Interesting Credit Card disclosure

heiney9

I don't have more than 1 credit card. I've been in trouble with them before when I was much younger and I figure if I can't pay cash then I can wait. I do use it occasionally and keep a low balance or zero balance. Everyone needs a CC for emergency use or to rent a car, etc.

So I get about 3-4 CC applications daily in the mail. I'm reading thru most of them, one strikes my interest and I read all the fine print including a section titled Special Rules for CC Purchases in a nut shell it states if you have a problem with the quality of property or services you purchased w/a credit card and you've tried in good faith to resolve the problem there are two limitations:

1) You must have made the purchase in your home state or if not, within 100 miles of your current mailing address

2) The purchase price must have been more than $50.

#2 I understand and is pretty standard, but #1....I've never heard that before. Is this pretty standard for CC these days or is this a specific limitation on this card offer? Pretty much defeats the purpose of purchase protection when using the card.

Is anyone aware this might be happening to them with their current CC?

DKG999 I know you are in the credit industry does this sound right? I know it is for this particular offer, but is this the norm for some CC's?

Please discuss

H9

P.s. I should check my other card and see if this is true also. This would mean things on E-bay outside of 100 miles of my mailing addy are not covered if I need to dispute a transaction.

heiney9

I have a pile of CC apps that I'm getting ready to shred and some have that wording and some don't. I guess read every single line on the disclosures before deciding to apply. There are lots of differences in all the apps that get sent. Hope my shredder can handle the volume of paper .

dkg999

H9 - it used to be that the purchase protection and ability to dispute a sale and have a little power as a consumer using a cc applied without restrictions to where you made the purchase, except for international purchases with some cards. Call it the power of the e-tailer, but take note that the exclusions you reference would be targeted to keeping eBay transactions and other e-tailer transactions safe from dispute. The card marketers only make money if they can sell e-tailers, retailers, etc. on accepting their cards. The big brands of VISA, MC, AMEX have been hit with lots of rebellion from the online e-tailing world, and also from the std retailers to make the terms on the purchase protection a lot more in their favor. It's major retailers voting with millions of dollars vs. single consumer voices being barely audible in the wind. Of course most of the card marketers will give you back the full purchase protection for a nominal monthly fee! With every challenge comes opportunity

Early B.

heiney9 wrote:

Everyone needs a CC for emergency use or to rent a car, etc.

I can't think of any reason or "emergency" that warrants the use of a credit card. I've gone without a credit card for several years with no issues. I've rented a few cars, too, with a debit card. Always keep a few hundred duckies in your account for emergencies, and use your bank's overdraft protection, just in case.

Bottom line -- if you have a little bit of cash, there's no reason at all to carry a credit card. Most people don't have Heiney's discipline to carry a credit card and keep the balance low or at zero, and use the "emergency" argument to convince themselves of the need for one.

Burn those demon cards, I say, burn them to hell!!!:eek: :eek: :eek:

VR3

Im a pretty patient person and I save up more than adequate funds to purchase items when I have about 70% of my income still in the bank...

And with those thoughts in mind, if I had a credit card - I would honestly hate to see what I would spend... just because I could pay for this stuff over time... which I am doing now - you just cant have the stuff while you pay for it with cash... haha

But yeah, anyways - Credit Cards are evil... but I do like the little bit of protection it gives you as a consumer...

bobman1235

You can't think of ANY emergency that would require a credit card? You must have a lot of cash in the bank.

- Assuming you car isn't under full warranty, what if something severe (more than $1k) breaks?
- What if for some reason you have to fly out of state at the last minute? Funeral, etc?

Maybe you have several thousand dollars in your checking account, but most people don't.

PolkThug

Vr3MxStyler2k3 wrote:

if I had a credit card

You should get one, but don't use it. It will help your credit score. It will also give you another bump in points 10 years from now.

jdhdiggs

H9: I've had none of those issues. I've "won" disputes for purchases in France and Italy which are definately not in my home state or within 100 miles. Sounds like a goofy card offer, or maybe something new CC companies are adding now...

Early, try these two conditions:

In my work, I'd be dead without a CC. I've run up $12-$20K worth of expenses in one month, typical months are in the $4-$6K range. I'm definatley not going to float that without a CC even if I am re-imbursed. Additionally, I might not be back to fill out expenses in a timely manner. keeping $20K in your checking account to cover business expenses is ludicrous!

