Saturday, May 29, 2010

Advantages,Uses,Benifits of Credit Cards

Credit cards are among the most useful financial instruments available to almost everyone. In the last few years, it has taken the shape of need rather than a want or desire. Most of us are having more than one credit card since people find it more handy to keep these credit cards instead of cash.

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No doubt, credit cards are more convenient in use while making your daily transactions and shopping, but at the same time you have to be more alert and carful while spending, since a person usually keeps on buying from his credit card without keeping an eye on budget, this can even put you in trouble.

Credit cards come in various types and with different terms. every bank or credit card company has something to offer with their credit cards as a tactic to attract new customers, while retaining the existing ones along with motivating them for paying their balances on time. Some of these credit cards come up with different reward programs along with other features. Some of them give you free membership to golf clubs or other renowned clubs. Some platinum cards even offer free or discounted stay to different lounges at Air Port. Some of them come up with discounted coupons for shopping at famous outlets.

Ever bank or company is providing different value added services for their card holders. Most of them offer insurance for goods or even life insurance in case you travel by air on their cards. Some come up with extended warrantees on almost all products you buy from their card.

Accordingly, there are big number of benefits you may find with every credit card available, but one thing to keep in mind is that, you can get the benefits given by your credit card company only if you pay your balances on time. If your payment schedule is not sound and satisfactory, you may be ineligible for all benefits or incentives.

Credit card can become the best support to your financial management as long as you are paying off your balance every month and on time. Otherwise, it may put you to more financial headache due to high late fees and other penalties.

List Of Credit Cards for Filling Gas,travelling,online shopping-discover more,chase sapphire,escape by discover,guest,discover miles card

There are plenty of credit cards available in market. Due to new regulations that limit vendor fees, only a few of these continue to offer a decent cash back reward. We have analyzed the complete list of credit cards and found following credit cards that are best for filling gas, travelling and online shopping.

Discover More Card

If Cash Back is the criteria, Discover More Card beats the competition by wide margins.discover-more-card One of the many problems we found in cash back credit card deals is either they pay a very meager amount i.e. 1% on everything OR they put a limit on how much you can earn in a month or year. Those cars that do not have this problem limit their cash back offer to purchase of gas or certain supermarkets.

Discover card stands out from the crowd. You can earn as much as 5% cash rebate on a reasonably large number of items and vendors. Just to give you an idea here are a few offers.

  1. 5% Cash rebate when you buy an airline ticket.
  2. 5% cash back when you rent a car.
  3. 5% rebates on booking cruises between January and March.
  4. 5% cash back rebate when you shop at Home Improvement Stores, Clothing Stores or Departmental stores (April to June only)
  5. During Nov. and Oct. you get a 5% cash back reward on purchases from Grocery Stores, Movie Theaters or DVD rentals.
  6. Between July and September you get a 5% cash rebate when you fill you gas tank, visit a theme park, Go to Zoo or buy a book.
  7. The real value of a discover card is realized when you get a cash back in tune of 5% to 20% from 130 online shopping websites/vendors i.e. Dell.com, BestBuy.com , GAP.com etc.
Discover also has more than 100 vendors who offer gift cards. With gift cards, You can double the value of your rebates. For example, if you have earned $40 cash back by filling up gas over the month, you can redeem it for a $100 Hyatt Hotel and Resorts Gift Card. or an $90 Celebrity Cruise. isn’t that awesome?

This is not it. You can keep your 5% or more rebate and earn a $50 Cash back Bonus if you spend around $600 in first 3 months. That is equal to 8.35% Cash Back Rebate!

Chase Sapphire Card

chase-sapphire-credit-card If Travel is on your mind, Chase Sapphire Card is a good option. Chase Sapphire is Chase Bank’s new reward credit card. It runs a point system. You can earn reward points for travelling in many ways. These reward points can then be redeemed for cash, airline miles or get a certain gift from Chase’s Reward Catalogue.You can use chase sapphire card on any of the online travel sites like expedia and book your holidays i.e. airline ticket, car, hotel etc.There is a neat trick that can double your rewards. You can get benefits of owning an airline card without having to pay an annual fee. To get this benefit, you need to book online, pay through chase sapphire. pay the bill through points in next statement. Or you can exchange your reward points for airline miles on United and Continental at ONE for ONE ratio.

lg_disc-escape-2Escape by Discover Card

Compared to Chase Sapphire Card, Escape by Discover is an altogether better travel reward card. You can earn Double Miles on your every purchase through this card. We would have listed it higher if it did not have $60 annual fee. Which is still lower than most airline cards.

