Credit Card Blog

TD Banknorth has just launched a credit card that puts customers in control. The new Simply Flexible credit card rewards financial responsibility by allowing card holders to choose their interest rates. For example, a card holder can select a very low APR if they agree to pay off 10% of their card balance each month. This is great news for over half of the card holders out there, who routinely carry a balance on their credit cards.

Tom Dyck, executive vice president of retail product management for TD Banknorth, was excited about the new product. He says that card holders who choose the Simply Flexible card will reap the rewards of lower interest rates, paying off card balances sooner, and having positive reflections on their credit reports.

In keeping with the competition, the TD Banknorth credit cards also come with 24 hour emergency assistance, auto rental collision insurance, and other security and convenience features.

The Simply Flexible card is available in a personal version, as well as a business Visa.
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Have you ever gotten a phone call or pre-approved offer in the mail that says you are approved for a $6,500 credit card?  Everything about the offer seems like it’s for a traditional Visa or MasterCard, but if you really ask some questions or read the fine print, you’ll soon discover it’s for a $6,500 line of credit to a mail-0rder catalog.

If you don’t realize that and agree to receive the “First National Card”; when it arrives you’ll have to call to activate it  by giving them your checking account details.  You’re given an 8 or 14 day trial, after which you’re billed $199.

In fact, there is a $198 annual fee; and a rush payment processing fee; and enrollment into a 30 day program that will charge you an additional $99 fee if you forget to cancel within the 30 days.

All of this to purchase merchandise from a catalog.

Sometimes if it looks like a credit card, and reads like a credit card, it may not really be a credit card.  The First National Card, as they call it, is offered through two different companies out of Nevada, Consumer Credit Services, Inc. (CCS) and Capital Credit Alliance, Inc. (CCA).

Remember the tales that came out in October of 2007? Tales of state employees using state-agency credit cards to fund jewelry purchases and tropical vacations? It seems that the misuse of business cards is spreading. Now James Brignati, the vice president for business and finance at Armstrong Atlantic State University in Georgia, has retired in the middle of a scandal related to misuse of his state-issued purchasing card.

What did Brignati’s purchasing card transactions reveal? Since 2005, Brignati charged more than $8,500 for airline tickets, including a single ticket purchase of $1,372 in 2006. He also charged over $2,300 on weekend purchases at businesses like Amazon.Com and Staples.

Additionally, Brignati spent $9,440 on two different cellphone providers, Verizon and Cingular.

Were any of these transactions legitimate uses of the purchasing card? Brignati didn’t respond to reporters who tried to contact him, so the matter remains to be seen.

As you know, negative credit scores can have an impact on your ability to land a job. But if you’ve been the victim of identity theft, or had a freeze placed on your credit for any reason, that freeze could also keep you from getting a job.

When you place a freeze on your credit, you prevent people from gaining access to your credit history – including prospective employers. This is great for those who fear they might have been, or have reason to believe they will be, victims of identity fraud. But now that more and more employers run background checks and credit checks on potential hires, job seekers need to make sure that their credit history can be seen. It’s a competitive world out there for job seekers, and it would be a shame to lose an opportunity to another candidate whose credit history was readily available.

Luckily, the fix is simple; just lift the freeze with all three credit bureaus before you start going to job interviews. There might be a small fee involved; be sure to contact the bureaus to see what their terms and requirements are.

For sports fans in Kalamazoo, MI, it just became easier than ever to purchase great concessions during sporting events. According to a press release, “The Wings Stadium Complex, which is also home to The Annex and The Cube, announces… all major concession stands and bars are now accepting credit cards.”

This is great news for fans that don’t make a habit of carrying cash. Businesses of any stripe are more likely to have satisfied customers if they accept credit and/or debit cards as a form of payment. Wings Stadium recognizes this, which is why they installed the new “swipe and buy” system. And time spent at the concession stands will be minimized now that patrons don’t have to dig around for change.

The Wings Stadium management decided to accept credit cards in order to enhance the experience of their patrons. The stands and bars will accept American Express, Discover, Master Card or Visa.

Now, if they could just do something about the lines…

It’s 2008; do you know where your interest rates are? If you’ve been even one day late on your credit card payment, you might be surprised by the jump your interest rate has taken. Even card holders with good credit scores are being heavily penalized for late payments – sometimes as high as 30% interest.

The card issuers argue that the mortgage crisis is leaving them with too many delinquent card holders, and that they should have the right to regulate their own industry and set interest rates for late payments. The problem with this, according to the government and plenty of card holders, is that the card companies are being unreasonable when they charge the maximum interest rate to all late payers – including good customers who have only missed one payment during the life of their account.

These penalty interest rates can stick around, too; when I was late on a card payment back in January of 2007, I watched my interest rate go from 12% to 29% for the next six months.

If you are unable to make a payment, the best thing to do is let your card company know right away. They will work with you by taking a partial payment or deferring your payments in certain circumstances. This can save you lots of stress (and money) in the long run!