Obama Pushes for Credit Card Reform
By bluegal Monday May 11, 2009 2:30pmOf course the banks are up in arms about any legislation that would turn off the usury spigot they've milked for decades. Ann Logue at Popdose points out just one example:
...my credit card limit is $20,000. I could use the card to fly first class to Paris and go on a spree at Le Bon Marche yet pay no interest if I paid it off in full the first month it was due. But take $140 from an ATM and hold the balance for 20 days or so, and the total fees and interest work out to about $24, an annual interest rate of 208%.
Another crazy practice is late fees: I've received a credit card statement showing my payment as posted (they got my money in time to print it on my paper statement) but because they posted it one day after their "due date" they tried to charge me $29.00 in late fees. I called and complained (which works more often than you might think, do try it) and they reversed it, but how many $29.00 payments do you think got added to their balance sheets this year from people "afraid" to call a creditor?
Obama's bill does not go far enough, and doesn't start soon enough (one year for most of its provisions IF the Senate passes it) but it's a start.
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This is so important - how can they expect the middle class to rebound while under the crushing weight of the usury practices of the thieves and criminals that run the banking industry?
Yes it's a start - but I'm not happy.
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The middle class decided to borrow the money at these outrageous interest rates and conditions, even if rates were hiked, rates were already high. The middle class is either collectively lobotomized or easily manipulated and controlled. I guess individual responsibility doesn't exist anymore. I also hate the CC companies but do not participate in their lunacy.
They charge me 30(+) percent.
I will pay them off by July 31. And cut up the cards.
I hope other Americans do the same, more or less.
Don't borrow. Pay cash.
Don't use credit cards.
"But I have to."
No, if you have a job, then you don't fucking need credit cards.
Maybe keep one around with no balance for emergencies, but it's totally unnecessary for everyday life.
Many Americans need to have this financial option.
Credit lending should be a viable financial tool - but it is NOT in America.
The usury practices of the Egregiously Greedy banking industry prey upon those who are most vulnerable and it is unconscionable and highly immoral.
GREED. One of the Seven Deadly Sins.
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Lots of people are financially illiterate. Why financial literacy is not taught in more depth is a problem. The CC and banking system use this against people. Credit should not be a tool in reaching financial goals, buying crap or paying bills. Buying a house may be the only exception. Saving money and being somewhat frugal are keys to financial security. I don't think CC's ever made anyone financially secure. It's a mistake to try to reform something that is fundamentally wrong.
Unfortunately, that is not always true for many people, especially lower wage and seasonal workers.
Barak proposes, Senate bulldozes.
What happened to Bankruptcy reform. Died. Barak was silent. How about Health insurance. Bring the culprits to the table and talk cost cuts, when we're really going to get coverage cuts, tougher qualifications (preexisting illness) and less customer service. Credit industry usury and other sharp practices? Too many bought and paid for politicos, including the Executive branch.
Can someone explain to me how the repukes (under Tom Delay) got this "legalized loan sharking for banks bill" passed in 2005 - a.k.a. the so called "bankruptcy reform bill?"
Never mind, I know why.
Now, the only people allowed to go bankrupt, are the bankers themselves. Where in the hell was the democratic filibuster when this piece of public raping legislation was going through?
Never mind, I heard Durbin too.
I can still remember a few liberal democrats in the House of Reps sounding the alarm on this stink-bomb legislation. It was like watching Wall Street S.S. Agents kicking down the door of the last line of defense for the little guy.
My only question is this: when are they going to repeal it, along with NCLB? They repealed Prohibition. This legislation is probably less popular than that.
But thanks to our idiot politicians, and especially our GOP buddies, if you are one of the criminals on Wall Street that brought the country to its economic knees, we'll bail you out! That way, you can charge the unemployed former taxpayers 30% interest rates on the money they bailed you out with.
But if your kid gets leukemia and your health insurance sucks, those republicans are gonna damn well make sure you pay it back - you low-life.
This shit is so disgusting it makes me wanna puke!
Well put!!!
