Sneaky changes to your credit cards

The eponymous article you may as well go through here:
articles.moneycentral.msn.com...

Although banks are scooping up billions in bailout money or borrowing money from the Federal Reserve at as low as 0%, they aren't passing on those savings to consumers. Credit card interest rates have increased for many major card issuers and even doubled or tripled for some consumers who pay their bills on time. Bank of America is raising interest rates on about 4 million customers with balances. Citigroup and Capital One have also jacked up rates.

Credit card interest rates are typically pegged to the prime rate, which has fallen from 5.25% a year ago to 3.25% now. But the national average rate for credit cards has actually risen over that period, moving from 11.3% to 12.4%, according to the CreditCards.com's weekly rate survey of large card issuers.

The banks lost some of the earnings due to the financial upheaval that started the last year, so they need to make up for it and will ask you to contribute to the effort -- the banker's way.

They are just accelerating there own deaths. Higher rates mean higher payments. Higher payments mean people can't pay their bills. When people can't pay their bills they stop paying there credit cards.That makes them raise rates for everyone else who is still paying, who also eventually stop paying. Before long no one pays and the banks fail again.

The question is when round 2 hits, does the goverment bail out the banks again or do they finally cave and bailout the consumer, so we can once again have some hope of future prosperity for America? So far it seems like they will just continue to discard the average citizen. Washington doesn't have the will or desire to make the right choices.

My boyfriends credit card company got bought out at the end of last year... The new owners raised his interest rate from 9% to 29%. I equate it to robbery.

These people are the bleeding edge of the pure evil out there...I've posted at length about my troubles with these clowns "misplacing" checks or claiming I sent stuff late when I didn't just to nickel-and-dime me out of a few extra bucks...the hassle got to be not worth it and earlier this year I cancelled my last credit card. I now pay cash for EVERYTHING. Its a great feeling.

I expect eventually I will be FORCED to use a card in one way or another, however. There were a spate of articles last year about how credit card co's were actually cancelling the cards of people known to pay off every month or to maintain positive balances (surreally, such responsible types are actually referred to as "deadbeats" within the rabbit-hole of the credit-card industry itself, because they don't generate late fees and needed interest). One can envision a world where it is no longer possible to do the basics with cash (already we're there with stuff like hotels, airfare, and rental cars, in a sense) yet where in order to have access to a card, one must maintain a level of debt. Enforced debt....yes, I could see this happening quite easily. There simply aren't enough actual small-time consumer creditors left to put up a fight if they wanted to jam such foulness crosswise down our throats.

Such disturbing speculations aside, there is no question that the card companies are shooting themselves in the foot by driving away responsible clients in a number of different ways...but that's what you get when "long-term thinking" means "next quarter's numbers."

Originally posted by silent thunder
I expect eventually I will be FORCED to use a card in one way or another, however. There were a spate of articles last year about how credit card co's were actually cancelling the cards of people known to pay off every month or to maintain positive balances (surreally, such responsible types are actually referred to as "deadbeats" within the rabbit-hole of the credit-card industry itself, because they don't generate late fees and needed interest).

It's already happening. I've had a particular card for well over 10 years now, and I was called and informed that not only are they increasing my interest rate, but if I did not make a purchase by a particular date, that they (THE ALMIGHTY CREDIT CARD CO.) would cancel my card for me.
I have great credit, so there was no reason whatsoever as to raise my rate.

The credit card comany's were/are cutting back 2 TRILLION in Available credit card lines according to analyst meredith whitney

THEN Congress just passed the biggest credit card reform in 3 decades lwhich (i don't the exact details) but you can find them here

www.creditcards.com...

apparently will cause credit to be pulled back even more or rates jacked....

the consumer depending on credit cards is in a bit of trouble because their lines maybe cut and /or rates may be jacked....