CardRatings.com Monthly Newsletter March 2006
March 1, 2006
Do Debit Card Rewards Measure Up to Credit Card Rewards?
America’s love affair with reward credit cards continues to burn; and debit cards are helping to fan the flame as more and more banks begin to issue both cash back and reward debit/check cards. Like their credit card counterparts, reward debit cards come in a variety of styles with varying eligibility requirements and reward rates. (3/10/06)
Accepting Credit Cards- Does it Make Sense for Your Small Business?
Any decision a small business owner makes must be carefully weighed by all the pros and cons—especially decisions that affect your bottom line. One of those decisions is whether or not to accept credit cards as a form of payment. While accepting credit cards has many advantages and makes sense for most companies, you may end up losing revenue by not carefully considering and planning for the disadvantages. (3/8/06)
The Nuances of Secured Credit Cards
Don’t let a name fool you. Secured credit cards, though much touted by consumer advocates as one of the most effective ways to establish and build credit, are not always easy to get. If you have had bad credit, delinquencies, or no credit history at all, don’t expect to be a shoe-in for such a card. (3/3/06)
Refunding Your Way Out of Credit Card Debt: How to Maximize Your Tax Refund
Over 100 million U.S. taxpayers got a refund on their taxes last year, averaging $2,171. According to the IRS, it's likely that a similar number of folks will get refunds this year. So if you're eagerly awaiting a nice, lump sum from Uncle Sam, you have lots of company. As you wait for this year's check, ponder this: All those refunds you've gotten over the years were actually interest-free loans to the federal government! (2/17/06)
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American Express and GE Consumer Finance Collaborate to Offer Dillard’s American Express Credit Card Retail credit cards are growing in popularity, and while most retailers either manage the credit end of business through an in-house bank or a third-party, few have yet to partner with household names in the credit industry. That changed recently with a historic deal between American Express and GE Consumer Finance to offer co-branded credit cards in the United States. Read more >>
Keynote Study Highlights Most Effective Credit Card Company Websites Keynote Systems, which provides services that improve online business performance and communications technologies, recently released a Competitive Intelligence study entitled Keynote Rankings for Credit Card Prospects. This study provides ratings of 10 credit card company's web sites in areas such as responsiveness and reliability. Read more >>
Citibank Credit Card Payment Tag Offers Convenience and Security to Cardholders MasterCard PayPass, a new payment option offered by Citibank, is being touted for its convenience and security. The key feature of this new technology is the PayPass payment tag. It attaches to a key ring and is available at no additional cost to Citi credit card holders. Cardholders simply hold the payment tag up to the special reader at any checkout that has the MasterCard PayPass logo and wait for the receipt. Read more >>
Credit Card Issuers Ramping up Income Tax Payment Marketing Efforts Each year more and more Americans are choosing to pay income taxes with a credit card despite having to pay the normal 2.49% convenience fee. The IRS reported that in 2005 credit card payments increased by 53%. This tax season credit card issuers, along with MasterCard and Visa, are finding ways to help make paying taxes with credit cards even more attractive. Read more >>
HOT TOPICS...Buying a car with a credit card?
Is there anything in cc agreements against doing a balance transfer from a car loan? I see in of my cc agreements, they say u can transfer your high interest rate Credit cards to XYZ, but they dont stipulate whether u can use car loans also. Can someone please advise.
kouichi, One professor of mine said this last week: for merchant credit cards (such as macy, target, amazon, etc) they would approve almost anyone it's like anyone with a pulse could get approved. The only downside she mentioned is that for every approval you get a ding of 20 credit score. Is this true? Is is that easy to get a merchant credit card? I wanted to get a few for shops that I shop at frequently but I am scared of the credit score drop on both when they your credit scores and that 20 score drop. Can someone please advise? Thank you!
TomfromCT answers, Merchant cards are often considered easier to get. The balances they approve are often very low. 100-400 dollars. The limited exposure helps them give credit to people with lower scores Often the companies that adminster the cards can be brutal to work with. Do not get close to your due date. And expect problems with no interest offers unless you are an expert at reading leagalise. It helps to look at the card ratings on www.cardratings.com to see the experiences other people have had with a card you are interested in. As for the point. 1 credit check will cost 2-5 points on your report. New rpeorting system starts soon. I;m not sure what the hit will be then.
joyfulmom, Hi, I am a new kid on the block. I just found this forum board and there is some great information here. I am looking for a new credit card with the best rewards program. I spend average of abouot $1,000 month, always pay in full each month, and have excellent credit rating. I am not too partial about whether the rewards are in cash back, or points, or ?. I have been reading and comparing for a couple of months, but since it's not comparing apples to apples, it's hard for me to know. Some offer points, some rewards, some cash, etc. So far, I have been interested in the ones that offer a $100 gift card after your first use of the card. But I also believe the phrase, "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is." Also, I have been reading on another web site "Rip Off Report," and some of the card companies seem less than desirable. From what I read, I seem to be leaning towards Citi. What do you think?
