Choosing a Business Credit Card

As small business lending has dried up, small business owners are increasingly relying on business and personal credit cards to finance their operations. The issuance of new credit cards was also down early this year over last year, but if you have established credit cards, make your payments on time, and have a decent personal credit score, you should not have difficulty getting a business credit card.It's probably easiest to apply for a business credit card from the same company where you already have a personal credit account, says Bob Carr, chairman of Heartland Payment Systems a payment processing firm based in Princeton, N.J .There are three criteria to look at when deciding what card to get: The first is annual fees, the second is interest rates, and the third is rewards," Carr says.Some of the business cards that charge annual fees also offer attractive rewards programs, particularly to customers with good credit, so calculate how likely you are to take advantage of rewards and how helpful they will be to your business. Rewards programs vary by issuing company, but they can include cash back and/or discounts on travel and merchandise.Be very careful to compare interest rate policies, particularly if you plan to use the business credit card to finance a startup. "Interest rates that can be raised an unlimited amount are scary. They can go up on you very quickly," he says. Look for credit cards that have a cap on rate increases.Marc Myerson, a former president of Los Angeles-based merchant credit-card processing company Premier Merchant Services, says that because of interest rate increases and the added cost of transactions, he has paid off most of his credit card balances in recent years. Now retired, he closed all but two of his accounts, which he pays off monthly.We see every day how these banks try to balance their books to compensate for bad investments by greedy bankers on the backs of their bread and butter, the individual and small business person," Myerson says. He recommends the American Express small business card, mostly for its robust rewards program. "The incentives from bank-issued cards have dried up, for all intents and purposes," he says.Accounts In May, President Obama signed into law the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility & Disclosure Act. That legislation, which goes into effect early next year, gives consumers increased protection from unfair card fees and deceptive practices by credit-card issuers.The new rules will make it a lot easier to understand what you're paying, and a lot of the games these issuers have been playing with interest rates will go away," Carr says.However, at this point that law will apply only to personal credit card accounts, not to business credit cards. If you want to take advantage of the new law, you may want to apply for a designated personal credit card that you can use to loan money to your business. Just make sure to keep accurate financial records so that your personal funds do not become comingled with your business accounts, a practice that is ill-advised for tax and legal reasons

Help on Choosing the Right Credit Card

For me, I have four credit cards right now. And three of them are not that helpful in terms of interests and benefits. So, I have opted to consolidate my balances and get one that offers balance transfer no fee and low interest credit card benefits. To help me with my decision, I decided to search for a website that can give me a full view of what is available in the market and compare credit cards. In that case, I will know what I will be getting if I applied for a certain credit card.Gladly, I was able to find www.comparecards.com. They can help you get an overview of what each credit card in the market has to offer. They also provide links for easy application online. Aside from that, they have articles that offer help on credit card management.

So, if you need some help in choosing the right credit card for your ecommenyouvisittoday!Could fixed-rate credit cards soon be a thing of the past?In June, Bank of America Corp. and J.P.Morgan Chase & Co.’s Chase Card Services notified some cardholders that their fixed rates were being converted to a variable rate tied to the prime rate. In March, Discover Financial Services also notified some customers that their fixed rates were changing to a variable one.Spokespersons for the banks who declined to provide details on the numbers of cardholders affected said the changes were an attempt to better manage the businesses’ costs as market conditions change.Nearly all of Bank of America’s fixed-rate cards will be converted to a variable rate. The exceptions: some student accounts, accounts in debt-assistance programs and some newly opened accounts, says spokeswoman Betty Reiss. At BofA, customers will not be able to opt out of the changes, which they will start to see with August statements.Chase customers, however, will be able to opt out of the changes, although they will have to close their accounts. Chase spokeswoman Stephanie Jacobson said the switch was prompted by the company’s “changing costs for funding credit-card loans.” Discover cardholders were also allowed to opt out of the changes, which took effect May 1, but had to close the accounts.With a variable rate, rates generally rise as interest rates rise, and fall in a declining-rate environment. With rates already near a bottom and expected to rise, most consumers probably won’t see their rates fall further.The changes will make it easier for issuers to bump up the rates they charge without notifying cAnd while the Virgin Credit Card sees borrowers receive discounts on goods and services bought from elsewhere within the Virgin Group after the week offer is up, the lovemoney.com writer states that doing so could be to borrowers' detriment.
If you keep spending on the card once the three months are up, taking advantage of all those juicy discounts, you'll fall into the negative payment hierarchy, Ms Baker claims.
However, it could be possible for borrowers to avoid being hit by negative payment hierarchy should they opt for the Halifax All In One credit card. This, she states, is because the product offers a nine-month deal on both purchases and balance transfers.
She points out that consumers should look to ensure all debts owed are paid off by the time the offer expires, otherwise the typical interest rate of per cent will be charged.
Those on the search for a 0% purchases card were also advised to consider the Tesco Clubcard Credit Card, which she points out will offer interest-free spending for months on the basis that minimum monthly repayments are met.Another to voice praise for the Tesco Clubcard was fellow lovemoney.com writer Serena Cowdy who recently claimed that the purchases feature is "perfect for gradually paying back big expenses".

Credit card got advance

Perhaps because they were squeaky wheels, the Mirskys won a reprieve from Chase. After the Pompton Lakes,, couple complained, Joe says, Chase agreed to accept a flat month payout of their loan.But that sort of accommodation appears rare. According to Eric Gibbs, a San Francisco lawyer who filed one of more than two dozen class credit cards getting advance action lawsuits challenging Chase's changes of terms, the best offer that most cardholders are getting is a Hobson's choice: Accept the larger minimum, or agree to a new, higher interest rate.Gibbs says Chase's original pitches were "clearly designed to appeal to people trying to manage their long-term debt." Now that conditions have changed, he says, Chase has decided that some just aren't profitable enough because, like Jacquie Mirsky, they've resisted using their cards for new purchases at higher interest rates.People accepted that offer, and they made a wise choice," Gibbs says. "They've clearly had the rug pulled out from under them."One other thing seems clear to me: No matter how carefully the new credit-card rules are crafted, the perils of consumer debt aren't going away anytime soon.You may be wondering right about now, as I was when I first heard this story: Didn't Congress or the Federal Reserve just do something about credit-card traps?The short answer is: Yes, but not this one.After years of complaints about sudden "any time, any reason" rate increases and the like, Washington finally reached the same conclusion that many consumers had long ago: Some card issuers' practices cross the line that separates annoying and sneaky from truly unfair and deceptive.In fact, starting Aug. the first new protections from the Credit Card Act of take effect: Cardholders will be entitled to at least days' advance notice of any rate increase or other changes in terms. And they'll also have a crucial right: The right to say "No, thanks" and pay off their debt under the old terms.Why doesn't that provision apply to increases in minimum payments? One reason may be that they, too, can be a credit-card trap. When minimum payments are low and interest rates high say, above some cardholders have seen their outstanding balances grow even without new purchases or fees.That concern doesn't seem to be in play here. Chase won't say exactly how it chose which customers to target, but spokeswoman Gail Hurdis said the lender is focusing on those who are paying off promotional rates too slowly.Hurdis said that "tens of millions of Chase customers" have taken similar, low-rate offers, and that most have paid off their balances in less than months. "Our desire is to have these balances paid back in a reasonable period of time," she said.
Joe and Jacquie Mirsky own a small jewelry store in New Jersey, but business isn't what it used to be. Like a lot of jewelers, Joe says selling gold is all that's been keeping them solvent. "But once it's all gone, that's it," he says.To make ends meet, the Mirskys watch their expenses carefully - especially interest rates on credit-card debt that dates to less-lean times. "Joe is very astute," says Jacquie Mirsky, About a year and a half ago, he said, 'Boy, you're paying a lot of interest.' So when Chase Card Services offered Jacquie a chance to pay off a higher-rate balance with a loan at percent, Joe said they should take the deal. He also welcomed a subsequent offer from Chase, this one at credit cards percent.All told, the couple paid off about in debt, sending Chase more than in balance-transfer fees and trusting in the megabank's promise that the interest rate was guaranteed "for the life of the loan," as Jacquie recalls it.Their goal was to pay off their debt slowly but methodically. I never used the credit card to buy anything, she says.Then Chase pulled a fast one so it seems to the Mirskys and thousands of other Chase customers around the country. Last month, Chase changed a key term in their deal, as it has done since November on about 1 million accounts.Not the interest rates on the balance transfers, which Chase agreed were guaranteed as long as those customers met their obligations. What Chase changed was the minimum monthly payment it demanded, raising it from percent of the balance each month to percent.Until then, the Mirskys were paying Chase about a month. In August, that was scheduled to jump to It's times what I'm paying," Jacquie says, calling the change a "bait and-switch" maneuver that threatened to "blow my budget right in the head."She called to complain, at first without any success. "I felt like asking, 'What other bill would you like me to quit paying in order to pay off your card?' "

