Don’t Give Credit Card Companies a Reason To Raise Your Rates
Are you aware that many credit card companies are looking for any excuse they can possibly find to raise your interest rates? For instance, let’s say you are disputing a charge on a medical bill and are late paying the bill while the dispute is taking place. Some credit card companies will use this as an opportunity to raise interest rates on your credit card even though it has absolutely nothing to do with you paying your credit card bill on time.
Many credit card companies will take any opportunity they can find to raise your interest rates up to levels that you didn’t even know they could legally charge. They will state that they are just managing their risk and that you are a candidate for default. Of course, this makes absolutely no sense.
Logic would dictate that if you are having no problems paying your bills on time as interest rates currently are then why not leave well enough alone. Pushing credit card interest rates up to levels there are unaffordable is what is going to push people into default.
Another instance of this happening could be a lowering of your credit score. The credit card issuer can use this as an excuse to label you as a higher risk and therefore, in their eyes at least, justify raising your interest rates.
The bottom line is this, never allow your bills to become overdue. Do everything in your power to make sure that they are all paid on time and in full. And if there is a dispute make sure it is resolved before any due dates have passed.
These practices are not fair, we fully realize that, but until the Federal Reserve Board’s credit card reform act takes effect in July of 2010, I’m afraid cardholders are at the mercy of the card issuers. And as of right now credit card companies are doing anything and everything they can to raise money.
Related Information:
- Credit Card Issuers Raise Interest Rates Again Banks and credit card issuers have once again raised interest rates on credit card account holders....
- Credit Card Companies Continue to Hike Interest Rates Credit card companies continue to hike interest rates before credit card reform legislation takes hold....
- Bank of America Will Not Raise Rates Ahead of Reforms Bank of America has agreed not to raise interest rates ahead of credit card reform....
- Chase Decides To Raise Credit Card Fees Chase, like many of their counterparts, are raising fees on cardholders....