No emergency situation needs a CC? Here's one that happened with my family when I was young: The Audi broke down in some small town in Wyoming and we lived in Denver. There was no rental cars and the autoparts store had to ship in the parts. So now you need a hotel room for 3 days, food for 5 for those days, and pay for the repairs. Your looking at a grand. If you have that much in reserve, good for you.

To me, a debit card is the same as a CC. If you don't have the money, don't spend the money.

Early B.

jdhdiggs wrote:

In my work, I'd be dead without a CC. I've run up $12-$20K worth of expenses in one month, typical months are in the $4-$6K range. I'm definatley not going to float that without a CC even if I am re-imbursed. Additionally, I might not be back to fill out expenses in a timely manner. keeping $20K in your checking account to cover business expenses is ludicrous!

Why doesn't your company provide you with a credit card?

jdhdiggs

They could if they want to (there is a company card anyone can use), but then I wouldn't get all the "points" or "miles". Plus the company card involves a TON more paperwork. Instead of just the receipts, you have to write why it was expensed, who was there, etc... A pain in the ****. Cheaper for the company and better for the employee to run it like it is.

Plus, your junk mail really improves! You get invitations to Ferrarri shows and other crazy crap.

Early B.

jdhdiggs wrote:

To me, a debit card is the same as a CC. If you don't have the money, don't spend the money.

They're not the same at all. A credit card is credit; it has to be paid back, whether you have the money or not. Of course, most people don't have the money, so that's why they use a credit card. A debit card is cash and it comes out of your checking account. In many cases your account is debited immediately.

It is prudent financial planning to always maintain some cash in the bank for "emergencies."

dkg999

If you looked across most card marketers portfolios, you would see that overall cc's are used responsibly. A lot of a card marketers work is to find ways to get consumers to make large purchases that have to be paid off over a number of months, because that's where the big profits are. A higher % of cc accounts are paid in full every month than you might guess from what makes the news. A card marketer needs a managed % of write-offs, and that is figured into the business model as a tax advantage.

shack

I use one credit card for convienience purposes (and the rewards - which you don't get with a DC). We run everything we purchase through the CC and pay the account in full every month. It is much simpler than a DC because when balancing my checking account I only have one entry to deal with rather than the many if dealing with a DC. There are several advantages as I see it, I keep my money invested and use the credit card company's money for up to a couple of months, easier to track, in spite of the original topic of this tread with my card there is the ability to dispute any transaction gone bad (not possible with a debit card) and I get a nice check every quarter for using the card.

Each of my kids have one as well and I pay the card (they are the cardholder and I am the guarantor). Any purchases they make that are related to school and normal school living expenses I pay...anything else and I let them know how much they owe and they will write me a check or I take it out of their account to cover the bill. Needless to say, they are learning in order to pay them off each month they can't charge a bunch of crap or their savings accounts get hit...and they hate that. Both of my girls work part time and have nice savings accounts. Their credit cards give them some credit history and lessons in personal finance.

jdhdiggs

Early B. wrote:

They're not the same at all. A credit card is credit; it has to be paid back, whether you have the money or not. Of course, most people don't have the money, so that's why they use a credit card. A debit card is cash and it comes out of your checking account. In many cases your account is debited immediately.

It is prudent financial planning to always maintain some cash in the bank for "emergencies."

We know the basic definitions, but if you use them respnsibly they act the same, but as Shack pointed out the CC has many advantages to a DC. Also, I'd prefer my reserve cash in a money market account instead of my checking account doing nothing. It's still there instantly if one needs it. Holding your emergency funds in cash is not prudent financial planning.

CC's are tools, just like guns. If used properly, they can provide you with security and be a useful tool. If used improperly, they can ruin your life. Just grow a brain stem and use them responsibly and there's no issue.

wallstreet

I've seen it before, but my current card doesn't have it. Just another way to squeak a little more out of the consumer. I use my CC for just about everything. What the heck, you get a few more days interest and miles. I'm up to 63000 points! And I did absolutely nothing except pay using my CC. Now I've got three round trips to anywhere in the US.

PhantomOG

CC and DC are very different. Maybe not on the surface, but definitely if you look into it. The CC offers you much better protection against fraud and is much better for you when involved in disputes. On top of that, CC in general offer MUCH better rewards than DC. Also, you get the float time for the charges, whereas DC you lose money immediately.