Government not held to same rules on credit cards

Readers have been peppering me with questions and comments over the past couple of weeks - particularly on two subjects, so it’s time to address them wholesale.Dozens of readers wrote in after last Sunday’s column on the prohibition of credit card surcharges and minimum purchase requirements by both the credit card companies and the state. They split into two groups. The first was those who noticed they were being surcharged by universities, cities, and towns and even the Internal Revenue Service and wondered whether that was legal.It is. Massachusetts law exempts government from being held to the same restrictions as businesses.The other group was made of merchants who mostly wanted to make the point that while they were required to accept credit cards, even for tiny transactions, the public should be aware that it is financially challenging to small businesses to pay a credit card processing fee plus a percentage of the sale.
One reader wrote: “You should make the customer aware and give them a dummy slap for expecting to use a credit card for a purchase. It reminds me of the dopes who step in front of cars in a crosswalk - it may be the law, but it doesn’t make it the right thing to do.’’Another issue that drew a burst of reader e-mails related to a recent column about Sears’ failure to have in stock an item that was advertised for sale and its unwillingness to offer rain checks. State law says that they don’t have to as long as they note in advertisements that quantities are limited.
It turns out that many, many readers had the same experience with a wide array of products different retailers. Telling nearly identical stories, they painted a pattern of routinely seeking advertised items that were nowhere to be found.The only way to solve this problem is to file complaints with the attorney general when it happens and to contact your local legislators to let them know this is a problem and that they ought to consider requiring stores to carry advertised sale items or, other than in certain very limited conditions, to offer rain checks.And, while you’re at it, when you find a national retailer failing to carry sale items, report it to the Federal Trade Commission.The other group was made of merchants who mostly wanted to make the point that while they were required to accept credit cards, even for tiny transactions, the public should be aware that it is financially challenging to small businesses to pay a credit card processing fee plus a percentage of the sale.One reader wrote: “You should make the customer aware and give them a dummy slap for expecting to use a credit card for a purchase. It reminds me of the dopes who step in front of cars in a crosswalk - it may be the law, but it doesn’t make it the right thing to do.’’Another issue that drew a burst of reader e-mails related to a recent column about Sears’ failure to have in stock an item that was advertised for sale and its unwillingness to offer rain checks. State law says that they don’t have to as long as they note in advertisements that quantities are limited.It turns out that many, many readers had the same experience with a wide array of products at different retailers. Telling nearly identical stories, they painted a pattern of routinely seeking advertised items that were nowhere to be found.The only way to solve this problem is to file complaints with the attorney general when it happens and to contact your local legislators to let them know this is a problem and that they ought to consider requiring stores to carry advertised sale items or, other than in certain very limited conditions, to offer rain checks.And, while you’re at it, when you find a national retailer failing to carry sale items, report it to the Federal Trade Commission.

Signature of credit cards

That's discouraging for those who want to see banks pumping liquidity into the economy. "The credit engine needs a tuneup," says Jim Powers, an Equifax assistant vice president.While it's not surprising that banks are pulling back on unsecured loans as card defaults and delinquencies surge, "what's remarkable is the very sharp decline in lending," says Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Economy.com.The drop signals a shift in mind-set by issuers, which historically have raised credit card limits through booms and busts.The government has tried to stimulate overall lending by funding securities backed by assets such as credit cards and mortgages. It's also injected billions of aid into banks in return for preferred stock.But in the credit card market, policymakers are working at "cross purposes," Zandi says. President Obama recently signed a law imposing far-reaching restrictions on cards, mostly starting in February . Those will likely lead to even fewer cards being issued, Zandi says. Style of credit cards Still, if this trend means issuers are "doing better underwriting, that could be a positive thing," says Lauren Zeichner Bowne of Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports. What worries consumer groups, Bowne says, is that issuers are closing inactive cards and slashing limits even for responsible consumers.Despite massive government efforts to bolster the credit market, banks are pulling back severely on card lending.In the first four months of the year the latest data banks issued million new credit cards, a drop from the same time last year, according to Equifax credit bureau data. Low-risk borrowers can still get credit, but they're getting less than before. The average limit on a new card, after rising during the recession, slipped so far this year to Banks and credit card companies counter that stores don't want to pay their fair share. The Electronic Payments Coalition, a group representing the banks and credit card issuers Visa and MasterCard, says that interchange fees are just a cost of doing business and that the fees are negotiated. Shawn Miles, MasterCard group's head of global public policy, said in a recent briefing paper that merchants benefit through "higher sales, guaranteed payment, protection from fraud and offering customers a safe, secure and convenient way to pay." The National Retail Federation, which represents retail companies of all sizes, estimates that U.S. retailers collected billion in interchange fees last year. An average of out of every Americans spend goes to transaction fees, and the federation estimates the fees cost the average household a year. Three bills are pending before Congress that would give merchants the ability to collectively negotiate for lower credit card fees. The credit card industry says that would violate antitrust laws. Miles wrote that when the government mandated lower interchange fees in Australia, "merchants pocketed the savings." The fundamental challenge is that in most business relationships, both parties have the ability to negotiate, and in this case we do not," Rebelez said. "We're not asking for a bailout, we simply want to negotiate in good faith with credit card companies in the same manner we negotiate with thousands of our other business partners."Almost all of these credit card fees are attributable to credit card swipe fees, according to the convenience store trade group. Since more and more customers are using credit cards for small purchases, in some transactions, the store "actually loses money," Rebelez said. The Eleven petition drive will continue through Aug. Top signature gatherers from each of Eleven's seven U.S. geographical divisions will be flown to Washington to deliver the signatures to Congress.The card companies merely pick a rate and then they charge away no notice, no discussion. In fact, we rarely know before we start paying higher fees that the card companies have new rates," said Keith Jones, a Eleven lobbyist. Fair share.

Travel Agents to Stop Accepting Credit Cards?

Business travelers may be the ultimate losers in the latest scuffle between airlines and travel agents over credit card fees. United Airlines recently notified a handful of agents they can no longer sell United tickets using the airline's credit card merchant agreement.Merchants typically remit of the purchase price to the credit card company for the right to accept that credit card as a form of payment. "Merchant fees" are contractually based on the purchase price and transaction volume for each merchant. Airlines have traditionally paid those merchant fees.Though airlines are s and unbundling services formerly included in the price a ticket to survive, United is quick to reiterate that their action impacts a relatively small number of travel agencies. However, United spokesperson Robin Urbanski Janikowski also says "costs of distributing our services are significant and we will continue to reduce these costs while we run an efficient airline for our customers." Eleven Inc. is using its . stores to send a message to Washington and the credit card industry.Starting this week, the Dallas-based convenience store operator hopes to solicit 1 million signatures on petitions calling for Congress to change what the chain says are unfair and excessive credit card transaction fees.Credit card companies charge retailers a fee for every transaction. The size of the purchase doesn't matter. And retailers have no power to negotiate the fees, they say.For convenience stores alone, the fees totaled billion last year, up percent from . That's more than the billion the industry made in profit, the National Association of Convenience Stores says.Eleven, which alone paid million to credit card companies last year, is leading the lobbying effort, working with the association, which represents stores nationwide. The efforts come as the sweeping credit card rules that Congress passed go into Eleven checkout counters. Since percent of Eleven stores are owned by franchisees, the effort is a "Main Street" issue, spearheaded by small business owners, said Darren Rebelez, Eleven executive vice president and chief operating officer. The card companies merely pick a rate and then they charge away no notice, no discussion. In fact, we rarely know before we start paying higher fees that the card companies have new rates," said Keith Jones, a Eleven lobbyist. This leads many travel agents and corporate travel managers to believe this is onThis leads many travel agents and corporate travel managers to believe this is only the beginning. "It is going to be a fee that will be passed on to all travel agencies eventually," projects Randy Limbacher, president of Canyon Creek Travel American Express, based in Richardson, Texas.Certainly, they are testing the waters to see if the other carriers will join in and also promote this initiative," says Michelle De Costa, the global travel manager for Sapient Corporation. "When Delta Air Lines was the first airline to cut commissions, basically everyone followed suit," De Costa adds. "They are going to do it with some select agencies that probably don't sell a lot of United and just see what the marketplace will bear."De Costa wrote to United's chief executive officer, Glenn Tilton, to express her company's concerns. "I know that other travel managers have sent similar notes to United or other airlines to indicate their dissatisfaction with this new initiative," De Costa told me.Agencies no longer permitted to use the airline's merchant agreement may still book flights on United but they must use United's website or pay for tickets in cash. Many travel agencies already have merchant agreements with credit card companies, but they would have to absorb the merchant fee for United tickets or pass that cost along to their customers.

