Charge Responsibly Blog

Recently a huge arrangement involving selling of names and addresses of students and former students to credit card companies – in exchange for big financial kickbacks – came to light. What surprised everyone is that it is not criminal hackers doing the selling, but it is the prestigious schools themselves.

What it means is that if a child of yours is going to one of the nation’s institutions of higher learning – including some of the most elite colleges and universities in the country – that educational institution may be surreptitiously selling private information about them to credit card companies. The same goes for college alumni, whose names also get traded for cash.

These educational institutions are also giving major credit card companies the right to attend campus events by granting them unique and special access to students. The way that scheme works is that colleges and their alumni associations let credit card companies ...

Although it is does not have the population centers and metropolitan cities of other more prominent states, the rather rural and down-to-earth state of Vermont often leads the way when it comes to progressive legislation. The state has done again, by recently passing new laws that will make it easier for merchants that accept credit cards to give their customers discounts for not using those cards. That may seem rather contradictory or self-defeating, because retailers usually love for you to ring up sales – using a credit card or whatever form of payment you choose. But the idea behind this law is that merchants can now give customers who use cash or other ways of paying that cost the retailers and store owners less. They can also set minimum amounts for credit card purchases.

The reason is that when merchants accept plastic they are obligated to pay a significant fee to the credit card company. This has prompted the federal government to put caps on these so-called & ...

In this day and age of sophisticated telecommunications, online media, and almost constant video surveillance, most consumers are concerned about infringements upon their right to privacy. But now there is mounting evidence that your own credit card company – which is usually on the same side as you when it comes to protection of your identity and financial records – may be intentionally tracking your purchase activity to generate a special consumer credit profile on you. They are doing it whether you like it or not, too, and this has many consumers and consumer advocacy groups upset.

According to a recently released federal report, for example, hundreds of thousands of credit card customers have had their accounts limited or even closed due to this kind of card user surveillance. The credit card companies gathered details about such things as where the consumers shopped – including not just the name of the store or merchant but the ...

If you are like most credit card owners who frequently reach for your plastic when paying for purchases, you have probably been asked – at least from time to time – to present a valid form of identification along with the card. Most consumers have no objection to this requirement, because they assume it is for their own protection to prevent an imposter from fraudulently using their card. But many consumer advocates do have a problem with this common practice.

That’s because although it is fine for a merchant to ask you for your ID, the position and policy of companies that issue credit cards is clear. Except in special circumstances that are an exception to the rule, the merchant can ask for ID. But if you don’t show an ID the merchant is still required to complete the credit card transaction.

According to a recent article in the Baltimore Sun newspaper, MasterCard and Visa rules state that a retailer can't decline ...

Especially during the busy summer travel and vacation season, lots of credit card consumers will be faced with an often-perplexing question or choice. Should they go ahead and pay extra for auto insurance when renting a car, or decline it and hope that they are covered by their credit card membership’s insurance program?

 

Sometimes the cost of a daily rental car insurance premium is a huge additional expense that can escalate the cost of auto rentals into the stratosphere. But without it, if there is an accident, the renter could wind up owing a car rental company the price of a brand new car. So when a car rental representative poses the question it can be a little intimidating or downright scary, although you may already have plenty of coverage in the event of an accident because of ...