Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera - Consumerist Comments

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

chalpin — Sat, 03 May 2008 09:30:08 EDT

@jimforcy

I, too, was living abroad for those 10 years (with several weeks of vacation back in the states) but I seriously doubt we'll be getting thousands back. There are probably thousands of people just like us and I expect the suit will take that into consideration.

chalpin

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

fluiddruid — Fri, 02 May 2008 16:58:37 EDT

Thanks for posting this, Consumerist. I hadn't heard of this class action and I qualify. :D

fluiddruid

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

angrykeyboarder — Fri, 02 May 2008 13:15:20 EDT

@Pennsylvanian123:

That depends on where you travel. Many countries don't stamp your passport with a Visa upon arrival.

angrykeyboarder

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

jimforcy — Fri, 02 May 2008 00:49:54 EDT

I lived abroad for the ten years in question. My folks moved back last year after having lived in Europe for the past decade. We are expecting to get several thousands of dollars back from the CC companies.

jimforcy

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

eighty82 — Fri, 02 May 2008 00:10:24 EDT

Good idea. I was in Singapore and Japan back in 2003. Got a statement from the class action lawsuit about this. I remember getting charged extra for the exchange rate.

eighty82

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

ngallion — Thu, 01 May 2008 23:21:00 EDT

@dmuth: I wondered the same thing myself until I found this on the website -

"Refunds will be paid after the Court finally approves the settlement, and approves any award of attorneys' fees, awards to the class representatives, and allocation of the settlement fund among Settlement Damages Class members, and any appeals related to that approval are resolved. It is possible that this could take several months, or, if appeals are filed, several years. You may want to check this website from time to time for updates."

So, basically, never.

ngallion

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

dmuth — Thu, 01 May 2008 19:38:18 EDT

Say, does anyone know how long it takes to process these refunds? I submitted my request a couple of months ago and haven't heard anything back...

dmuth

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

reidthaler — Thu, 01 May 2008 18:45:21 EDT

What are the amounts one would get back based on credit card statements or the number of days traveled.

Seems like the credit card companies have all the info and they could just send people the money.

Most class action settlements seem to amount to a 5% discount off of more products from the same company that originally screwed you, just adding to more profits for them...

reidthaler

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

ord2fra — Thu, 01 May 2008 18:13:38 EDT

Just did mine, 363 days. Did a study abroad for a year in 1996-97, and various other travel since then. Unfortunately, all of my credit cards that I used then are different. We'll see...

ord2fra

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

donkeyjote — Thu, 01 May 2008 18:03:49 EDT

ERROR: Misuse of the word "Hack" detected....

donkeyjote

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

Umisaurus — Thu, 01 May 2008 17:32:17 EDT

This is nice. My husband studied abroad in Japan from September 2004 - August 2005. I don't know how much that'll get us, but anything would be nice.

Question, though: couldn't one use their passport as proof of travel? The dates would be recorded there, right?

Umisaurus

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

Buran — Thu, 01 May 2008 16:56:19 EDT

@forgottenpassword: That's pretty funny. My now-ex-bf got a check for, I kid you not, $6.66 in a settlement once.

I submitted online. If I get it, great, if I don't, it took me 5 minutes to do it.

Buran

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

forgottenpassword — Thu, 01 May 2008 16:44:56 EDT

@Buran:

I already did. But I still dont have much hope in recieving things like this. I have taken part in class action lawsuits (i was eligible for) before & either recieved nothing or an mioniscule amount. I actually recieved a check for 13 cents once for one.

forgottenpassword

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

balthisar — Thu, 01 May 2008 16:40:48 EDT

I did this very thing before making my claim! I spend a lot of time out of the country... let's see, 829 days for the affected period! In fact I had to cut it short, as I was still in Canada at the cutoff date.

It'll probably still only be $75, though.

balthisar

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

Buran — Thu, 01 May 2008 16:40:12 EDT

@chrisjames: I used the Easy Refund option and as far as I can tell I'm all set.

Buran

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

Buran — Thu, 01 May 2008 16:33:35 EDT

@forgottenpassword: As long as you used your credit card out of the US between the dates in question, you can submit a no-doc claim. I did, because I used my card in Canada but I didn't keep the receipts (it was for minor stuff).

Buran

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

Buran — Thu, 01 May 2008 16:32:52 EDT

@heavylee-again: Lots of us here. Not my pic though!

Buran

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

chrisjames — Thu, 01 May 2008 16:29:12 EDT

@Dashrashi: Every option requires you to provide information for at least one card used in a foreign transaction during the time period.