Credit card has items variation

Withrow also said Wednesday that the district will make public details of the more than of personal expenses Trustee Marcie Hodge charged to a district credit card since January . It was unclear when Hodge's credit card statements would be released. District lawyer Thuy Thi Nguyen had maintained for weeks that Hodge had a privacy right to keep details of the charges private because she reimbursed the district.But under the threat of a Public Records Act lawsuit by the Bay Area News Group, Withrow said the uncensored records will be disclosed. "You're going to get what you want," he said.Trustees passed a resolution Tuesday night banning the use of district credit cards for personal items, inserting it in Peralta's ethics rules.We wanted to get the code of ethics out in front of people," Withrow said.It was unclear Wednesday how the state investigation will work. Withrow said he had cleared the resolution with the state chancellor's office before presenting it to the board and was assured the request would be acted upon.A spokeswoman for state chancellor Jack Scott said the request would be acted upon.We concur the public has a right to know and to be assured that taxpayer and other district monies are spent in accordance with the law," said Terri Carbaugh, Scott's vice chancellor for communications, wrote in an e-mail.From our vantage point, maintaining public confidence in our colleges and districts is paramount. This is especially true during this time of economic hardship," she wrote.Trustees came under withering criticism from the public Tuesday night for a lack of transparency and violations of district policies, including Harris doling out raises last year to top administrators without board knowledge or approval.Harris defended the raises, saying Tuesday night that Peralta administrators were paid less than those of other Bay Area districts.Withrow said the raises were "not in concurrence with board policy" and were being reviewed. He declined Wednesday to elaborate.The chancellor also said he has "not had a chance to respond" to questions about Lindquist's contract and other matters.Before the July publication, reporters made multiple requests for an interview with Harris by phone and were turned away at his office when asking to speak with him. Numerous requests for an interview with the chancellor were also made through Withrow and district spokesman Jeff Heyman.Withrow said it was "obvious did" receive messages from reporters seeking an interview, including one Withrow delivered to him.Harris did not return telephone messages credit cards left at his office Wednesday.Peralta College District trustees will require increased scrutiny of contracts for conflicts and the appearance of conflicts; require compliance with existing policies on travel and spending; and rigorously enforce the findings and recommendations of a state investigation, the board president said, reacting to a newspaper probe into the district's finances.If they call for any kind of action, it will be taken," board President William Withrow of Alameda said of state investigators. Trustees voted Tuesday night to request the California Community Colleges chancellor's office investigate the district.That vote follows a July report in Bay Area News Group newspapers that district Chancellor Elihu Harris helped steer a no bid contract worth more than to one of his business partners in a real estate venture without informing trustees of the potential conflict. That partner, Mark Lindquist, also is president of the Peralta Foundation, which raises money for scholarships and books.Withrow said Wednesday that he wants the district to exceed state requirements by having employees list on their annual financial disclosure forms the other people involved in each of their business holdings. Harris identified the name of the partnership but not the partners on his statement of economic interest.The information will be built into a database against which all district contracts will be checked before approval.

credit card disclosures

Peralta College District trustees will require increased scrutiny of contracts for conflicts and the appearance of conflicts; require compliance with existing policies on travel and spending; and rigorously enforce the findings and recommendations of a state investigation, the board president said, reacting to a newspaper probe into the district's finances.If they call for any kind of action, it will be taken," board President William Withrow of Alameda said of state investigators. Trustees voted Tuesday night to request the California Community Colleges chancellor's office investigate the district.That vote follows a July report in Bay Area News Group newspapers that district Chancellor Elihu Harris helped steer a no bid contract worth more than credit cards to one of his business partners in a real estate venture without informing trustees of the potential conflict. That partner, Mark Lindquist, also is president of the Peralta Foundation, which raises money for scholarships and booksWithrow said Wednesday that he wants the district to exceed state requirements by having employees list on their annual financial disclosure forms the other people involved in each of their business holdings. Harris identified the name of the partnership but not the partners on his statement of economic interest.The information will be built into a database against which all district contracts will be checked.

People who refuse to make good on their credit card payments or other debts actually have a name ruthless defaulters and their numbers are likely to grow as more consumers find themselves overwhelmed by bills, according to David Streitfeld’s piece in The New York Times Sunday, which getting a lot of attention in the blogosphere.They are upset at the unyielding banks and often at their free-spending selves and are pre-emptively defaulting. They could continue to pay for a while longer but instead are walking away. “You reach a point where you embrace the darkness of default,” said Adam Levin, chairman of the financial products Web site Credit.com.Along those lines, I keep hearing radio ads for consumer credit counseling firms that have a different tone than in the past. Companies that negotiate down debts with credit card firms on behalf of consumers once touted themselves as a helping hand for a troubled borrower drowning in debt. The ads would sympathize with the worries of a consumer saddled with bills, and offer to help lift that burden. The latest ads, however, complain about lenders getting billions of dollars in taxpayer bailout money and they suggest that lenders are somehow obligated to reduce consumer debt. The tone has changed significantly. The ads now say consumers deserve to be bailed out by these bailed out institutions. There’s no hint of the personal responsibility involved in piling up a mountain of debt.Is this a good thing? Are banks getting what they deserve for overextending credit? I don’t think it’s as simple as that. Here’s the borrower in Streitfeld’s story, explaining her reasoning for defaulting.Melissa Birks is being stalked. Her cellphone keeps ringing, always from a caller marked “unknown. She says she knows it is her credit card company wondering why she stopped making payments. Ms. Birks, who owes has nothing to say.Ms. Birks, , readily admits that no one forced her to use her cards. “Some people are good with money,” she said. “I was stupid.”Still, just about everyone made mistakes during the boom regulators, Congress, Wall Street. If Bank of America got a bailout for making bad loans, Ms. Birks figured, she deserved a bailout for accepting them.In previous downturns, Ms. Birks’ only recourse would have been a debt management plan, where she would restructure her payments with the help of a counselor, or bankruptcy. Now there is a third option: debt settlement. This means going on strike until the lender accepts a partial payment.Ms. Birks asked Bank of America about a settlement this spring. Since her account was up to date, she was told she didn’t qualify. She stopped paying, the bank started calling.When Bank of America finally got her on the phone, it agreed for the first time to drastically reduce her interest rate. She did not take the deal, but considered it progress.Neither side comes out of this looking good.
Calculated Risk, citing Streitfeld’s piece, wonders once again why financial literacy isn’t being emphasized more these days:Streitfeld is writing about the growing wave of ruthless credit card defaults, but this also raises question about the credit card industry in general. Why aren’t consumers being educated on the dangers of not paying off their credit card balance each month? Maybe that will be a good role for the new consumer financial protection agency.But it’s not a given that agency will be created. And even if it is, it may be too late for people likeMelissa Birks, debtors who refuse to answer calls from banks about the thousands of dollars they owe. Until there’s some sort of consensus reached on the responsibilities of both consumers and banks to settle debts in a post-bailout world, the new morality of mounting consumer debt may become the option of the ruthless default.