Barf.
If DC fell into the ocean tomorrow - I wouldn't miss it.
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But other then that not so much.
Probably around the same time they get around to fixing that worthless FISA bill that all the Dems claimed they hated but just HAD to vote for but promised they fix it right up after the election if we gave them the majority in Congress and the White House.
the financial elites want us to borrow to the middleclass NOT bargain. that's all you hear is your
precious FICO score. the control the parameters so they can control the costs. i pay my CHASE card
on time yet they have been increasinh my rate. some of the behaviorial economists/futurists suggest
there will be a big consumer change(s). the comeback with bankers/wallStreet if you don't like your
CREDIT card cancel it. most of the card companies have the same strategy. there's NOT much competition. so transferring your balance if you can do it catches up with you eventually.
PBS Frontline series questions are still unanswered:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows...
In this report, how do we outlaw people like the evil credit card corporate lobbyist?
when CC companies were fined (i guess) for telling their people to hold payments that came on the due date for one day so it would be late.
but theyd never go back to doing that, right?
oh yeah...'free market' i keep forgetting
Ripping people off is not part of the "free market." Prosecuting fraud and theft is.
Wrong on both counts, at least if you listen to the Randians and Hayekians.
I pay my credit card balances in full every month, and use their online banking tool to pay exactly on the due date to maximize the 'free money' these cards provide.
However, one day, after coming home from the beach I failed to submit my payment before 2pm so it didn't post until the next day (one day late). On my next statement I saw a $25 late fee plus a $39 late payment penalty.
I called and explained to the Customer Service rep what had happened. The young man told me he was not in a position to reverse either charge so after a little back and forth between him and me I asked to speak with his supervisor.
Explaining to her that I was a long time customer and (almost) always paid my bills on time she reversed both charges even though I *WAS* late on my payment.
So, call and be persistent (and respectful) it can save you a lot of money and will only cost you fifteen minutes of your time or so.
I still have that card but rarely use it as other cards offer better benefits.
Everytime I called to get my rate lowered, I kept getting what I suspected to be an out-sourced call center. They told me that they were looking at the computer, and there was no better rate they could offer me. I wrote an e-mail to the credit card company, using the form on their website, and got the desired change. I think they have people answering the phones who have no authority to help cardholders, nor do they have the ability to transfer you to someone who has authority to help you.
I keep saying it. Bankruptcy relief, foreclosure relief, reasonable credit cards, national health plan, repealing NCLB, real support of public schools, an honest media.....
It's not going to happen folks, without election reform. As long as our politicians care more about where the money is coming from for the next election, all the above will NEVER happen in the way it should.
I hate it when reality sucks.
Fascism anyone?
Education. As in, people pulling their heads out of their asses and opening up their minds to what's really going on in the world.
Once that happens, there will simply be so much rage from the populace that finally realizes what's going on, that election reform (and then all the other reforms) simply won't be able to wait any longer.
The fact is that the vast majority of people on the right wing are simply lost causes. They will never think or act much differently than they have all their lives, and there's nothing anybody can do about it.
But that big chunk of people in the middle; uninformed, incurious, who would otherwise hold liberal beliefs on almost every major issue facing this country if they just cared and were aware... THAT is who we need to wake the fuck up.
blogs and news outlets the way many of us do here, where would they get that education?
Do whatever you have to but do not use your credit card unless you can pay it off at the end of the month. One thing this economic nightmare might do it to get people to stop using their credit cards for bullshit reasons. We do not need half the crap we buy. But then I guess if we don't buy the shit than people will lose their jobs. Everything is damn complicated. I hate banks. Just hate them. If they keep this stuff up people are going to be rioting. And the banks will deserve it.
bank riots, yippeeee were all gonna dieeeeee!
Arlo Guthrie?
most deffinatly! im begining to believe its better to laugh at our government then cry ,
No, it's Country Joe and the Fish.
"1 2 3 4 what are we fighting for. No time to wonder why, yippe, were all going to die."
I think Country Joe did it at Woodstock.
