Robert and his wife aren’t poor: they’re currently in the process of buying a vacation home. His wife opened up a Macy’s credit card in order to get an additional discount, because yay for discounts! Robert set up “green” or paperless billing after gaining online access to the account, but it turned out to be more like billess billing: they never saw any bills. Should they have noticed that no bills were coming and checked their spam folders? Maybe. But no bills came. [More]
Credit Card Delinquency Rate At Lowest Since Today’s College Students Were In Diapers
By April 2, 2013
In spite of the fact that many Americans are still feeling the headache, nausea, and exhaustion from the Not-So-Great Recession, it looks like we’re becoming more responsible about paying our loans on time. According to a new report, the delinquency rate on bank-issued credit cards is now at its lowest since 1994. [More]
American Express, Where Carrying A Balance With An 18% APR Is A Perk
By March 25, 2013
Forget airline miles, cash back, rewards points, or any of that rubbish. American Express wants you to remember that the best way to take full advantage of your card is to carry a balance. [More]
Massachusetts Court: Retailers Can’t Ask For ZIP Codes To Verify Credit Card Purchases
By March 12, 2013
Don’t want your mailbox crammed with circulars? Neither did a Massachusetts resident who used a credit card at Michaels and was asked for her ZIP code to complete the transaction in 2011. She’s not alone — a few years ago California ruled against retailers that asked customers for ZIP codes when using credit cards. [More]
Have You Seen A Vending Machine That Imposes Credit Card Surcharges?
By February 27, 2013
It used to be that if a retailer charged a fee or surcharge to use a credit card, that violated their merchant agreement with the credit card companies, and they got in trouble. Those heady days are over, and it’s now cool for merchants to impose surcharge on your purchases with plastic. And so it begins. Here’s one spotted in the wild on a vending machine. [More]
Supreme Court To Decide Whether Companies Can Use Forced Arbitration To Skirt Federal Laws
By February 27, 2013
It’s been nearly two years since the Supreme Court slapped U.S. consumers across the face, ruling in AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion that companies could take away customers’ rights to class-action lawsuits by including a tiny arbitration clause in user agreements. Today, SCOTUS hears another arbitration case that could shift the balance even further in favor of corporations. [More]
Court Rules Airline Doesn’t Need To Accept Cash For In-Flight Purchases
By February 25, 2013
There’s a widely held belief that because dollar bills are legal tender that all cash must be accepted by any business for any purchase. This simply isn’t true, but try telling that to the man who sued Continental Airlines for refusing to let him buy $8 worth of stuff with cash during a flight. [More]
Getting A Car Loan Might Someday Depend On How Well-Updated Your LinkedIn Page Is
By February 12, 2013
Whether they admit to it or now, we all know that some employers and schools stalk applicants’ Facebook pages, Twitter accounts and all the other ways in which someone can make a fool of himself online. But should your social media connections be involved in applying for a loan? [More]
Feds Charge 18 People With Ringing Up $200 Million In Fraudulent Credit Card Charges
By February 5, 2013
Credit card fraud is nothing new — identity theft is common enough — but managing to make up enough identities to steal $200 million from credit card companies? That’s a staggering feat, and yet 18 people managed to pull it off. At least, until the U.S. Department of Justice managed to crack the case. [More]
How Do Different Credit & Debit Cards Stack Up In Terms Of Consumer Protection?
By January 28, 2013
We’ve mentioned any number of times how federal laws offer more protection to consumers who make purchases with credit cards because $50 is the most you can be held responsible for a fraudulent purchase, while the sky could be the limit with debit cards. But how do the various networks compare? [More]
The Financial Powers That Be Shut Down Credit Card Use At Vatican City Sites
By January 3, 2013
Vatican City had a bit of an embarrassing situation on its hands come New Year’s Day, when tourists and pilgrims waited in long lines to see holy sites only to find out all electronic purchases had been suspended. That means no credit cards anywhere in the city state. [More]
This Restaurant Really Wants You To Know Why It Can Now Require $10 Minimum For Credit Card Purchases
By December 7, 2012
Rather than your typical hand-drawn sign letting customers know that they must buy at least $10 worth of stuff in order to use their credit card, this restaurant goes a step further and (sort of) cites the law that gives it the right to require the $10 minimum. [More]
Calculate The True Cost Of Credit Card Purchases Before You Buy
By November 21, 2012
This is good advice any time of the year, but since many of us are about to launch into spending sprees in the oncoming days, it’s as good a time as any to remind shoppers to think long-term about how much they are actually going to pay for an item purchased with a credit card. [More]
Credit Card Debt Is Up & We’re Not Being So Good About Paying It Off
By November 19, 2012
We’ve been credit carding it up (yep, it’s a verb) lately and as a result, Americans have collected more credit card debt than we had a year ago during the same time period, according to new figures from a credit reporting agency. But while we’re spending more, we’re not being so good at actually paying off that debt — which makes for a particularly unwinning economic combination. [More]
Don’t Get Sucked Into Retailers’ Deferred Interest Trap
By November 14, 2012
You’re probably familiar with “same as cash” credit offers from retail stores, where you aren’t charged any interest so long as the entire purchase is paid off within a given period of time (usually 6 or 12 months). But what many of those stores don’t put in the bold type is what happens if you don’t pay by the deadline. [More]
US Bank Scores Twice In Roundup Of Worst Credit Cards
By October 29, 2012
It’s probably not a banner day for some folks at US Bank, after two of the bank’s credit cards landed top (dis)honors in a roundup of worst credit cards of 2012. [More]
Having Separate Credit Card Accounts From Your Spouse Can Keep You From Being Stranded Abroad
By October 25, 2012
While many couples consolidate their bank and credit card accounts, there is at least one situation where having a separate account from your spouse can save you some huge headaches. [More]
Data Shows Bank Of America Is Also Bad At Dealing With Credit Card Complaints
By October 12, 2012
Earlier this year, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau launched a complaint portal for people with credit card-related issues. Banks and card companies are not obliged to provide a happy ending to the complainant, but they are obliged to reply in a timely manner. And even with the bar lowered that much, Bank of America still manages to disappoint. [More]
