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Consumers Could Pay More if the European Commission Caps Credit Card Fees

October 2, 2018

The European Commission (EU) has threatened to cap the credit card processing charges that banks impose on businesses and shops. In turn, the banks have threatened to add higher fees and other charges onto cards used by consumers. When it all finally boils down, it’s likely that UK households will take another hit in their billfolds.

As it stands now, credit cards like MasterCard and Visa charge businesses a 0.9 percent charge on all credit card purchases. This credit card fee costs businesses 850 million annually. The charge in debit cards is 0.2 percent. The EU wants to set a flat service charge fee of 0.3 percent.

On further examination, this matter gets more complex. The fees that businesses pay to banks are known as interchange fees. These fees cover the bank’s costs of processing credit card transactions such as fraud insurance and administration. Shops and businesses give banks different interchange fees based on size. Big retailers generating tons of sales tend to pay a smaller interchange fee. A mom and pop store will pay a larger interchange fee. These fees can vary from 2.5 to 0.1 percent.

The European Commission (EC) estimates that this fee payment market has a value of 112 billion. The EC is laying out the argument that the credit card sector is expensive and fragmented. Retailers tend to agree with the EC opinion. The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has been hammering the EC for a decade to end what it calls excessive and anti-competitive fees for processing credit cards. The BRC argues that consumers will benefit via lower prices if the fees are capped. At present, retailers eat these fees and charge them back into the business.

“We’re delighted with this landmark proposal,” said Helen Dickinson, the BRC director. “Capping these excessive and anti-competitive fees will support the UK retail industry by 362 million a year, boosting the industry’s ability to invest and innovate while continuing to deliver lower prices and value for customers,” Dickinson added in an interview at Daily Mail.

MasterCard Europe contends that if this EC cap goes through, consumers will be hit with a 25 annual fee per credit card. Marion King, president of MasterCard, warned that lower fees will result in less income for issuing banks, and that will force banks to charge consumers for using cards.

The EC fee proposal will force credit card companies to separate their payment card schemes from the business division that processes transactions. Essentially, this would destroy the current credit card model. The Financial Times (FT) describes this matter as the final battle in the long war between EU bureaucrats and payment providers. The Commission proposal calls for a 0.2 percent cap on debit transactions. Credit card fees would be capped at 0.3 percent. The EC estimates that EU debit card fees will be cut to 2.5 billion from 4.8 billion. Credit card fees will tumble to 3.5 billion from 5.7 billion.

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Paying For College-How To Manage A Students First Credit Card

September 28, 2018

Most students receive their first credit card offers when they are in college. Having a credit card opens up a whole new world. It brings new meaning to paying for college. Suddenly shopping, eating and traveling get easier and seem more affordable. Credit cards can be very helpful for college students. They can also get out of control quickly. When students follow these 5 basic tips for managing a college credit card, they will be able to stay out of financial trouble and establish solid, long-lasting credit.

Cash or Credit
If it can be paid for in cash, do it. When possible, college students should avoid charging small items that are affordable without the plastic. The interest makes them more expensive. Beware of stores that enforce a minimum credit in an effort to get the buyer to spend more.

Payment Plans
The most important thing to remember is that all of the money needs to be paid back at some point. Spend it now, pay for it later only works as long as the bills are being paid promptly. Students should learn early to pay off the balance as often as possible. When its not possible, more than the minimum payment should be made. Late payments can cause a raise in the interest rate plus late fees and other penalties.

Willpower
A credit limit is not an invitation to spend it all. Paying for college is expensive, but it is not meant to be experienced completely on plastic. The savvy student will buy only what is necessary and affordable. The occasional splurge or emergency is acceptable. The urge to spend should be ignored whenever possible. Avoid the urge to pay for college with the credit card. Instead, secure a school loan for this purpose and avoid maxing out the limit right away.

Deals
Special offers are made through different companies. Some are active throughout the life of the card; others are only good as long as the person is enrolled in a specific program. For example, one may offer a 1 percent or 2 percent cash back bonus on eligible purchases made with the credit card. Others may offer special online discounts or ecoupons when using their cards.

Interest
Look for one that offers a low interest rate. The less interest charged, the more things the student can actually purchase. Some credit card companies offer lower interest rates for special offers for a limited time. Be aware of when those special interest rates end. Most do not charge interest when the balance is paid off at the end of every month.

While credit cards are helpful for college students, they are not for everyone. When handled responsibly, they make paying for college easier and more affordable.

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Reward Points On Credit Cards A Perfect Enjoyment

September 21, 2018

Credit card companies offer varying benefits and promotions to entice their customers to use their credit cards not only in their everyday purchases but also for major buying decisions. One of the promotions that credit card companies have is the rewarding of points to their users for every purchase that they make.