I'm with you on the part about jacking people for late fees they don't owe, but how can you tell a credit card company how much it can charge for cash advances?
Does the government tell you how much you can charge for your services? What if advertisers wanted to pay you less for their ads? They could just go to the government and get "reform." Then you'd be forced to charge less than you could otherwise. In what way is this a good idea?
I mean, is anyone here entitled to a loan from a credit card company? Why, just because you're so awesome?
Hey, credit card companies do some shitty things, but you can really only control the ones that are unlawful (like jacking you with a late fee that you don't owe).
To hell with the CC companies. If I can't afford to buy something with the cash on hand then I don't need it. Thank [insert deity of choice here] that I got rid of those damned things years ago and they can take their FICO scores and shove them up their anal, robber-baron asses.
Obama tosses us a bone.
We might, might, have to pay less to our credit card companies.
In the meanwhile - our involvement in three wars rages on.
It's totally amazing that people will get all pissed off about the credit card companies, who loaned them money when they voluntarily asked for it, but don't get nearly as pissed off when the government puts them involuntarily into debt so they can bomb the shit out of countries and people who were no threat to us.
People are bitching because easy credit was the trick that the capitalists used to mask the effects of sustained wage cuts over the past 30 years.
What we need is a national anti-usury law that sets reasonable limits on interest rates, limits fees and penalties, and forces the financial industry to behave like civilized beings. Even Adam Sm,ith realized the necessity of restricting and chaining the capitalists.
I never understood the wisdom of charging people late fees for not having any money - when they don't have any money...
Am about to watch that movie "Its a Wonderful Life" - haven't seen it but I think it has something to do with capping usury rates?
Mind you - no usury at all would be just ideal...
Arab banks don't charge interest, apparently.
Anyone know what their business model is?
Here is a novel idea. Don't use credit cards. Pay cash. Yes, cash. I know it's crazy, but cash will buy things.
All the "solutions" in trying to mitigate credit card pain will not work. Stop trying to fix the credit card problem with behavior modification.
but that doesn't change the fact that I've been trying to pay off my debt for what seems like forever.
Citibank recently denied me usage of the website because of a security breach on THEIR end. My card was declared null and void while they sent me a new card.
The "associate" told me he would take the payment over the phone for a "convenience fee" of $15 bucks.
I refused, he relented, and then told me the minimum balance which I then paid.
Well he made a mistake and my account then showed an unpaid amount of $47 bucks which was then considered as "late".
My interest rate went from 7.9% to 29.99% because this little shit wasn't paying attention to my account, but trying to soak me for an additional fee for trying to pay.
It's been two months now and I still can't get this resolved.
I have been getting six calls a day for two months now and it's making me crazy. Nobody there seems to understand that THEY made the mistake and they need to fix it.
One asshole even suggested I try working a little harder to pay my bills. ( I was never late until this episode)
I hope they go under and that the punk who told me to work harder gets the same insulting lecture he gave to me when he's trying to eat, pay rent, and pay his bills on time.
I hope they fire his ass and ship his job to India. Fucker. What's his name. Let me have a few words with him. He'll lower your interest rate to 3% and pay it himself. LOL
"One asshole even suggested I try working a little harder to pay my bills."
I remember a similar asshole at Chase telling me I should get a second job at McDonald's in order to pay off his scumbag bank.
I don't use the things myself but they've been trying to pull this on the guy I work for too.
Some time ago my wife and I decided that we would no longer play the game and now we do not have any credit cards ,just ATM cards , you are literally blackmailed in the credit ratings game , " ahhh but you must have a few credit cards to have a good credit rating " , been there done that and I tell you what , F them ! How many lives are ruined and made absolutely miserable by these government approved loan sharks ! These days we pay cash or we do without until we have the cash . OK , I did buy a Harley a while back , the bank got me on that one , but hey , I caught the wife at a good time , she gave me the green light and it is made in America , right ?
What is lawful is what has been made lawful.
Usury was illegal, now it is legal.
