A millionaire dentist has been charged with credit-card theft and forgery after stealing a credit card from a Navy veteran and buying two large pizzas with it, reports WTSP. [More]
credit cards
At Capital One, A CSR's Mistake Is Unchangeable Forever
By 3.11.11
At Capital One, front-line customer service representatives wield enormous power. At least that’s how it seems based on Rachel’s story. She called in to request an increase to her credit limit, and received a small one. She accepted the increase over the phone, and all was well, until she received a letter telling her that she had been offered the limit increase and declined it. It appeared that the customer service representative had made a mistake. Easy enough to fix, right? Well… no. No one Rachel talks to has the power to override this all-powerful CSR’s typo. [More]
Stop Yourself From Overusing Credit Cards By Demagnetizing Them
By 3.10.11
People who have a hard time exercising willpower over their credit card use sometimes find it necessary/helpful to take some extreme steps. Besides cutting them up or freezing them, Lifehacker points out that serial impulse-swipers can help limit their spending by demagnetizing their cards. Just rub a high-strength magnet, like the kind found in a hard-drive, over the strip. It will be harder to go for a spree at the mall because the card number would have to be punched in by hand, but you will be able to make purchases online for airline tickets and such. If the primary way that you overspend is through a real-world shopping romp, this could be one way to curb your bad habit. [More]
Should I Try A Chargeback When Grocery Store Won't Budge?
By 3.10.11
Arguably, the most important fact in this story is that there’s a grocery chain called “Schnucks.” It’s located in the Midwest, and Brandon and his fiancee shop there, employing a complicated credit-card-tab-splitting procedure that normally causes no problems. This time, it did, resulting in a double charge. Brandon wonders whether he’s justified in pursuing a chargeback, since he still doesn’t have his money back. Short answer: Yes. [More]
How Can I Fix My Capital One Data Entry Error?
By 3.9.11
Devin moved his banking to a local credit union. Hooray! The problem is that he accidentally gave his credit card company the wrong bank account number when he switched banks. He didn’t find out about the mixup until after his due date had already passed. He wonders: is there anything he can do to avoid the late fees and interest hikes sure to follow? [More]
Gamers Stationed Abroad Can't Buy Live Console Subscriptions
By 3.3.11
Nick is stationed in Germany with the U.S. Air Force. After a long day of serving his country, he likes to play Xbox. But online play is difficult for military gamers serving abroad because of the way that payment systems at Microsoft and Sony are set up. For those whose credit card billing address is their APO address, the system just won’t accept their addresses and go through. Can’t anyone help the fine, brave gamers of the military? [More]
Flying Wiimote Trashes TV, Discover Makes Loss Less Painful
By 3.2.11
Stephen broke his new LCD TV the old-fashioned way: his 6-year-old son flung a Wiimote into it. Oh, well, sucks to be him, right? He called around looking for some way out of paying to replace the set, a 46″ Sony Bravia that cost more than $900 with tax. Homeowner’s insurance? Nope. He didn’t buy a warranty from Best Buy when purchasing the TV, and a Geek Squad warranty wouldn’t have covered this damage. Time to just go buy a new TV? Not so fast! One of his Facebook friends was savvy enough to tell Stephen to check with his credit card company. [More]
5 Fee-Ridden, High-Interest Credit Cards To Avoid
By 3.1.11
It’s a dangerous world out there when it comes to dodging credit cards with sky-high fees and interest rates that could palpitate any heart. Let’s go ahead and check out a few of the ones you might do well to avoid, shall we? [More]
Capital One Burrows Into Your Wallet, Makes Your Life Hell
By 2.22.11
Gerard, now 26, has spent his entire adult life fighting with Capital One. No, we are not exaggerating: he got his first credit card with the company at age 18, and they have been causing him payment and credit-report headaches ever since. [More]
BofA Slaps "Risky" Customers With $59 Annual Credit Card Fee
By 2.18.11
If Bank of America has decided that dealing with you is “risky business,” you’re gonna get smacked with a $59 annual credit card fee starting in May. What makes a customer a potential target for the new fee? [More]
New California ZIP Code Rule Results In Landslide of Lawsuits
By 2.16.11
It’s been less than a week since the California Supreme Court issued a ruling forbidding retailers from asking for your ZIP code when making a purchase. In that short time, more than a dozen different lawsuits have been filed against retailers as a result. [More]
Amex's Platinum Business Card Promises Are Less Than Golden
By 2.15.11
Lois is a longtime American Express customer. She’s had an AmEx card in her wallet for longer than most Consumerist readers have been alive. When she received a mailing offering 50,000 bonus reward points and extra privileges for upgrading her account to a Platinum Business card, she went for it. Except she never received the reward points. Or the airport lounge privileges. Or, apparently, the upgrade to a Platinum Business card. [More]
CA Supreme Court: Stores Can't Ask For ZIP Code When You Pay By Credit Card
By 2.10.11
If you live in California and you’ve ever been annoyed or concerned about giving out your ZIP code when making a credit card purchase, the state’s Supreme Court has issued a ruling that should appeal to you. [More]
Cabby Pleads Guilty To Ripping Passenger Off For $800k
By 2.9.11
The car service driver accused of ripping off a Hong Kong feng-shui master for over $800,000 on his credit card has plead guilty, New York Post reports. [More]
5 Financial Mistakes We Make When Blinded By Love
By 2.8.11
There are two big calendar dates in the offing for many consumers: Valentine’s Day and Tax Day. So it would only make sense to look at those stupid financial mistakes we make in the name of love. [More]
The 79.99% APR Credit Card
By 2.7.11
It sounds ridiculous. First Premiere Bank launched a new credit card with a 79.99% interest rate. It targeted consumers who couldn’t get a credit card anywhere else, and it was popular. Too popular, in fact. “A lot of the people ran up the card, defaulted and went directly to charge off,” First Premiere’s Bank told CNN Money. Since then they’ve dropped it to 59.99% and that’s just low enough to keep enough people paying off interest to make it profitable. But wait, wasn’t the CARD act supposed to prevent these really hight rates and stuff? [More]
Delawareans Racked Up Most Debt
By 2.4.11
Delawareans lead the nation in average consumer debt, according to a new report. Misplaced sense of state pride? (A lot of credit card companies are headquartered in Delaware because of the state’s relaxed attitude towards usury and their low taxes). Whatever the reason, $20,233 is the average per-person consumer debt load in Delaware, and the next 9 states aren’t that far behind: [More]
Chase Sends You New Credit Card, Then Cancels It Before It Arrives
By 2.2.11
Reader Danny writes in that he was approved for a new Chase Ink credit card, but by the time it showed up in his mailbox, it was already canceled. [More]