Credit card holders are often enjoy reward points raining on them. Frequent festive seasons always induce the card holders to enjoy shopping with reward points. Todays customers are debt-shy and they spend like anything. They enjoy earning reward points while spending. Credit cards are heavily loaded with reward points give the opportunity to enjoy holidays at exotic locales, shop for jewellery, fashion accessories, apparel, electronic equipment, cosmetics, etc. Banks have a penchant for giving a reward with their left hand, and simultaneously charging for it with their right hand. Card holders must be aware of a host of complicated rules and regulations before letting themselves be swayed away by these so-called lucrative offers. To begin with, banks do not conform to a uniform set of reward point schedules. For instance, while in case of American Express Bank, card members receive one point for every Rs 40 charged on their credit card, ABN Amro Bank credits one point to the customer for every Rs 50 spent. Standard Chartered credits one point for every Rs 125, whereas Citibank rewards you one point for every Rs 100 spent. Private sector ICICI Bank awards you one reward point for every Rs 200 charged on their card. Also, ICICI Bank links the reward points to the slabs of amounts spent, i.e. upto Rs 75,000 or above Rs 4,00,000. The main hitch here is that redemption of reward points is only after accumulation of minimum required points of 500.

This apart, banks also follow a pattern wherein they credit varying amounts on every point earned, depending upon the card categories. Citibank rewards cardholders Re 1 for every point earned on the Citibank Platinum Card, while the Diners’ Club International and Citibank Gold cardholders receive only Rs 0.65 for every point gathered. The Citibank Silver cardholders on the other hand get Re 0.50 for every point they manage to accumulate. The difference in redemption structures also creep in, based on the outlets offering you redemption facilities.
Whereas to avail of vouchers, redeemable at Zodiac, Wrangler, Arrow or Titan, you should have accumulated a minimum of 500 points. Being a cardholder, it is mandatory to find out the cash transactions that curtail your eligibility to these programmes. Most banks restrict their customers from treating cash withdrawals, interest charges, card fees, demand drafts, service charge transactions, disputed transactions, purchase of foreign exchange, EMI transactions, travelers cheques and other insurance charges as opportunities to accumulate reward points. The rewards points can also be redeemed online by logging in to the concerned bank’s Web site and visit the “Reward Points” section on the credit card page. To web-enable the credit card, fill up the account linking form available on the site. Select the rewards catalogue for the card and accordingly, choose the products or vouchers for which an online order has to be placed. The product or the voucher is then delivered at doorstep.

Card-issuing banks offer cardholders the facility to seek an annual fee waiver, by adjusting the amount against the reward points. One also should check on the available timeframe within which cardholders need to redeem their points. Cardholders cannot exercise redemption rights on expired or delinquent cards. A frequent traveler credit card rewards system for example, a card user who purchases groceries, gas or technically his daily purchases, may have an equal travel reward points awarded to him for every dollar he spends on his regular purchases. On the other hand, should he ever buy plane tickets from an airline company co-sponsoring the credit card hes using, the reward points that he may earn may be higher as this is also one way to help promote the airline companys latest promotions or travel packages.

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How to Save Yourself From Drowning in Credit Card Debt

September 13, 2018

Credit card debt has been widely recognized as the primary reason why people are suffering from low credit scores in the country. The most likely reason why many people suffer from this vicious cycle of debt is that it is difficult to keep a track of all the points of expenditure through credit cards. This is especially true when a person is struck with some form of a medical or even non medical emergency. In such situations, it is impossible to think of the consequences of expenditure because expenses like medical bills cannot be avoided at the cost of life or fitness. Therefore, most people in a medical emergency end up getting trapped in debt. Fortunately, while it takes some doing, it is not very difficult to get rid of the problem. All it takes is a little bit of common sense and diligence. Consider the following steps through which you can get rid of your credit card debt, if you are stuck in one.

1. Find some good refinancers and pay each of them a visit

The first step of your strategy to get rid of credit card debt is to find and visit good refinancers in the region. The loan refinancing industry has grown significantly as the number of people getting trapped by different types of debts is increasing. Therefore, it would not be difficult for you to find some good refinancers in your region. You should shortlist the best ones and arrange an appointment with each one of them. During your meetings with these refinancing professionals, your job will be to try and get as much information about the kind of credit card debt settlement plan that they think would be good for you.

2. Analyze the credit card debt settlement plans that they have set out for you

After you have met with all the refinancing firms, you would have rough information on the credit card debt settlement plans that they had devised for you. If you are smart, you can get a lot of very useful information from a refinancing firm’s representative. You should analyze all the information that you have gathered in terms of different instruments, different schedules and, in a nutshell, the whole settlement plans’ structure.

3. Combine the positives of all the plans strategies and create your own

Finally, you should combine the good aspects of all these strategies that you think fit your specific situation and formulate your own customized settlement plan. Ideally, the best way to get rid of credit card debt would be to pay the debt. However, sometimes the debt is so large that it requires some manipulation through refinancing loans and other credit cards. Your own settlement plan would consist of this kind of information. Furthermore, since you took the positives and most suitable aspects from all the restructuring and refinancing plans offered to you, you would find that your customized plan would be better than all of them because it is designed to your specific needs by you.

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