Credit Card Rewards Programs – Are New Laws Making Them More Stingy?

It is standard lobbying practice for any industry about to come under additional regulation from Congress to shout to the press, and whoever else will listen, that any and all proposed regulations or laws of any kind would adversely affect the poor customer. Thus, any additional rules or regulations of any kind on credit card companies would make things worse for credit card customers. More reading: Citibank Thankyou Points catalog. Grandstanding aside, while poorly thought out regulations can hamper entire industries and harm customers, many times new government oversight can have a positive affect both on the industry as a whole, and on the experience of customers as well. In the case of recent credit card legislation, the new rules and regulations on banks and credit card issuers were thoroughly debated not just between Republicans and Democrats, but within those parties as well. Fortunately, the by-product of real debate is often good legislation. Unfortunately, the power of lobbyists can overwhelm good debate when the sides are fractured. What emerged from Congress in the form of newer, tougher, credit card industry regulation was indeed thoroughly debated, but was it good for customers, or did it, as the industry claimed, hurt ordinary …

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Credit Card Company Tricks and How To Beat Them

Citibank raised the interest rates for customers with high credit scores who had never missed a payment.  Virtually every credit card company opposed the very tame reforms recently passed into law by Congress.  The sad truth is that is isn’t a matter of if your credit card issuer will try something sneaky, it’s a matter of when, and how bad will it be. While there is always tension between a company that must turn a profit and consumers who want to get as much as possible for the lowest price, with most relationships between a business and consumer there is at least some degree of fairness.  Unfortunately, this is seldom the case for the relationship between credit card company and credit card user.  Instead, in this relationship, the credit card company works hard to hook a customer and then slowly tries to squeeze the maximum profit out of them.  Between absurd fees, sudden contract term changes, and just plain old subterfuge, your credit card company is out to get you if you stop paying attention. Top Credit Card Company Tricks – 0% APR Credit Card Offers While there are many areas the banks that issue credit cards are less than …

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