
think it is beneficial to have a card where you only need to pay
2%-3% of your balance monthly. It is just the opposite. The bank
stands to make far more money from finance charges the longer you
carry out payments--and you foot the bill.
REMEDY: Pay all you can monthly.
12. INTEREST FROM DAY ONE
When
you carry a balance from month to month, there is no grace period
on new purchases on most cards. The 20-25 day grace period where
no finance charges accrue does not apply when you don't pay in full
each month.
REMEDY: Find cards that exclude new purchases when calculating interest.
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