With all that said, if you are irresponsible CC are probably not good for you. However, if you are responsible, CC are the much smarter way to go. When applying for financing a home or car, having a few credit lines with good history and age are the best things for your credit. You can also totally screw up your credit by spending more than you should.

I do all of my spending on a cash back CC and get roughly $50 a month in cash back. I pay the entire balance every month. You take into account the better protections offered by the CC and it would be foolish of me to use a DC instead.

kn505

What credit cards (that gives the most cash back, points, or miles) do you recommend?

WilliamM2

Call it the power of the e-tailer, but take note that the exclusions you reference would be targeted to keeping eBay transactions and other e-tailer transactions safe from dispute.

That's not why the restriction is there at all. If I purchase something online or over the phone, the purchase WAS made in my state, in fact, it is usually made right in my own home. Does not matter where the vendor is.

I have never seen a card that does not offer protection on internet/mail order purchases.

PhantomOG

kn505 wrote:

What credit cards (that gives the most cash back, points, or miles) do you recommend?

My current primary use card is a Chase Rewards Plus card that basically gives me 5% cash back on gas and groceries, and 1% on everything else. I'm not too sure if its available anymore as 5% cards are becoming rare.

I'd suggest perusing the Fatwallet Finance Forum for the latest card offers.

Alot of CC threads there deal with people doing AOR (app-o-ramas) where they apply for a ton of different cards within a short period of time to get sign-up bonuses and low balance transfer rates to put money into high yield savings. This can be a risky and time consuming way of making money from CC. I don't do this, but you will also find lots of thread with all the latest CC offers. Which card is best for you depends on your spending habits. In all probability, its best to get a few different cards for each of the usual purchase types (one for gas/groceries, one for eating out, etc etc.) however I'm lazy and prefer just having to deal with one card each month (although I do have several cards, for credit score purposes). Also, depeding on the types of rewards you like, travel reward cards might be best for someone who travels alot.

jdhdiggs

What's best?

Gotta agree with POG, depends on your habits. Because of my location, I have two major USairways hubs so I have a US Airways card. I also try to stay in Marriots because the have a little more flexibility on their points than the other hotels so I also have a Marriot card. I also have a citibank platinum that does cash back like POG's card although I get 3% for some other purchases like eating out in addition to the 5% for gas and groceries.

So, for groceries, gas and dining out, I use one card, for hotels, I use another, and for all other expenses, I use a different one. All are paid in full every month.

Additionally, what might be available to you may depend on your credit rating.

dkg999

WilliamM2 wrote:

That's not why the restriction is there at all. If I purchase something online or over the phone, the purchase WAS made in my state, in fact, it is usually made right in my own home. Does not matter where the vendor is.

I have never seen a card that does not offer protection on internet/mail order purchases.

That's not true in all states! And keep watching because the restrictions on purchase protection are expanding. From what I have seen, the trend is going to be to upsell you to get the full purchase protection. This of course is impacted by state laws, which do have some variance in their requirements.

The best bet is to research the seller, make sure you are not getting scammed, and to use the CC purchase protection as a last resort.

WilliamM2

That's not true in all states!

Yes it is. There is a Federal law called the "Fair Credit Billing Act", that alows you to dispue ANY charge.

dkg999

That act has a lot of loop-holes in it, and various states have different opinions on where an internet transaction took place for legal purposes. If you are on an online gambling site and make a transaction, they hide behind the fact that the transaction did not take place in the US.

heiney9

WilliamM2 wrote:

Yes it is. There is a Federal law called the "Fair Credit Billing Act", that alows you to dispue ANY charge.

Any law has many many loopholes. Since it states as part of the terms of using the CC then I would say their statement/limitation stands. Now on principle they may not utlimately be able to enforce it. But not too many people are going to take up the issue at the Federal court level to try and fight something that was plainly disclosed as the terms of using said CC.

Wow, we've had some great discussion here. I was just reading some stuff because I was bored. I wasn't thinking about applying for the card, but it did make me take notice when I read that statement.

wallstreet

kn505 wrote:

What credit cards (that gives the most cash back, points, or miles) do you recommend?

USAA Total Rewards - 10% APR, No annual fee.