Ira answers, There's really no one answer to the question. It depends on your life style and what's important to you. Do you travel a lot? Mabe an airlines miles card would be right for you. Do you shop a lot at Amazon? Get an Amazon card. It pays a large rebate for Amazon purchases. Buy.Com offers a card through Chase that gives rebates, plus a $30.00 credit with your first purchase. If you shop at Men's Wearhouse they have a store crtedit program which gives you a $50.00 rebate certificate every time your purchases amount to $500.00, the equivilant of a 10% rebate. There are literally tons of rewards cards out there. You have to decide which ones - yes, you can get more than one - are best for you.
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| Recent Credit Card Reviews by Consumers Like You |
Following is a sampling of the latest consumer reviews that can be found by clicking the "Cardholder Reviews" link above. We take pride in the quantity (our site offers approximately 17,250 reviews of 928 different credit cards) and quality of the consumer reviews that can be find on our site. New reviews are added on a daily basis. The cards are rated on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest recommended. Credit Card: AT&T Universal Platinum Card Review: When my balance dropped below a certain level I was sent a "new rewards card" that included a 6% raise in APR. I had a stellar payment history that apparantly "earned me this new status." I paid off my balance and noticed a late fee on my next bill. My due date was moved up without my noticing. When I called to cancel my card the rep was extremely rude. Best Feature: none Overall Rating: 1 Credit Card: JC Penney Card Review: This is for the person who was unable to pay online - make sure you are typing www.jcpenneymastercard.com in your browser. There is another site not affiliated with JCPenney MasterCard and it's web address is a misspelling. That web address is www.jcpennymastercard.com. Notice that the second address is missing the second e in Penney. You can also go to www.jcpenney.com, scroll to the bottom of the page and click on credit card. Best Feature: can't get this card unless you are chosen to receive it Overall Rating: 3 Washington Mutual Bank Card Review: I was a Barnett customer in florida for 20 years until washington mutual bought them out in the early 1990's. I currently have a checking account with wamu ever since, some 13 years. I also have a providian card at 8.9%. I just received my notice from wamu owned providian that on April 1st, 2006, my new rate is 23.74% plus prime default. Folks, that is a whopping 30% plus interest rate on this card. I'll be opting out of that deal and as a special favor to Washington Mutual for that great offer, I'll be looking for a new bank too. Best Feature: none Overall Rating: 1 Credit Card: Capital One® Platinum MasterCard® Review: I have had my fair share of problems with credit cards. Capitol one is the best card I've had. They report only good things to the credit bureau, even if I had some small slip ups. There online payment service is excellent, its posts the same day (unlike others which can take weeks to post). They have never unexpetantly put up my APR either, it has stayed the same since i got the card 5 years ago. I definatly recommend capitol one. Best Feature: Online Payments Overall Rating: 5 Credit Card: MBNA Platinum Plus Elite Rewards Card Review: Would not recommend this reward program because: Best Feature: no fee Overall Rating: 1 Credit Card: Blue for Students® Card Review: My inital credit line was $500, after 4 months they increased it to $1000 then $2000- $5000- $7000 which I am currently at. The card is pretty good, no complaints. I don't really carry a balance so the interest rate isn't a big issue with me. American Express is accepted in most European countries, however there is 2% International Transaction Fee. I also have Discover card which is only go accepted in america (canada?), and is useless for travel - international students. Best Feature: Mebership Rewards, Excelent Credit Line Overall Rating: 4.5 Credit Card: Chase Ultimate Cash Award MasterCard® Review: We use this card for almost all business and living expenses, so the tiers are not an issue. We ramp up in the first month. I was surprised to discover that we get the 3% rebate on all Super Wal-Mart purchases as well as many resturants. Due to the merger with Bank One and a system bug that they refuse to acknowledge, we get an additional $100 every month regardless of rebates earned. One month our payment did not post as expected. They refunded the finance charges, but we still got the additional rewards for carrying a balance. Needless to say, we've made a killing with this card. Rebate checks CAN be requested online, but you'll probably have to ask several times. The customer service is extremely poor. Their website and other systems are offline frequently. You've got to be willing to fight to make this card work. Best Feature: Cash Back Overall Rating: 5 Credit Card: American Express® AIR MILES® Credit Card Review: There are very few airmile seats available. Unlike other reward mile cards, you are unable to change or cancel flights without forfeiting your rewards. Best Feature: no annual fee Overall Rating: 3 Credit Card: PayPal Visa® Platinum Card Review: I liked how they gave a 0% APR for the first 6 months and no interest on balance transfers (paypal platinum card). They also give me my credit score every month and give me a breakdown of how I spend my money. Emails to customer service are all answered within 24 hours and sometimes in an hour. I don't know why people are having all these problems. Maybe because I pay my whole balance and only use email, not phone, to reach customer service. If you're like me, the card is excellent. Best Feature: Intro 0% APR and free credit reports Overall Rating: 3.5 The Cardholder Review section is a unique feature of our site and, to the best of our knowledge, there is no other organization or company that offers more consumer reviews of credit cards. It's all about consumers helping other consumers. As your might expect, this section of our site has been one of the most popular sections of our site since it was introduced in the summer of 2000. New reviews are posted on a daily basis. We hope that you will find this section of our site useful and that you will visit it on a regular basis. |
Important Note! The information in this article is believed to be accurate as of the date it was written. Please keep in mind that credit card offers change frequently. Therefore, we can not guarantee the accuracy of the information in this article. Please verify all terms and conditions of any credit card prior to applying.
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