Card Fees Pit Retailers Against Banks

Credit cards more customers use plastic to pay for even small purchases like these, she has watched a growing share of her revenue vanish in a stream of credit and debit card fees that retailers say raise the price of goods and sharply lift the cost of doing business.Merchants across the nation, from powerhouses like Wal-Mart and Home Depot, to gas stations, mom-and-pop restaurants and Eleven, have spent years unsuccessfully fighting the biggest of these costs, known as an interchange fee, which generates an estimated billion in income annually for banks that issue credit cards.But after Congress passed a law last month to protect consumers from excessive fees and interest on credit cards, merchants are mounting a fresh offensive.This time, they believe the momentum in Washington has turned in their favor. Legislation is winding its way through Congress, a government audit has been ordered and petitions are surfacing in hundreds of convenience stores, including Ms. Orzano’s Eleven, encouraging customers to voice their opposition to the fees. “Congress sort of already illustrated the willingness to take on the credit card companies and the big banks,” said Keith Jones, a lobbyist for Eleven. “We just feel like the job is half done.”And while large and small banks often clash on political agendas, they have formed a united front, joined by payment networks like Visa and MasterCard, to prepare for a furious battle on Capitol Hill. With profit from credit cards likely to diminish because of the new laws, they are determined not to absorb another major hit.It’s a big deal to them, and they would be fully engaged in it,” said Kenneth J. Clayton, senior vice president for card policy at the American Bankers Association.Every time a consumer uses plastic, about 2 percent to 3 percent of the charge goes to banks and payment networks, which price the fee differently in different countries. Of that, the interchange fee is paid to the cardholder’s bank, and at roughly 1.8 percent of each purchase in the United States, according to June report by J.P. Morgan, it is the largest and most controversial of these costs.But retailers may have a tough time convincing Congress that consumers would benefit if the effective interchange rate, which has increased slightly in recent years, is dialed back. Many other countries, including Israel and Australia, have required banks that issue cards to reduce the fee. Yet there is little evidence that the savings were passed along.In Australia, where regulators required banks to cut the interchange rate for Visa and MasterCard purchases to percent from percent, the banks offset their loss by reducing rewards programs and raising annual fees, according to a report by the Government Accountability Office.A similar outcome could happen here, banks and card companies say. In response to Eleven’s petition drive, MasterCard said the convenience store chain was really asking its customers “to claim that they want to pay more for their payment cards so Eleven can increase its profits.”Bill Sheedy, Visa’s president for North America, added: “We really don’t think the legislation is going to move forward.”Banks say they incur substantial risk when offering credit cards, and must make enough of a return to continue to extend credit. Reducing interchange fees would cut profit at both the largest and smallest financial institutions, including community banks and credit unions, Mr. Clayton said. charged to a Visa card, the merchant’s bank receives about , according to a hypothetical example used by J.P. Morgan in a June report. The bank forwards about the interchange fee to the cardholder’s bank. Both banks pay a fee to Visa, cents apiece. The merchant’s bank then pays another nickel to a third-party processor and keeps the remaining cents.While the fee for each purchase is small, combined credit and debit card payments at merchants have almost tripled over the last decade, to more than billion swipes last year from about billion in, according to data compiled by the Nilson Report, a journal on the payment industry.Merchants say that makes their aggregate expense from the fees enormous and there is no leverage to ratchet it down. “You’ve got to accept the card and pay whatever price the credit card companies want to charge, and by the way, they won’t talk to us about it,” said Mr. Jones, the lobbyist for Eleven.At Target, for example, interchange fees represent the second-largest store-level expense, behind payroll. The costs are similarly eye-popping at Home Depot, where officials say they top the price of health care insurance for employees. “The amount of money we’re spending on interchange would put associates in each of our stores,” Dwaine Kimmet, vice president of financial services for Home Depot, said at a recent conference on credit card fees.Even some government agencies have not been able to negotiate lower fees. According to a recent . report, federal agencies paid out more than million in interchange fees in , the most recent year for which data was available.Some retailers simply refuse to accept certain credit cards. Costco, the nation’s largest membership warehouse chain, negotiated a lower interchange rate with American Express and does not take Visa and MasterCard in its stores.And last month, United Airlines began to force a small number of travel agencies to absorb credit card fees of percent for ticket bookings, a trend that agents fear may distort ticket economics if other large carriers follow suit. United is not passing the fee on to consumers who book directly with the carrier.Merchants say the cost may have been justified when credit card transactions were largely done with paper, making processing far more cumbersome. But with bigger volumes and new efficiencies from technology, they argue, interchange fees are simply a cash cow for card companies that wind up lifting the costs of all goods. The credit card industry says retailers’ costs have surged simply because consumers are using plastic for purchases they would never have dreamed of a decade ago, like a cup of coffee or a Slurpee.Of course, the surge in transaction volume has been a boon for credit card companies: Visa’s stock price is around $60, and MasterCard’s is around . While they are down from highs hit just before the financial crisis, they are still well above the share price of card-issuing banks like Citigroup and Bank of America.Still, while legislation on interchange fees would not have stood a chance a few years ago when the economy was buoyant and banks were not under the political spotlight, the winds on Capitol Hill have shifted as public anger at banks and credit card companies has grown.The target is still painted bright red on the forehead of every credit card issuer,” said Robert Hammer, a credit-card industry consultant. “It is a brutal, brutal year.”At a Eleven in a blue-collar neighborhood in St. Louis, the owner, Mike Foster, is hoping the petition in his store will help convince Congress to approve curbs on interchange fees. He said he can make adjustments to curb other expenses in his store, but he cannot do anything to change interchange fees, which cost as much as much as a month.It keeps getting bigger and bigger and bigger,” he said. “And I got zero control over it.”

Credit cards recommended for travellers

You snicker when you hear an ad for a pill that will vaporize belly fat. You scoff at suggestions that you can work at home and earn more money than Warren Buffett.But when you hear about a program that promises to significantly reduce your credit card debt, you wonder: Do these debt-relief services really work?Debt-settlement companies typically try to negotiate with credit card companies to reduce the amount you owe. Rising unemployment has led to a sharp increase in the number of consumers who are behind on their payments, creating a receptive audience for their services. But like a weight-loss product that causes you to gain 10 pounds, some of these programs could leave you even deeper in debt.Federal and state regulators have brought a number of actions against debt-relief companies for misleading and deceptive practices.Last week, Chase Card Services, a division of JPMorgan Chase, said it will forgive the debts of more than credit card holders who were allegedly defrauded by a Florida-based group of debt-settlement companies.Warren Buffett | JPMorgan Chase & Co.The settlement stemmed from a lawsuit brought by Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum against the companies. The lawsuit alleged that customers were told to stop sending monthly payments to their credit card companies and send the money instead to the debt-settlement firm, which promised to reduce debts to pennies on the dollar. Instead of sending the money to credit card companies, the lawsuit alleged, the group used it to pay attorneys' and processing fees.For some borrowers with large debts that can't be repaid within three to five years, a reputable debt settlement company may offer an alternative to bankruptcy, says Gerri Detweiler, credit adviser for Credit.com, a consumer site. Legislation enacted in 2005 has made it more difficult for some individuals to file for Chapter bankruptcy, which eliminates most debts. Chapter bankruptcy requires you to agree to make up to five years of court-ordered payments, and you may be required to surrender some assets.Still, bankruptcy offers more legal protection than debt settlement: While you're filing for bankruptcy, your creditors can't file lawsuits or harass you. "I would never suggest someone go into debt settlement unless they've met with an attorney, and the attorney concurs that bankruptcy may not be the best option," Detweiler says.If you decide to pursue debt settlement, watch out for red flags. Warning signs:Many of the debt-relief companies targeted by federal and state regulators demanded thousands of dollars in fees and never delivered on promises. If a company gets most of its payment upfront, Detweiler says, "They don't have much incentive to do a good job for you." Ideally, fees should be tied to results.Not true. While successful debt settlement will reduce the amount you owe, "Your credit will be significantly damaged," Detweiler says. "If you're weighing bankruptcy vs. debt settlement from a credit report standpoint, there's not much difference."While creditors do settle debts every day, it's an adversarial process," Detweiler says. "You could be sued.These companies provide, for a fee, a document that purports to absolve the consumer from credit card debts because the original line of credit was illegal. Consumers who fall for this scam end up with higher debts, ruined credit and calls from a collection agency.There are low-cost alternatives to debt settlement. Call your lenders and see if they're willing to negotiate with you directly.Another option is a non-profit credit counseling agency, says Chuck Bell, programs director for Consumers Union. A credit counselor may be able to negotiate a debt-management plan with your lenders that allows you to repay your debt over time, sometimes at a lower interest rate.You can find a credit counselor in your area at www.debtadvice.org, the website for the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, or www.aiccca.org, the website for the Association of Independent Consumer Credit Counseling Agencies.Ideally, Bell says, "You're going to get an independent source of advice, not somebody who is going to profit from your misfortune."Sandra Block covers personal finance.