Starwood Preferred Guest Credit CardStarwood

Probably the best card for frequent fliers and travelers. It has an excellent Hotel Reward Program. With Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card, You get following benefits.

  1. You can transfer your reward points to Airline Cards.
  2. You get 5,000 bonus air miles on every 20,000 point to air mile transfer.
  3. You can use points to book flights at Starflight.

Biggest disappointment is that the ratio of Point to Air miles transfer is TWO to ONE.discover_card_miles

Discover Miles Card

This card is same as Escape by Discover Card, Only there is no annual fee and you earn double miles for first $3,000 you spend on this card.

Type of credit card-American express,bank of america,capital oneJp morgan chase,citibank,discover card,HSBC card,mastercard,visa credit card

Credit card offers are displayed side by side so you can easily compare key factors such as interest rates, annual fees as well as other key features.

Once you have found the card that is best for you, you can fill out an online credit card application and in some cases even get a credit decision within 60 seconds.

consumers can search, compare and apply for the best credit card offers online.

To begin searching for your credit cards, choose the "Type" of credit card you are looking for from the menu at the top.

American Express

American Express credit cards offer rewards programs and great rates. Cards include Platinum and Gold Charge Cards, Delta SkyMiles, Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card, and True Earnings® Card from Costco and American Express.

Bank of America

Bank of America offers many cards with great rates and excellent rewards programs. These offers include Bank of America Accelerated Rewards American Express Card, BankAmericard Cash Rewards Visa Signature Card and many more.

Capital One

Capital One offers credit cards for frequent flyers and shoppers who want to redeem rewards for travel, merchandise or cash back. Capital One also features platinum Visa and MasterCard credit cards with competitive rates designed for all types of credit.

JP Morgan Chase

JP Morgan Chase provides many great offers: Chase Freedom Card, Chase Sapphire Card, Slate from Chase, Ink Bold with Ultimate Rewards, and more.

CitiBank

Citibank offers a great choice of cards with rewards, 0% APR for up to 12 months, low ongoing APR, no annual fee and instant online decision. Citi Platinum, CashReturns, Diamond, Drivers, and AT&T Universal Cards. Also see Citibusiness and student credit cards.

Discover® More Card

Discover Bank Introduces the Discover® More Card with Cashback Bonus® Program - Earn 5% Cashback on gas purchases, and 0% Intro APR. Choose from various More card designs including Clear, Flag, Wildlife, Sealife Collection and more. Also available: Miles Card, Open Road Card, Business Cards, and Student Cards.

HSBC BAnk

HSBC Bank offers credit cards that include 0% Intro APR.

First PREMIER® card

First PREMIER® Bank offers secured and unsecured fee based credit cards.

Mastercard Credit Card

The MasterCard, along with the Visa Card, are the most widely accepted credit cards in the world. MasterCard is owned by over 20,000 member organizations. They serve customers in over 210 countries, and process over 15 million transactions a day in over 180 currencies.

Visa Credit Card

Visa credit cards are the number one credit card used by people around the world, Visa cards offer exceptional convenience and reliability. Visa has unsurpassed acceptance in more than 150 countries, as well as at Internet merchants. And with a Visa credit card, you can get cash at more than 840,000 ATMs in the Visa Global ATM Network. It's a secure, reliable way to pay for anything you need, anywhere in the world.

Protection perks,nix billing errors,unauthorized use,shoody goods-4 ways to get money back from credit card purchase

The Credit CARD Act that recently kicked into high gear this year is often hailed as one of the more consumer-friendly legislations passed on credit card reform, but it’s important to give due credit to the giant shoulders it stands upon. The Credit CARD Act is, in essence, an upgrade for the Truth in Lending Act, which has been on the books working for you since 1968. One of the best things that the Truth in Lending Act, which has been amended and revised several times throughout the decades, does for you is protect you from purchases, credit card charges and other transactions that you shouldn’t be responsible for. But in order to cash in, you have to know the law. Check out some of these common federal gotcha’s that can get you out of a credit card charge:

Nix Billing Errors with the Fair Credit Billing Act

In 1986, the Fair Credit Billing Act joined the fray in protecting you rights by making it illegal for credit card companies to charge you for mistakes made by the card issuer or the vendor. This includes:

* Clerical errors resulting in charges in the wrong amount
* Duplicate charges
* Charges for goods never received
* Calculation errors
* Late fees levied because a statement was mailed to the wrong address

The key to getting your money back from a billing error is catching it within 60 days of receiving the statement with the mistake on it. You must send a letter into your credit card company which includes your name, your account number and a written statement notifying them of the error (including the dollar amount in question and the reason for dispute). After that, the credit card company must launch an investigation which must be resolved within 90 days or two billing cycles (whichever comes first). Meanwhile, you can withhold payment for the amount in question – but you still have to make your minimum payment. If you win your dispute, the erroneous amount deducted will be credited to your account.

