Monthly Credit Card Statements To Get A New Look
There is another facet of the new credit card regulations that is set to go into effect on July 1, 2010 that hasn’t been talked about much. New easier to read and understand statements are going to be required. Anyone that has ever had a credit card account can attest to the world famous ‘fine print’ employed by card issuers.
It is usually in this fine print that you will see nasty little things like fees and late charges. But perhaps most infamous of all is the print where credit card issuers inform their cardholders that if they are late in making payments, they reserve the right to raise your interest rates.
www.creditcards.com has done a really nice job in laying out the new changes and showing us what the new statements will look like. We suggest you click their domain (it’s a live link to their site) and check out their report. It contains samples of what the new statements will look like provided courtesy of the Federal Reserve.
Basically, the improved statements are designed to clearly show all fees and interest rates charged. In addition, it will also spell out a warning that if payments are ever late you will be charged a late fee and are subject to a substantial increase in the APR you are being charged on all outstanding balances.
The difference here is that this information will no longer be ‘buried’ on your statement, but rather presented in a box that is prominantly displayed at the top of your credit card bill.
There are to be 5 boxes in all:
- Summary of Account Activity
- Payment Information
- Recent Changes to Your Account
- Transactions for the Billing Cycle
- Interest Charge Calculations
There is even a minimum payment warning issued under the payment information box. It explains that making just the minimum payment each month will take you longer to pay off your balance.
Wherever interest rates and fees are displayed on the credit card statement they are in bold print so they will stand out to the account holder.
These changes are welcome reforms and should definitely assist the consumer in understanding the terms and conditions of their accounts. Let’s face it, the fine print employed by credit card issuers and other financial companies are meant NOT to be seen. These improvements should shine a light on the very details that the issuers didn’t want us to look at.
It truly is good to see the Federal Government doing something to help the consumer. I’m afraid that far too many times it is the big industry that gets the assistance, at the expense of the consumer.