Credit card law should give consumers some relief

The first half of this year was not kind to veteran credit card salesman Zhang Tianyu's wallet.His monthly salary shrank ten times from nearly yuan two years ago to about year.The dramatic drop in income was experienced by other credit card salespeople, too, as banks backed away from a previously generous policy when it came to issuing credit cards.The flood of easily available credit cards slowed as the global financial crisis started taking its toll on the Chinese economy last year."The risk control department is more vigilant than ever. Though I can still bring back hundreds of credit card applications each month, many of them cannot get through the credit checks," Zhang said. Amid concerns that high credit card debt might trigger a new economic slowdown, many Chinese lenders have stepped back from aggressively promoting the cards. have noticed the underlying risk of aggregate defaults, and thus our policy on credit card issuance has become stricter than ever," a source with the credit card center at China Citic Bank said.At present, only percent of the credit card applicants get approved, while in the past few years the approval ratio was about percent to percent," the source said.Pulling back on credit card marketing also is in response to warnings by the country's banking regulators about credit card-related risks.In a notice sent to Chinese commercial lenders in mid-July, the China Banking Regulatory Commission, or CBRC, the country's top banking watchdog, ordered banks to tighten credit card issuance practices and carefully appraise credit ratings before issuing cards to applicants.Banks should not set quotas for credit card salespeople and never give out credit cards to students under the age of 18, the CBRC advised.The move followed the quarterly payment system report issued by the People's Bank of China, which warned about the underlying risks of substantial increases in outstanding credit card debts.In the first quarter, credit card balances that were at least six months overdue reached billion yuan, up percent from a year earlier, according to the central bank's report.anks should pay special attention to the potential risks arising from the continuing increase in defaulted credit card payments when they are promoting the development of credit card business," the report stated.China saw its credit card business start to take off in recent years as more banks realized it could become a major source of revenue.As of March, Chinese banks had extended million credit cards, up percent That increased the number of credit cards held by each Chinese consumer to, compared to an average of credit cards held by Americans, central bank statistics showed.The credit card business remains a side enterprise in the overall business portfolio of Chinese lenders, but it promises huge potential in the future.Thus, banks lowered issuance requirements and loosened credit checks.Even students with no fixed incomes were once more readily issued credit cards.In the wake of the global financial crisis, domestic lenders used the massive credit card defaults in the United States as a cautionary tale and tightened their own requirements for approving credit cards.We have already suspended handing out Young cards since last year, as they are defined as a high-risk group of people with no fixed income," said a staff member at the Beijing credit card center of China Merchants BankSouthern Illinoisans who are seeing minimum payment amounts jump on their credit cards will get some consumer relief, but it won't be until July Congress enacted a credit card reform bill in May to rein in increases and excessive fees, hoping to give consumers breathing room amid a recession that has left hundreds of thousands of Americans jobless or facing foreclosure.There are some key changes that I can see," said Jeff Rose, a certified financial planner with the Alliance Investment Planning Group in Carbondale.Rose sat down recently and analyzed stipulations of the newly enacted bill that also curtails risk for the financial companies in who they can issue cards to.The sentiment is like people financing homes. High risk people will have a harder time getting a credit card," Rose said.

Credit card policies tightened

Rick Eddleman and Warren Holland were once as close as brothers.Their fathers worked together in masonry, and as boys the two laid brick in the summers. Eddleman, the elder by two years, dated and later married Holland’s younger sister, Teri.For years, Holland told a favorite family story of the day Eddleman saved his life when they were young men. Holland swam toward shore with a leg cramp during a family outing at a lake. He struggled as the other leg cramped.Rick pulled me in,” he said.As adults, Holland hired Eddleman to manage the finances and computer systems for his Norfolk company, Decipher Inc., which makes trading-card and role-playing games. The position gave Eddleman access to all of the company’s books, checks and credit cards.Eddleman used them to steal millions.The theft continued for almost years, until the missing money nearly toppled the company. In the years after March when the embezzlement was discovered, Holland reduced his person staff to about seven with three rounds of layoffs. He hasn’t had a paycheck in six years. He mortgaged his home and sold his office building, emptied his retirement savings, and poured the proceeds into saving his company.Eddleman, , was sentenced Monday to six years and five months in prison for his guilty plea to counts of embezzlement. He had almost nothing to show for the thefts. His retirement account held about Eddleman declined repeated requests through his lawyer for an interview, did not return calls to his home, and declined an interview after his Circuit Court hearing.He spoke in court on Monday.
I am completely ashamed of everything I’ve done,” he said. “I know one of the worst possible things I’ve done is to violate the trust of the position I was put in.”Holland does not expect that the stolen money will be returned, despite the judge’s order that Eddleman pay in restitution.He also does not expect to talk to Eddleman again.I don’t have any relationship with him at all,” Holland said.talks about himself and his company as one being.He founded Decipher in Each year brought more success. Holland created scratch that could be mailed to troops serving in the first Gulf War. Decipher earned a huge market share in role playing games such as How to Host a Murder , and in collectible card games such as About the time that Decipher began to thrive, Holland said, Eddleman’s construction company failed.We’re doing really well,” Holland told his brother in law. “Why don’t you come in and do the computers That was in May . Before long, Eddleman had taken over management of Decipher’s finances.A few months after that, I gave him authority to sign checks,” Holland said.Eddleman began stealing from the company a short time later.From September until March Eddleman stole at least million. That’s according to evidence in the criminal case against him. Prosecutor Marc West said he could have filed thousands of criminal charges against Eddleman, for far more than million, but chose to focus on a few to keep the case from becoming overwhelming. Documents in a lawsuit Holland filed against him assess the damage at nearly million.His methods were myriad. Eddleman wrote himself two checks every payday, doubling his . He wrote checks to his wife and children, forged their names and cashed them. He made himself loans and tricked his staff into believing the money had been repaid by distributing the debt throughout the company’s books. As finance director, he was supposed to review the company’s credit card statements for unauthorized personal expenses. Instead, he racked up hundreds of thousands of dollars in charges himself.Holland cites one example. On the day one of Eddleman’s daughters married, Holland said, a group of wedding guests gathered to play a round of golf. Eddleman collected money from the players for greens fees, pocketed the cash and then charged the full amount on his Decipher credit card.It was literally dozens and dozens of ways,” Holland said. “It was not a crime. It was a lifestyle.”Eddleman got away with it for so long because he had total control of the company’s books and computers, Holland said. Eddleman oversaw the implementation of various software accounting packages and was the only one who knew how to use them all. Holland approved buying new and better accounting software, but Eddleman repeatedly blocked its use by saying it wouldn’t work for Decipher.Holland believes that Eddleman eventually started spending money to run the company out of business to conceal his theft. If the company didn’t exist, Holland asked, who would be checking the books?Eddleman began to complain about his workload and long hours, Holland said, so he decided to offer some help. In the fall of Holland hired an accountant to take over as chief financial officer. Shortly after the accountant started working for Decipher, he found worth of unexplained payments to Eddleman. The accountant told Holland, and Holland asked his company president, Cindy Thornburg, to talk to Eddleman.Eddleman told Thornburg that he had borrowed the money and intended to pay it back. He swore that was all he took. Thornburg also looked on Eddle nbeing.My first assumption was that he was going to kill himself,” Thornburg said.The theft seemed out of character, and she feared he must be under some terrible pressure to have taken the money. She made an appointment for him with a therapist and called his wife. Thornburg and Holland allowed Eddleman to resign and paid him a severance package.And then, Thornburg said, “it started unraveling.”The more they looked, the more theft theyfound. Holland and members of his staff combed through the company’s books, hauled canceled checks out of their warehouse, reviewed credit card statements. Eddleman had lied to them and stolen from them on a daily basis for nearly a decade.Even worse than the theft, Holland said, was the effect of Eddleman’s betrayal on his family. Holland’s parents had treated Eddleman like a son. They owned a stake in the company, so he had stolen from them, too. Holland had established a trust to keep a portion of the company for his nieces. Holland’s sister, Teri, remains married to Eddleman and supports him. Holland fears that when his parents die, he will have little to no contact with her.Thornburg also struggled to reconcile the Eddleman she knew with the one who deceived her so often and so easily.Years ago, Thornburg said, three men robbed her and a friend at gunpoint. It took less than two minutes; the robbers got about . They were caught quickly, and told police they didn’t shoot because Thornburg had done them no wrong.Those total strangers, even while pointing a gun at her, Thornburg said, showed her more compassion than Eddleman.He pretended to be my friend,” she said. “He stole from me for years, and he used a computer instead of a gun.”Holland first pursued a lawsuit against Eddleman. In answering questions posed by Holland and his lawyers, Eddleman admitted to three-quarters of his crimes. In March a circuit judge ordered Eddleman to pay Decipher million, plus interest.Bradley Reaves represented Decipher in the lawsuit. After the court order, Eddleman had to answer questions from Reaves about his assets and how his debt to Decipher could be repaid. Any question regarding finances is fair, Reaves said.Can you turn out your pockets? Let me see your watch,” Reaves asked Eddleman. “He said he had one dollar for parking. We didn’t take it.”Reaves said no one could determine where the money had gone. It appeared Eddleman had used the cash to live a lifestyle far beyond his salary, but one that accumulated little in material assets.In his responses to the lawsuit, Eddleman admitted to using his company credit card to pay for thousands of dollars in restaurant meals. He bought works of art on Decipher’s credit card, and clothes at Nordstrom, Banana Republic and Old Navy. He bought flowers and Godiva chocolates and jewelry. He racked up hundreds of dollars in charges almost every month at bookstores like Barnes & Noble. He charged to pay for a vacation, and then pocketed a cash refund from the company when he cancel ed the trip.Reaves said he was not surprised.He’s the head of accounting,” Reaves said. “If he pulled up in a brand new Turbo, everyone would say 'Where did you get the money for that Holland and Thornburg hope a new game called “Fight Klub” will get their company back on track. They hope Eddleman’s sentencing will help them put the theft behind them.Before deputies placed Eddleman in handcuffs and led him away, he apologized.In my heart of hearts, I am deeply regretful,” he said.Holland and Thornburg could not believe his apology.There have been too many lies,” Thornburg said during her testimony.

