Wyden/Obama seeks rating system for credit cards

[ariesgem]

The Associated Press

U.S. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said he plans to introduce legislation that would direct the Federal Reserve to create a rating system for credit cards.

The highest-risk cards, such as those that allow the issuing bank to raise the interest rate at any time without stating a reason, would receive one star. The lowest-risk cards would get five stars.

At a news conference at Portland State University, Wyden noted that that U.S. households had an average of $6,900 in credit card debt at the end of September, an increase of 41 percent from a year earlier.

"These credit card debts are hitting Oregon families like a wrecking ball," he said Tuesday.

Wyden said he and U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., will introduce the legislation next week. He said the system would give consumers a way to judge the riskiness of a credit-card offer without having to plow through all that fine print.

snip...

Consumer advocates support Wyden and Obama's proposal, but a banking industry spokesman said he doesn't know if it's necessary.

"We all agree that disclosures could be improved, but this may be premature," said John Hall, a spokesman for the American Banking Association in Washington, D.C.

Hall said the federal government is considering a measure, known as Regulation Z, which would increase disclosure requirements for credit cards.

http://www.eastoregonian.info/main.asp?SectionID=13&SubSectionID=48&ArticleID=69861&TM=8185.852

[ima_sinnic]

1. they can rate us, the consumer puppet-serfs, so this is a good idea

since our lives can literally be determined by some number-cruncher profiling of our "credit risk<" it would be nice to have a similar measure of the bloodsuckers' "extortion risk."

And I anticipate "Regulation Z" to be nothing more than smoke and mirrors. If the American Banking Association approves of a measure being considered by the federal "government," then it is most likely a scam.

[DFW]

2. The "disclosure" of credit card companies is disgraceful

They make it as opaque as possible, and put the nastiest of terms in print so tiny,
you need a jeweler's glass to read it. And that's assuming they list them at all.
They are required to disclose the terms, but they have no obligation to make an effort
to make sure you understand them or even can find them.

My "advisor" back in the States wanted to get me one of their new VISA cards. They
had the VISA bank people on the phone asking me this and that, and then telling me
all the rates for this or that situation, practically putting me to sleep, and then
casually mentioning a 3% surcharge for foreign transactions. I woke up fast. I asked
them to repeat that, as I wasn't sure I heard correctly. They said a three per cent
surcharge on foreign transactions. I do a lot of personal as well as Company stuff
on my card (fear not, I get reimbursed before my account is debited), so I do about
US $60,000 overseas on my credit card per year, and the 3% would amount to an $1800 charge.

I stopped the VISA rep right there and asked, "you are going to charge me $1800 a year
to use your card?" She said, "oh no, sir, there is no charge at all." I replied, hold on,
you just said you would charge me 3% on all foreign transactions, and I charge $60,000
a year on my card, so you will charge me $1800 to use your card. She was just some dumb
robot, trained to read from her manual, and couldn't answer my question. When I told her
the conversation was over, she asked, ever the robot, "is there anything else we can do for
you today?" Well, yes, there was, they could stick their rules and conditions up their
corporate asses, but I figured this wasn't in her manual, either, so I just said no.

Not only do we need a regulation Z, but like Dr. Seuss, we need to On Beyond Zebra and
rein in the brutal policies of the credit card companies. First off, they need to stop
sending unsolicited "pre-approved" applications to every American ten seconds after they
turn 18 (how DO they get that info?), hoping to saddle them with as much debt and interest
as they possibly can, as soon as they possibly can, before the competition does likewise.

[Reno.Muse]

3. nice gesture but Congress needs to get out of the pockets of credit card companies

and go back to working for the people they've allowed the credit card companies to fleece.