Banks to Congress: You don't need to pass credit card legislation.....Trust us.

[marmar]

from Bloomberg:



Banks Warn Credit Card Legislation May Hurt, Not Help Consumers

By Alexis Leondis

Aug. 21 (Bloomberg) -- Frank Chan said he had been a loyal Citibank cardholder for 20 years when he was told by a customer service agent that stopping a check payment would cost him $29.

He said he was shocked to see on his next credit-card statement that as a result his interest rate had more than doubled, from 13.9 to 28.9 percent, and applied to his current balance.

Citigroup Inc., the biggest U.S. credit-card lender, agreed to remove the additional interest charged, yet for Chan it was too late.

``I was so angered by their sneakiness that I paid off and terminated my Citicard account immediately,'' said Chan, 43, a religious studies professor from New City, New York. Citigroup declined to comment on the specifics of his case.

A bill pending in Congress seeks to protect credit-card users from sudden rate increases and fees. Industry groups say there will be unintended effects of the measure, especially for consumers who pay their bills in full and on time. Consumer advocates say it will give cardholders more control and prevent them from spiraling further into debt.

The bill, approved by a House of Representatives committee, requires 45 days' notice of interest rate increases, prohibits companies from changing the terms of the contract at any time for any reason, and makes issuers mail billing statements 25 days before the due date, instead of the current 14-day minimum.

``Less risky borrowers will have to absorb the costs posed by riskier borrowers if issuers can't price everyone based on the risk they pose,'' said Ken Clayton, senior vice president of card policy at the American Bankers Association based in Washington, D.C. .......(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601213&sid=aaa1JxMwNFRM&refer=home

[whistle]

1. Barrrhahahahahaahaahahahahaha!

:spray: :rofl: :yoiks:

[tokenlib]

2. Do we have to ask where Biden stands on this??? If on the ticket,it matters....n/t

[Stand and Fight]

4. Thank you.

I've not forgotten his support of the nefarious "Bankruptcy Reform" in 2004... That is NOT to be taken lightly or forgiven. It is the chief reason I cannot support him for VP.

[SoCalDem]

3. What a JOKE!!

Credit cards should NOT be issued without a manageable upper limit...and it should never be more that 5% over what a savings account PAYS you..

and creditworthiness needs to come back.. Issuing a credit card with a $5k limit to an unemployed 18yr old should be a crime..

[MadHound]

5. You want to curb credit card abuses, stop using credit cards.

I've lived my entire life without a CC and have not suffered any ill effects. In fact my budget is sound and my credit rating is great.

In fact it was just within the past fifteen years that CC's became ubiquitous. For the longest while, CC's weren't used except by business folks, emergencies or large purchases. Now people use them for lattes, a pack of smokes, or every other little thing.

Stop using credit cards and put these assholes out of business. If not, then you're just going to continue to get screwed time and time again.

[DCKit]

6. Alternatively, stop issuing cards to bad risk consumers.

If we had usury laws, the CC companies would need to be more cautious about handing the cards out.

You'd almost think the banks wrote the new bankruptcy laws. Oh, wait a minute, they did.

[tokenlib]

7. And never forget those who helped them do it, especially the dems...n/t

[MadHound]

8. The CC companies haven't ever been careful in handing out their credit cards

The fact of the matter is that their business model isn't that of your regular financial institution, but rather that of the drug pusher. They get their marks hooked on easy credit at a young age, and bleed them dry for the rest of their life, and perhaps beyond.

The best thing to do would be for people to simply stop using them. I know, for some people, that would be a tough thing to do, but it is the only way we can get our outrage across anymore. Hit 'em where it hurts.