Credt Card Debt Relief Now Within Reach of All Americans

Positive, life-changing credit card debt relief is now available to all Americans, regardless of how much they are in debt. For too long the credit card issuers have ensnared too many consumers in the high interest trap, but credit card debt relief can provide the cure to your debt anxiety. There is no reason you should be a slave to the credit card industry's late fees, interest payments, and hidden charges that can drown you in debt when there are options for relief available today. Eliminate Credit Card Debt We have all been there, and many honest people find themselves trapped by sky rocketing credit debt that comes complete with heavy interest payments, hidden fees, and late charges. It can sap your hope and leave you feeling depressed and anxious having that huge debt hanging over your head with no idea how to get rid of it. With no relief in sight, and no progress being made by your payments, you can feel hopeless and alone with your debt. You might even reach the point of giving up, because you don't have enough money for the essentials in life, your food, rent, gasoline, and you certainly don't have any left over for the stress relievers of entertainment. You are not without options though, and you can eliminate credit card debt, even if it has gotten so out of control as to be unmanageable. Even if you have bad credit or you are in danger of falling behind you must confront your credit debt, consider the help of debt relief loans from consolidation lenders. Consolidate Credit Card Debt for Relief The first step to consider when desperately seeking credit card debt relief is to seek the help of consolidation lenders. Debt consolidation loans can pay off your high interest credit debt with a single longer term better rate consolidation loan. These loans can help you dramatically reduce your payments and flip your payment progress so that more of your payment from month to month reduces your principle, rather than simply paying interest to keep you afloat financially. Relief loans for consolidation can provide you instant relief and put money in your pocket immediately. Settle Your Credit Card Debt In addition to seeking debt relief using consolidation loans, these lenders can also provide debt settlement services. Commonly, if you are overwhelmed with severe credit debt they can negotiate with your credit cards and seek to reduce the amount of money you owe, termed a settlement of debt. In some cases they can settle your high interest debt for up to a third of what your current balance is. This instantly gets you back on track to recovery your financial future and provides instant debt relief. Take Action If your credit cards are causing you to lose sleep every night, you have nothing to lose, consult with these professional debt relief lenders, you are under no obligation and they can help you. Let them provide you a no obligation offer on how they can best provide relief to your unique credit card debt situation, you deserve the help. To learn more about credit card debt relief and how it can help you today, please visit Total Debt Relief. Amid concerns that high credit card debt might trigger a new economic slowdown, many Chinese lenders have stepped back from aggressively promoting the cards.We have noticed the underlying risk of aggregate defaults, and thus our policy on credit card issuance has become stricter than ever," a source with the credit card center at China Citic Bank said. At present, only 30 percent of the credit card applicants get approved, while in the past few years the approval ratio was about percent to the source said. Pulling back on credit card marketing also is in response to warnings by the country's banking regulators about credit card-related risks. In a notice sent to Chinese commercial lenders in mid-July, the China Banking Regulatory Commission, or CBRC, the country's top banking watchdog, ordered banks to tighten credit card issuance practices and carefully appraise credit ratings before issuing cards to applicants. Banks should not set quotas for credit card salespeople and never give out credit cards to students under the age of 18, the advised. The move followed the quarterly payment system report issued by the People's Bank of China, which warned about the underlying risks of substantial increases in outstanding credit card debts. In the first quarter, credit card balances that were at least six months overdue reached percent from a year earlier, according to the central bank's report. Banks should pay special attention to the potential risks arising from the continuing increase in defaulted credit card payments when they are promoting the development of credit card business," the report stated. China saw its credit card business start to take off in recent years as more banks realized it could become a major source of revenue. As of March, Chinese banks had extended million credit cards, up percent year That increased the number of credit cards held by each Chinese consumer to compared to an average of credit cards held by Americans, central bank statistics showed. The credit card business remains a side enterprise in the overall business portfolio of Chinese lenders, but it promises huge potential in the future. Thus, banks lowered issuance requirements and loosened credit checks. Even students with no fixed incomes were once more readily issued credit cards. In the wake of the global financial crisis, domestic lenders used the massive credit card defaults in the United States as a cautionary tale and tightened their own requirements for approving credit cards. We have already suspended handing out Young cards since last year, as they are defined as a high-risk group of people with no fixed income," said a staff member at the Beijing credit card center of China Merchants Bank

Yet another credit-card 'gotcha'

Joe and Jacquie Mirsky own a small jewelry store in New Jersey, but business isn't what it used to be. Like a lot of jewelers, Joe says selling gold is all that's been keeping them solvent. "But once it's all gone, that's it," he says.To make ends meet, the Mirskys watch their expenses carefully - especially interest rates on credit-card debt that dates to less-lean times. "Joe is very astute," says Jacquie Mirsky, . "About a year and a half ago, he said, 'Boy, you're paying a lot of interest.' So when Chase Card Services offered Jacquie a chance to pay off a higher-rate balance with a loan at percent, Joe said they should take the deal. He also welcomed a subsequent offer from Chase, this one at percent.All told, the couple paid off about in debt, sending Chase more than $200 in balance-transfer fees and trusting in the megabank's promise that the interest rate was guaranteed "for the life of the loan," as Jacquie recalls it.Their goal was to pay off their debt slowly but methodically. "I never used the credit card to buy anything," she says.Then Chase pulled a fast one - or so it seems to the Mirskys and thousands of other Chase customers around the country. Last month, Chase changed a key term in their deal, as it has done since November on about 1 million accounts.Not the interest rates on the balance transfers, which Chase agreed were guaranteed as long as those customers met their obligations. What Chase changed was the minimum monthly payment it demanded, raising it from percent of the balance each month to percent.Until then, the Mirskys were paying Chase about a month. In August, that was scheduled to jump to times what I'm paying," Jacquie says, calling the change a "bait-and-switch" maneuver that threatened to "blow my budget right in the head."She called to complain, at first without any success. "I felt like asking, 'What other bill would you like me to quit paying in order to pay off yourYou may be wondering right about now, as I was when I first heard this story: Didn't Congress or the Federal Reserve just do something about credit-card traps?The short answer is: Yes, but not this one.After years of complaints about sudden "any time, any reason" rate increases and the like, Washington finally reached the same conclusion that many consumers had long ago: Some card issuers' practices cross the line that separates annoying and sneaky from truly unfair and deceptive.In fact, starting Aug. the first new protections from the Credit Card Act of 2009 take effect: Cardholders will be entitled to at least days' advance notice of any rate increase or other changes in terms. And they'll also have a crucial right: The right to say "No, thanks" and pay off their debt under the old terms.Why doesn't that provision apply to increases in minimum payments? One reason may be that they, too, can be a credit-card trap. When minimum payments are low and interest rates high - say, above percent - some cardholders have seen their outstanding balances grow even without new purchases or fees.That concern doesn't seem to be in play here. Chase won't say exactly how it chose which customers to target, but spokeswoman Gail Hurdis said the lender is focusing on those who are paying off promotional rates too slowly.Hurdis said that "tens of millions of Chase customers" have taken similar, low-rate offers, and that most have paid off their balances in less than months. "Our desire is to have these balances paid back in a reasonable period of time," she said.Perhaps because they were squeaky wheels, the Mirskys won a reprieve from Chase. After the Pompton Lakes, N.J., couple complained, Joe says, Chase agreed to accept a flat a-month payout of their loan.But that sort of accommodation appears rare. According to Eric Gibbs, a San Francisco lawyer who filed one of more than two dozen class-action lawsuits challenging Chase's changes of terms, the best offer that most cardholders are getting is a Hobson's choice: Accept the larger minimum, or agree to a new, higher interest rate.Gibbs says Chase's original pitches were "clearly designed to appeal to people trying to manage their long-term debt." Now that conditions have changed, he says, Chase has decided that some just aren't profitable enough - because, like Jacquie Mirsky, they've resisted using their cards for new purchases at higher interest rates.People accepted that offer, and they made a wise choice," Gibbs says. "They've clearly had the rug pulled out from under them."One other thing seems clear to me: No matter how carefully the new credit-card rules are crafted, the perils of consumer debt aren't going away anytime soon.