Get Paid Back for Unauthorized Use

There’s some debate over how much you’ll owe the credit card company if someone nabs your identity and goes on a spending spree, but the range is squarely between $0 and $50, thanks to federal law. For credit cards, you are automatically absolved for any charges that occur after you report the card as lost or stolen. For fraudulent charges made prior to that, you may be liable to pay up to $50, which really ain’t bad. Either way, it’s in your best interest to call that number on the back of your card ASAP. (But wait, if your card’s been stolen, how can you look at the back of the card? I’ve always wondered that. Anyway, the number is on their website or in the phonebook, too.)

Debit cards don’t have the same protections, however. You only have two days to report your card as lost or stolen to protect yourself from liability from fraudulent charges. So, if someone steals your debit card on Monday, goes out and buys $50,000 worth of Bacon Salt on Tuesday and you don’t get on the horn until Friday, then you’re out of luck. Watch those statements closely.

Disputes Over Shoddy Goods

There are numerous reasons to pay with plastic even if you have cash, but here’s one more. If you make a purchase in your home state or within 100 miles of your home address and the quality isn’t as advertised or the product is an obvious sham, you can dispute it through your credit card issuer. How? Call them up and tell them to stop payment. This protection is also part of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, so the process is much the same. Oftentimes, your credit card company will do a chargeback or cancel the transaction if you win your dispute. They do appreciate it if you try to resolve the issue directly with the merchant first, however, and may even request to see evidence of your efforts. So, next time you’re worried that a product is a ripoff and there’s no moneyback guarantee, get some insurance and pay with your credit card.

Purchase Protection Perks

This last one isn’t a federal protection – it’s actually a perk offered by most credit card issuers. We’ve talked about price protection and extended warranties here at MYC before, but these can’t be overlooked in a rundown of convenient ways to get your money back from your credit card company. As a service, credit card companies will often protect your purchases from theft or damage within 90 days of purchase. They’ll also protect you for a certain amount of time after the manufacturer’s warranty expires in case your gadget goes kaput. In fact, if you buy a nifty gizmo on Tuesday and the price drops on Thursday, you can even file a claim to get the difference back. Not bad.

Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover all have their own online portals for activating this protection, but in most cases, you don’t have to. However, registering your products beforehand will streamline the claims process if something happens.

Credit Card 11 terms - teaser rate,secured card,pre approved,periodic rate,grace period,floor,finance charge,cardholder agreement,APR,average daily

Reading a credit card statement is tedious enough without adding the extra pressure of understanding the language. However, if you don’t want to put yourself in a big heap of debt – or in frustration city- it’s a good idea to become familiar with the terms and conditions of your credit card. Following are 11 of the most common credit card terms that everyone should be familiar with.

Teaser Rate

Also referred to as the ‘introductory rate’, this is the below-market rate used to get consumers to switch their accounts. The most common teaser rate is the offer of 0% for a period of time.

Secured-Card

This refers to a card that uses an account or a deposit as security for a card. Often times when people are building or rebuilding their credit, a credit card company will ask for security in the form of a deposit or an account so that in the event of default, they are not taking a total loss. The credit card’s limit is equal to the security amount deposited

Pre-Approved

This is nothing but a marketing gimmick meant to reel you in! There is no such thing as a pre-approval in the sense that the term implies because a credit card company cannot check your credit without your permission. So, this is just a preliminary scanning of your basic credit file information. You can be denied a card once they pull your credit report.

Periodic Rate

The periodic rate is a breakdown of the interest rate in relation to a specified amount of time, i.e. the monthly periodic rate is the cost of credit per month and the daily periodic rate is the cost of credit per day. Credit card companies tend to use this in addition to the average daily balance in order to figure out the finance charge and this typically results in a higher fee than adjusted balance. To calculate a monthly periodic rate, take the APR and divide it by 12. Let’s assume that our XYZ card from above has an annual percentage rate of 18%. The monthly periodic rate would be 1.5%. Next we would multiply the average daily balance by the monthly periodic rate. So, our XYZ card with an average daily balance of $200 would be multiplied by 1.5% (200 x .015) which would yield a monthly finance charge of $3.

