What You Can Do If Your Credit Card Company Raises Your Interest Rate
In our last post we talked about how the credit card issuers are scrambling to raise interest rates ahead of the new laws going into effect. Millions of people have already received notice from their credit card company stating that their interest rates are going to go up, if they haven’t already.
Of course this only applies to those who carry a balance from month to month. If you pay your credit card bill off in full at the end of each billing cycle then you will not be charged any interest at all.
But for those of us that do carry a balance there are some things that we can do when our interest rates suddenly spike up. Let’s take a look at some of those things now.
First off, for anyone that believes that there was some sort of mistake made on the part of the credit card company they should immediately contact them and discuss the issue. Many people would be surprised at how willing credit card issuers are to negotiate in order to keep their customers happy.
You can also inquire with your credit card company to see if they will allow you to pay off your current balance under the old interest rates. If you are experiencing hardship then by all means let them know. If you do this it is wise that you do not make any new purchases on your card.
If you feel that you may have trouble making a payment then you’ll want to make this known to the credit card issuer as possible in order to work with them towards finding a solution. Perhaps they will negotiate a lower interest rate to make it more affordable for you.
You can also try to add to your minimum payments if at all possible. Even if that only means $10 or $20 per month extra by cutting out your morning Starbucks it will be worth it. Believer not, every little bit adds up although it may not seem like it at the time.
You’ll also want to get a copy of your credit report to make sure that there are no errors on it that may have caused a sharp increase in the interest rate you are being charged. If you do in fact find an error it must immediately be reported to the three credit bureaus Experian, Equifax and TransUnion.
Some of these tips may work and some may not but you’ll never know unless you try them. You most certainly have nothing to lose so go ahead and apply the tips laid out here. The result may just mean a substantial savings and the preservation of your credit record.
Related Information:
- What You Can Do If Your Credit Card Company Raised Your Interest Rate We offer some solid advice on what you can do if your credit card issuer raised your interest rates....
- Will Interest Rate Hikes Backfire on the Credit Card Companies See how credit card companies may be digging themselves into a deeper hole than they're already in....
- Tips For Getting Your Credit Card Interest Rate Reduced Some helpful tips on how to get your credit card interest rates reduced....
- Credit Card Interest Rate Secrets Exposed We expose several credit card interest rate secrets that the issuers simply do not want you to know....