Credit Cards Hit Historic Levels

Credit union card experts and analysts say the latest nationwide credit card flap has given credit unions have another good opportunity to market their credit cards as better for consumers.The widespread controversy centers around the use of arbitration to adjudicate delinquent credit card debt. Most large card issuers build an agreement to use an arbitrator, as opposed to going to court, to settle card disputes into their card agreements. Most consumers have no idea that they have signed away their right to sue the card issuer when they agreed to take the card.But now the arbitration system for credit card accounts nationwide has been thrown into confusion because the biggest firm that provided this service, the National Arbitration Forum, has gotten out of the business. Further, the American Arbitration Association has said it will stop administering any consumer debt programs that are rooted in arbitration until industry standards or governmental regulations are established.The Minnesota Attorney General sued the over what it alleges were non-disclosed connections between the and major collections firms.
card analysts said these changes largely do not impact credit unions since credit unions, in general, do not use arbitration but suggested that credit unions might have another pro consumer point to make when marketing their card programs.The policy discussion comes in the wake of recent complaints by residents who have requested town attorney Mark Tilghman review potential ethics violations by Frank White, Princess Anne Town Commissioners president. According to town records, White charged more than on town issued credit cards over a three-month period starting in early February.Town Commissioner Dennis Williams recommended at the July monthly town meeting that elected officials on town business spend their own money, then submit an invoice along with justification of purchases or charges for reimbursement.Williams called for tonight's discussion on spending practices by elected officials, saying that it is uncommon for a town commissioner to have a town-issued credit card and vehicle.Agenda discussions tonight also include an update to a travel per diem policy, and revisions to policies for petty cash, purchase orders and debt collection.A recent article in The Daily Times chronicled White's credit-card charges at restaurants and hotels, as well as the president's use of a town vehicle news that prompted a group of residents, led by John Nicholson, to call for a legal review of spending.Credit card charges in question happened when White was a volunteer top town executive after former town manager Jay Parker quit abruptly in February. According to town records acquired by the newspaper, White placed some of the charges on the credit card issued to Parker, and some on a town-issued card in his own name.Residents have complained publicly about the town's recent purchase of laptop computers for elected officials; and an percent property tax hike both measures coming during a national recession as town employees are forced to take furloughs. My fiance and I are trying to secure financing for our first home, but his credit scores are just below the mark. I was thinking of adding his name to my credit card account so that my available credit line shows up on his report. Would this boost his scores at all? Is there any danger of it lowering his scores?If you have a good history with this account you always pay on time and you're not carrying a large balance adding him as an authorized user may help his scores.The key is whether the credit card issuer will "export" this data from your credit file to his. Some issuers automatically do this export for any authorized user; others do so only for spouses. The only way to know for sure is to ask your credit card company.If the data is exported to his file, it will be used to briefly toyed with the idea of excluding authorized user data in its latest formula,If you add him as an authorized user, you don't need to give him a card or access to your account. What you should do, however, is take some time to go over his credit reports and discuss what steps he's taking on his own to clean up his financial act. A temporary boost in his scores might land you a mortgage, but you could wind up much worse off financially if he continues to mishandle his credit. I just received rate increases on two of my credit cards that are together going to send me into bankruptcy. I didn't think it could happen to someone who has perfect credit, has not maxed out the card and has been steadily reducing the balance and not charging anything, but obviously it a month to my payments have made it impossible.I feel foolish for having this debt at all, but I lost my mortgage business and my husband is in construction. We have had a really bad four years. If they had just allowed me to continue making the payments per our original agreement, I would have been able to continue reducing the balance and they would get their money. This way, they won't receive any money at all. How does this make sense?Credit card issuers know full well that their latest rate increases will send some of their borrowers to Bankruptcy Court. What they're hoping is that they'll get enough interest from those who can still pay to offset the losses from those that can't.All may not be lost. Many issuers who have instituted these rate hikes offer an "opt out" provision that would allow you to keep your original rate if you agree to close the account. You should contact your issuers to see if this option is available. Closing accounts can ding your credit scores but will cause far less damage than a bankruptcy.Be realistic about your financial situation, however. The amount of the proposed payment increase indicates you're carrying substantial debt on those cards. Unless your financial situation improves dramatically, it's probably only a matter of time until a misstep or another change in terms causes you to fall behind.If that's the case, bankruptcy may be a better option than continuing to struggle with debt you'll never repay.The new "cash for clunkers" law has spawned a bunch of scam websites hoping to fool you into revealing private financial information. Don't fall for them. For the straight scoop on the new law, Liz Pulliam Weston is the author of the book "Your Credit Score: Your Money and What's at Stake." Questions for possible inclusion in her column may be sent.