Claim option 2 is best if you can't track down all your information, but I believe you'll need proof of at least one transaction in case you get audited. I don't remember if it was one of the two articles or the CCF website that states it, but you can request so many free copies per year of past credit card histories from your financial institution at the time.

chrisjames

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

ratnerstar — Thu, 01 May 2008 16:14:19 EDT

@Ihaveasmartpuppy: Not to mention people traveling on military orders (no passport required for most countries), people travelling on diplomatic passports who have since turned them in, and people who have just plain lost their passport and were issued a new one.

ratnerstar

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

petrarch1608 — Thu, 01 May 2008 16:14:08 EDT

you do not need your account number to submit a claim, just the name of the bank that issued it. I submitted mine, I hope I get some money!!!

petrarch1608

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

iwantmore1 — Thu, 01 May 2008 16:12:40 EDT

Isn't this a material breach of the CC disclosures which the CC's use as a binding contract to impose whatever APR increases they want, even retroactively? Seems to me like there should be another class action...

iwantmore1

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

forgottenpassword — Thu, 01 May 2008 16:11:38 EDT

I sent off for this.... but I have no real expectation of getting anything back (I went to england for a week & a half & only used traveler checks & my credit card).

forgottenpassword

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

Ihaveasmartpuppy — Thu, 01 May 2008 16:08:35 EDT

@Eric1285: Not necessarily, what about Canada & Mexico? I drive over to Canada frequently. There is no way on earth I can find all those transactions....

Ihaveasmartpuppy

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

ratnerstar — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:50:08 EDT

@MonkeyMonk: There's always the possibility you could get audited. Probably pretty unlikely, but I imagine the probability increases in proportion to your claim.

Extremely conservatively, I was out of the country 510 days during that time frame. It's probably closer to 600, but I want to underestimate in case I get audited.

ratnerstar

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

Eric1285 — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:47:21 EDT

Seriously, why go through the trouble of looking at your photos? If you left the country, you probably needed your passport. That's what I did. Took me 5 minutes to fill out that form.

Eric1285

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

fol_de_rol — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:45:53 EDT

November 8 was a Wednesday that year - why the odd cutoff date? Is there a significance to that date that I'm not getting? It can't be as easy as "we didn't charge exorbitant fees after that day."

I would have qualified if the cutoff had been just a month later, arrgh.

fol_de_rol

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

MonkeyMonk — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:44:21 EDT

Since the settlement doesn't require any corroborating evidence what's stopping people from just wildly inflating their dates? Besides being honest of course. :)

MonkeyMonk

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

freshyill — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:29:47 EDT

I studied in Germany for four months in 2000, and probably used my card quite a bit. Seriously though, digital cameras weren't *that* common yet. Would my airline ticket stubs or my student visa count?

freshyill

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

Dashrashi — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:29:23 EDT

@Dashrashi: Oops, make that November 06.

Dashrashi

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

Dashrashi — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:28:45 EDT

@wallapuctus: Doesn't matter. The time period in question ended February 06, I believe, and they don't ask for your card information.

ccfsettlement.com

Dashrashi

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

Dashrashi — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:27:57 EDT

@chrisjames: Yes, you're right. But you don't need to have used the card every time you were abroad. I didn't even have a credit card for much of the time I was abroad during the time period, but since I used my card at least once during it, I'm eligible to include even those dates where I didn't/couldn't have used my card for calculating how much I receive under Option 2.

Dashrashi

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

wallapuctus — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:26:32 EDT

What if I no longer have the same card? My card expired last month and they sent me a new one with a new number.

I spent a couple months abroad in 2005 and charged just about everything to that card.

wallapuctus

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

heavylee-again — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:19:23 EDT

@youbastid: Why would you need the camera? Just the pictures with a date stamp.

heavylee-again

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

chrisjames — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:18:14 EDT

@Dashrashi: No, you must have used the card in a foreign transaction during the period to be eligible. Otherwise, you are not part of the damages class.

chrisjames

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

youbastid — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:14:01 EDT

Thank God I still have my digital camera from 1996!

youbastid

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

iwantmore1 — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:13:07 EDT

I have a legal question. Since these fees were not disclosed, isn't that a material break of contract? Can we now sue to recover damages from retroacrive APR increases (credit cards cite disclosures for retroactively increasing APR, which have been materially breached).

iwantmore1

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

Geekybiker — Thu, 01 May 2008 15:08:30 EDT

I'll likely get a couple hundred bucks back from this. Wasn't this on consumerist already though? Like when the notices first went out?

Geekybiker

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

AaronZ — Thu, 01 May 2008 14:59:53 EDT

Thanks for the tip. I had 3 weeks worth of travel in that time period, so I'll probably get $75.

Easiest $75 I made in 5 minutes since college. ;)

AaronZ

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

Dashrashi — Thu, 01 May 2008 14:52:02 EDT

I did this. I believe you don't need to have even necessarily used your credit card while abroad if you choose Option B (which is what I believe is being discussed here)--just so long as you had one of the credit cards during that time. I didn't use my camera to figure out how many days I was gone (I'm not a big picture taker)--but I actually just used my passport. Even easier.

Dashrashi

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

heavylee-again — Thu, 01 May 2008 14:46:56 EDT

Somebody's an Apple user!

heavylee-again

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

Pennsylvanian123 — Thu, 01 May 2008 14:39:45 EDT

Wouldn't a passport have dates of travel? It's been so long since I used mine I can't remember.

Pennsylvanian123

Credit Card Class Action: Get More Money Back Using Your Digital Camera

rdm — Thu, 01 May 2008 14:39:32 EDT

Drat, that would be perfect if I still knew (or had any record of) the CC I used on the trip. The only CC I still have open or any documents for is Discover...

rdm