Retroactive Interest Rate Penalty Review
Author: maddybeagle
Posted: Tue Jan 31, 2006 7:23 am
Post subject: retroactive interest-rate penalties
Most of this article is old news, but it talks about "retroactive interest-rate penalties". Anybody seen this and by what cc's?
http://finance.yahoo.com/columnist/article/millionaire/2406
The Zero-Percent Offer: How They Tease
Lots of card issuers now offer introductory rates of "zero percent" to customers willing to open new accounts and transfer their existing balances to them. These can be good deals, but beware. Many of these zero-percent offers have very specific disclaimers -- in tiny print -- to the effect that if you're late paying by even one day, you forfeit your zero- or low-interest deal and your rate can be raised. I've seen deals where, if you're late just once, the rate jumps from zero to 24 percent. And if you're late twice, it jumps to 29 percent.
Even worse, some of these special offers carry "retroactive interest-rate penalties," which means the cards' issuers can go back and charge you high rates for every balance you've ever carried, even when you were making your payments on time.
So be careful with these offers. They can be terrific if you're responsible, but slip up once, and you can get badly hurt.
The bottom line is: If you're not careful, credit cards can become a financial hazard that's hard to escape from. So be smart with your cards and learn to avoid the pitfal
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
Author: Board Monitor
Posted: Tue Jan 31, 2006 8:48 am
Post subject:
Interesting...I would like the author of this article to cite an example. The only thing I can think of is that some retail cards have this type of policy.
_________________
Best Regards,
Curtis Arnold
Board Monitor
http://www.cardratings.com
(501) 663-0314
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
Posted: Tue Jan 31, 2006 7:23 am
Post subject: retroactive interest-rate penalties
Most of this article is old news, but it talks about "retroactive interest-rate penalties". Anybody seen this and by what cc's?
http://finance.yahoo.com/columnist/article/millionaire/2406
The Zero-Percent Offer: How They Tease
Lots of card issuers now offer introductory rates of "zero percent" to customers willing to open new accounts and transfer their existing balances to them. These can be good deals, but beware. Many of these zero-percent offers have very specific disclaimers -- in tiny print -- to the effect that if you're late paying by even one day, you forfeit your zero- or low-interest deal and your rate can be raised. I've seen deals where, if you're late just once, the rate jumps from zero to 24 percent. And if you're late twice, it jumps to 29 percent.
Even worse, some of these special offers carry "retroactive interest-rate penalties," which means the cards' issuers can go back and charge you high rates for every balance you've ever carried, even when you were making your payments on time.
So be careful with these offers. They can be terrific if you're responsible, but slip up once, and you can get badly hurt.
The bottom line is: If you're not careful, credit cards can become a financial hazard that's hard to escape from. So be smart with your cards and learn to avoid the pitfal
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
Author: Board Monitor
Posted: Tue Jan 31, 2006 8:48 am
Post subject:
Interesting...I would like the author of this article to cite an example. The only thing I can think of is that some retail cards have this type of policy.
_________________
Best Regards,
Curtis Arnold
Board Monitor
http://www.cardratings.com
(501) 663-0314
CardRatings.com is the most comprehensive source for comparing credit card offers. Please visit CardRatings.com to view the best rated credit cards!
posted by CardRatings.com at 5:45 PM
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