Store Owner Fights Credit Card Fees

A Massachusetts store owner has started a nationwide petition against what's called interchange Watch ReportNewsCenter David Brown reported that they are unregulated credit cards fees charged to store owners for every credit and debit card transaction. It's a hidden fee that is eventually passed on to the consumer.For years, Dennis Lane has owned a Eleven on Adams Street in Quincy. Lane said credit card companies are taking a big portion from each credit card purchase and that has spurred him into action.Roughly percent of the cost of each purchase is eaten up by the fee.An in store petition is asking for customers' help. It asks Congress to regulate the interchange fee a fee that Lane said has skyrocketed in recent years."We believe that the escalation of fees has been extreme and unreasonable, and we believe as responsible retailers should have an opportunity to negotiate those fees," Lane said.According to the Electronics Payments Coalition, the payments to credit card companies have jumped percent since Elevens paid million to credit card companies for transactions. In the fee was million.Lane said by regulating the fee, the consumer would be paying less."We could reduce those fees and lower the overall cost of goods the cost of doing business as a responsible retailer we would pass the savings on to the consumer," Lane said.Customers are eagerly signing up, happy to get rid of extra fees."There are so many of them that are not explained. It just seems senseless. It's like when you are paying points to the bank and just wondering where is that going?" customer John Parsons said.At Eleven stores across the country, more than 1 million people have signed the petition. They hope to have million by Aug. The petitions will be delivered to All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.In these crazy financial times businesses come and go. There’s no way to be certain a company you placed an order with, from entertainment centers to custom made drapes, will still be around when it’s time for pick up. Maybe you bought something through the mail and it never showed. Sometimes you may get the item but it's damaged or broken and the store is being difficult about taking it back. It's a complaint I hear from people all the time, "I didn't get what I paid for I can't tell you how many times I've written this back, "how did you pay for the purchase? If you paid for it with a credit card and sometimes even a debit card, you're in luck. If you bought it with cash, you may be out of luck."Under the federal Fair Credit Billing Act if you paid for something using a credit card and didn't get it, the credit card has to take the hit for the purchase. Even if the store filed for bankruptcy, took your money and ran or fled in the middle of the night, the credit card has to cover you. Call your credit card company and immediately put the item in dispute, sometimes you can even do this online. The bank will investigate and unless the company can come up with a pretty compelling reason or a story that really contradicts yours, the charges should be reversed.Debit cards are covered under different federal regulations and your local bank doesn't have to cover you, but if it's backed by VISA or MasterCard contact them--they may be able to help.Yeah, I admit, I’ve written scathing articles about banks and credit card companies in this column. I’m still mad my interest rate shot through the roof, but gotta tell you when it comes to protection for something you did not get, paying with plastic the best way to shop. If you have the cash, just pay off the balance on the credit card to avoid the insidious interest rate increase going on right now. In these crazy financial times businesses come and go. There’s no way to be certain a company you placed an order with, from entertainment centers to custom made drapes, will still be around when it’s time for pick up. Maybe you bought something through the mail and it never showed. Sometimes you may get the item but it's damaged or broken and the store is being difficult about taking it back. It's a complaint I hear from people all the time, "I didn't get what I paid for!"I can't tell you how many times I've written this back, "how did you pay for the purchase? If you paid for it with a credit card and sometimes even a debit card, you're in luck. If you bought it with cash, you may be out of luck.Under the federal Fair Credit Billing Act if you paid for something using a credit card and didn't get it, the credit card has to take the hit for the purchase. Even if the store filed for bankruptcy, took your money and ran or fled in the middle of the night, the credit card has to cover you.Call your credit card company and immediately put the item in dispute, sometimes you can even do this online. The bank will investigate and unless the company can come up with a pretty compelling reason or a story that really contradicts yours, the charges should be reversed.Debit cards are covered under different federal regulations and your local bank doesn't have to cover you, but if it'backed by VISA or MasterCard contact them--they may be able to help.Yeah, I admit, I’ve written scathing articles about banks and credit card companies in this column. I’m still mad my interest rate shot through the roof, but gotta tell you when it comes to protection for something you did not get, paying with plastic the best way to shop. If you have the cash, just pay off the balance on the credit card to avoid the insidious interest rate increase going on right now. In these crazy financial times businesses come and go. There’s no way to be certain a company you placed an order with, from entertainment centers to custom made drapes, will still be around when it’s time for pick up. Maybe you bought something through the mail and it never showed. Sometimes you may get the item but it's damaged or broken and the store is being difficult about taking it back. It's a complaint I hear from people all the time, "I didn't get what I paid for I can't tell you how many times I've written this back, "how did you pay for the purchase? If you paid for it with a credit card and sometimes even a debit card, you're in luck. If you bought it with cash, you may be out of luck.Under the federal Fair Credit Billing Act if you paid for something using a credit card and didn't get it, the credit card has to take the hit for the purchase. Even if the store filed for bankruptcy, took your money and ran or fled in the middle of the night, the credit card has to cover you.Call your credit card company and immediately put the item in dispute, sometimes you can even do this online. The bank will investigate and unless the company can come up with a pretty compelling reason or a story that really contradicts yours, the charges should be reversed.Debit cards are covered under different federal regulations and your local bank doesn't have to cover you, but if it's backed by VISA or MasterCard contact them--they may be able to help.Yeah, I admit, I’ve written scathing articles about banks and credit card companies in this column. I’m still mad my interest rate shot through the roof, but gotta tell you when it comes to protection for something you did not get, paying with plastic the best way to shop. If you have the cash, just pay off the balance on the credit card to avoid the insidious interest rate increase going on right now. In these crazy financial times businesses come and go. There’s no way to be certain a company you placed an order with, from entertainment centers to custom made drapes, will still be around when it’s time for pick up. Maybe you bought something through the mail and it never showed. Sometimes you may get the item but it's damaged or broken and the store is being difficult about taking it back. It's a complaint I hear from people all the time, "I didn't get what I paid for!"I can't tell you how many times I've written this back, "how did you pay for the purchase? If you paid for it with a credit card and sometimes even a debit card, you're in luck. If you bought it with cash, you may be out of luck."Under the federal Fair Credit Billing Act if you paid for something using a credit card and didn't get it, the credit card has to take the hit for the purchase. Even if the store filed for bankruptcy, took your money and ran or fled in the middle of the night, the credit card has to cover you.Call your credit card company and immediately put the item in dispute, sometimes you can even do this online. The bank will investigate and unless the company can come up with a pretty compelling reason or a story that really contradicts yours, the charges should be reversed.Debit cards are covered under different federal regulations and your local bank doesn't have to cover you, but if it'backed by VISA or MasterCard contact them they may be able to help.Yeah, I admit, I’ve written scathing articles about banks and credit card companies in this column. I’m still mad my interest rate shot through the roof, but gotta tell you when it comes to protection for something you did not get, paying with plastic the best way to shop. If you have the cash, just pay off the balance on the credit card to avoid the insidious interest rate increase going on right now.

Information on American Express Credit Cards

Residents of San Marcos, Texas can attend a sponsored seminar to learn the basics of responsible credit use. The seminar will cover what a credit report is and what its affects are, how to build good credit or repair bad credit and how to prevent identity theft.As the credit industry tightens, a seminar like this could save a consumer literally thousands of dollars in annual interest rates by managing credit more effectively and maintaining a high credit score. Credit is becoming increasingly harder to get and more expensive for those that have it so a strong credit score is a necessity.The San Marcos Public Library and the San Marcos Housing authority are hosting the seminar. It is being held at the Public library at Monday, July The seminar is free but limited to the first students on a first come, first served basis.Seminar attendees will receive a free copy of Quicken Starter Edition . Quicken is personal finance software that helps users to track bills, create a budget, track personal spending and manage online banking accounts from one central location.It's always been a good idea to pay down the balance on your card. Now it's critical: The higher your balance, the more risky you appear to banks.Curtis Arnold, founder of CardRatings.com, which tracks the credit card industry, suggests keeping your credit utilization ratio the percentage of the credit limit that you use to less than percent. Anything higher and "you are more likely to have a target on your back," he said.But don't wipe out your cash savings to pay down the cards, Detweiler said, in case you need something to fall back on.Use your cards If you don't use a card regularly, the bank is more likely to close the account. Banks have to hold a certain percentage of capital, or cash, on reserve for the loans they make, which can be costly if customers default on bills. So by closing accounts, banks reduce their capital need.A closed credit card account can hurt your credit score That's because percent of your credit score, the rating system most lenders use, is based on your credit utilization ratio and length of your credit history. Closing an account cuts into both. "You need to use [your card] at least once every six months," Arnold said.Monitor your accountsBanks are reviewing customer accounts more aggressively today.Make sure you do too. Read statements and other mailings as soon as they arrive or click on links to "important messages or announcements" online.Starting next month, banks by law must provide days' notice of a change in your interest rate. You can "opt out" of a rate hike and pay off your balance at the existing rate in th day period, and you have to stop using your card.Sign up for automatic account alerts to your cell phone, which notify you when, say, you get close to your credit limit or a payment is due. That way, "you'll have some warning" if your account's been changed, Detweiler said.The World of Warcraft Rewards Visa card is the first of its kind to use game time as a reward rather than cash or travel incentives. The card gives World of Warcraft fans an opportunity to display their interests by choosing one of thirteen themes based on character races, horde, alliance and the World of Warcraft logo.The card benefits are of even greater interest with cardholders earning game with one point for every dollar spent. points are equal to one full month of game time. The card is touted as “the only card that pays you to play”. Card members will also receive one month of game time for the first purchase made using the World of Warcraft Visa card.The card has no annual fee and a zero percent APR on all purchases and balance transfers for the first sixth months. The card has no maximum number of points available and points are valid for five years after being posted.An indispensable part of today’s life is a credit card. Unfortunately, if you cancel your American Express credit card like I did, it means you cannot have access to certain services you may have taken for granted. Just ordering some clothes over the internet wasn’t possible and how basic is that in today’s world. The old days of cash as the preferred method of doing obtaining goods have gone All across the country and the world, people are using their Visa, Mastercard card, or American Express credit card to make purchases with money that they do not have of goods which they may not need. Although American Express credit cards are a really convenient way to make a purchase get it now and worry about it tomorrow it does come at a heavy cost. In some places, credit card debt is spiraling out of control. Today, credit card debt is one of the biggest worries facing us in America.I couldn’t think of any other alternative but to get rid of my American Express credit card. There was nothing to stop me because I wasn’t actually taking money from my pocket. I was using my card for just about everything, but I soon noticed the debts were mounting. When the debt became so great that I couldn’t possibly pay it, I began to panic.To get my debt back into a position where I could pay for it I resorted to using a debt refinancing company. The whole situation was a nightmare. Now, I have gotten my debt paid off and cancelled my American Express credit card. Many people would think me unfair about blaming a credit card but they need to understand something about people first.Paying with cash makes you aware of how much things cost. As I said before, credit cards make the cost of things misleading because you don’t take any notice. Just handing the card over time and time again, it is almost addictive. So now there is no American Express credit card problem for me to worry about.