CardRatings.com Poll Finds Many Disagree with Law Restricting Credit to Students

November 2, 2009

A recent poll conducted by CardRatings.com found that a many consumers disapprove of the new law restricting credit for consumers under the age of 21. Of the 956 respondents, 313 poll takers -- or 33 percent -- felt the new law is unfair.  One of the credit card industry's leading experts weighs in.

"Considering how polarizing the student credit issue has become, I think that it is very interesting that about a third of consumers feel this new law as it pertains to students isn't fair," CardRatings.com founder Curtis Arnold said. "I think legislators really 'missed the boat' on this one. We allow our sons and daughters to go off to Iraq and Afghanistan and fight at the age of 18, yet starting in February millions of students likely won't be able to get a credit card until they are 21!"

The law restricting credit to consumers under the age of 21 is a stipulation of the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure (CARD) Act of 2009, which was designed primarily to protect Americans from unfair rate hikes and notorious credit card fine print. Arnold believes the law may have gone too far to protect students and young adults, and failed to go far enough in educating credit card consumers.

"We should focus much more on educating students about credit and personal finance in general," Arnold said. "Financial literacy should be a required class at every college in this country. Unfortunately, the final law signed by the Obama administration in May did not include any references that would have promoted personal finance classes on our college campuses. Are our priorities that much out of whack?"

CardRatings.com has been educating consumers about credit cards since 1998 and has been featured by hundreds of media outlets including The Wall Street Journal, Good Morning America, The New York Times, and The Today Show. Thanks to consumers, CardRatings.com has become the most comprehensive free source for comparing credit card offers and has helped over a million people find the best credit cards for their individual needs.

Curtis Arnold is available for interviews on this topic and others relative to the changing trends in the credit card industry.

To interview Curtis, please contact:
Jessica Austin
479-452-0019

Please Note:  This was not a scientific poll and poll participants were not selected by any means.

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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