With few exceptions, anyone carrying a balance on a credit card is living proof that they shouldn't be trusted to handle money. With fewer exceptions, people carrying a balance for more than two consecutive months are just leeches who think they're entitled to a free lunch.
I'm so pissed at credit card companies, especially Bank of America. A couple of years ago, I was "late" by one day. I had never been late before. The reason I was late is that the payment was actually due on a holiday Monday. When I tried to pay the bill the previous Friday (online), which is something I very often do....pay a few days before the due date....BOA would not let me make payment on that Friday because I was paying that same day (my Cap1 card always applies the payment the same day, if done before 03:00 PM). So I tried to make the payment due Saturday. They wouldn't take it because it was a non-business day.
Then, the real kicker....I tried to make the payment due on Monday, the date printed on the statement as being the "due date." Once again, my payment would not be accepted because that Monday was a holiday, a non-business day.
So I had to make the payment due on Tuesday....one day late. BOA slapped me with a $39 late charge. I complained to several people before they reversed that charge.
One month ago, BOA sent me a letter, raising my interest rate by 4 points. I know I have good credit; except for that one incident listed above, I have never been late with BOA. I called in to complain and ask why specifically my APR was being raised 4 points. I was told that it was not in anyway because of the way I paid my bills. He said it was due to changing business conditions...and was also told I had the option of cancelling the card. To some extent, I can understand raising the rate for new charges, but the new rate will affect the purchases made with older charges.
I have 3 cards....one I have to pay off every month (which I do) and 2 (including this BOA card) I typically use for larger purchases, such as travel, which I do fairly often...and which I typically pay off over 2, 3, or 4 months. You need a credit card to rent a car; I'm not sure how you would necessarily pay for an airline ticket with cash, unless you take out large sums of money and go to the ticket counter.
I also don't like carrying much cash...I have been robbed at least 3 times in my life, and because of my travels, I don't want to be hit with ATM withdrawal fees. So credit cards have been a huge convenience for me.
Just pisses me off that BOA raised my rate 4 points, apparently for no good reason other than to raise their own profits.
These Banks are charging 20-33% interest for their highest credit card rates. But if you put your money in a Savings account at the same bank, you get less than 1% interest on your money. How in the world is that fair?
This may come as a shock to all the whiners out there, but banks and credit card companies are in business to make money. Y'all are just as childish as people who bitch and moan because baseball players make outrageous salaries "just for playing a game."
What's next? Are you going to tell the banks you're going to sic your daddy on them?
Grow up.
The only posters I respect here are those who say they've stopped using credit cards in protest.
So much debate on credit market freezes on whether it'll come again and our current government guided by the new White House Administration trying to thaw it and prevent it from locking up again.
The business on my site, www.applyforcards.net has slowed down dramatically. I wish some patron saint (maybe St. Christopher?) would guide people who aren't afraid to apply for a credit card because of reasons they're unsure of. Not everyone is hiking credit limits and some companies and governmental agencies are trying to work toward a better system to prevent people from being used by companies. I know that AmEx is a one month only thing as a previous poster had stated in that he pays no interest if his bill is paid off that month, but still.. there are benefits to those of us in tight spots, both persons like myself without savings and persons with savings for emergencies as well. I use my cards in emergencies and I'm willing to pay the price later.
I'm interviewing at 3 new jobs later this week and I hope to get one, being unemployed and relying upon my web site income isn't something I ever want to try. At best, it's supplemental from what the credit card application leads give me. They're handled by the banks and issuers so in reality, I get a pittance in comparison to their actual business and this is only a hobby! I'll be using my cards and my wife hers until we can figure out how to get me employed full-time. We've figured that cash advances are the worst so we save our income to pay rent and use the credit cards groceries from time to time.
I hope that the government, banks, lenders and card issuers manage to fix it so everyone's less frantic about credit. Your unconscious impulse, driving now to flee anything economic when the "dread news" of credit cards being looked over, reviewed again and again and new policies instated might spur the economies in the wrong direction but I hope not.
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