Grace Period

If a customer does NOT carry a balance on their card, then there is a period of time between the purchase date and the billing date in which no interest is charged on that purchase. However, if there is a balance that is carried forward every month, there is no grace period and all purchases begin accruing interest immediately.

Floor

This is the lowest rate possible on any variable-rate loan or line of credit after the introductory period. So, if a credit card company sets a floor percentage rate of 5%, no matter how low the prime rate drops and how good your credit is, your rate will not go below 5% – unless there’s a promotion involved.

Finance Charge

The price you pay for having and using a credit card – this includes interest costs and fees.

Cardholder Agreement

This is the written statement that spells out the terms and conditions of a credit card account. It must include the APR, the minimum payment formula, annual fee if applicable, and billing dispute rights. These terms can be changed at any time by the provider so long as they provide advanced written notification.

Annual Percentage Rate (APR)

This is the total cost of your loan or line of credit (including all fees and costs associated with obtaining the loan) broken down and disclosed as a yearly rate of interest.

Average Daily Balance

The average daily balance is calculated by adding each day’s balance and then dividing that total by the number of days in the billing cycle. So, let’s say that card XYZ’s daily balances total $5,000 and there are 25 days in each billing cycle, then the average daily balance for this credit card is $200. To figure the finance charge based on this balance, the credit card company multiplies the average daily balance by the periodic rate – more on this later.

Adjusted Balance

This term is the most advantageous for the cardholder. Finance charges are calculated by subtracting any payments or credits made during the billing cycle from the account balance, which resorts to a lower interest charge. Not many credit cards figure their finance charges this way.


Credit card thieves - criminal mastermind,amateur opportuninst,your family,disgruntled employees,spammers and hackers

Credit card thieves. We know they’re out there. We know we’re supposed to fear them, be ever vigilant against them, and, if given the opportunity, finger them so the authorities can haul them into prison. But who are these people who are stealing your credit cards everyday? It turns out that the vast majority of credit card and identity thieves fall into five main categories:

The Criminal Mastermind
This fellow is rare, but often gets lots of screen and airtime because of his obvious Hollywood appeal (we love a good 21st century cat burglar). The other issue with the criminal mastermind: when he steals your credit card, it’s not your fault. He’s so damn slick that no one saw it coming. There’s even a grudging admiration from the public and law enforcement when they get gracefully grifted by one of these smooth operators.

The Amateur Opportunist
You read about this breed of credit criminal in the papers quite often as well. That’s because they are so dang good at getting caught. Far from calculating masterminds, these hard up individuals will dip their hands into any unattended purse as long as no one is looking. These moonlighting credit card thieves usually get busted on security cameras or because they’re completely inept when it comes to covering their trail. They don’t get beyond two or three credit cards before its curtains for them.

Your Family
When your family breaches your trust, it can often be tense and heartbreaking. But it happens. They live in your house, they know your mother’s maiden name and they can even intercept your mail with ease. When the bank accounts begin to mysteriously dwindle, it may be a good idea to start asking questions under your own roof first.

Disgruntled Employees When you hand your credit card over to a convenience store clerk or cashier, you’re putting your trust in their hands. And if he or she is hard up or in a bad mood, there’s a chance he’s going to stick it to The Man (you) by taking a little something something for himself on top of your bubble gum or gas purchase. Some ambitious corrupted clerks turn out an entire side business of credit card thievery by using makeshift devices capable of stealing hundreds of credit cards each day.

Spammers and Hackers This one is tricky and proves that it’s still a jungle out there on the Web. Hackers aren’t as much a threat as they once were, but now, phishing is in. That is, unsuspecting card holders get emails that are supposedly from their bank asking them to log in or verify their information but in reality, they are just handing over their sensitive personal data right over to the criminals.

From the klutzy would-be criminal busted on his first time to serial criminal masterminds who elude the grasp of God himself, credit card thieves come in many shapes and sizes. But the key to protecting yourself from thousands of dollars of liability from fraudulent purchases is the same for each one. It’s dead simple: read your statement. Log on once a week or once a month and go through your statement looking for any suspicious charges. See something fishy? Report it. That’s all there is to it.

Of course, there are more measures you can take, but careful monitoring of your financial activity is the best way to go