I have sent links to this document to numerous recipients, but just in case a member of the media (most keep calling it a “fee” or a “service charge,” sorry to have to correct your coverage, but “These charges are finance charges”) does not, or cannot, open those links, I hereby present ChangeInTerms.com “Exhibit 1″:
The Chase November 2008 change in terms notice that I received (along with hundreds of thousands of other account holders, so it appears), Panel 1. The text below explicitly says:
The FINANCE CHARGES section of your Agreement is amended to add the following new section: Account Service Charge: Your account has a service charge, which will be billed monthly (as stated in the Rates and Fees Table). This charge is owed whether or not you use your account, and you agree to pay it when billed. These charges are finance charges, and are added to the balance for purchases on your account.
As I pointed out in my letter of December 3, 2008 to Chase Card Services CEO Gordon Smith (and others in several rounds of communication since that time):
“3.99% fixed” is not the same as 3.99% plus $10.00 per month (whether or not the consumer carries a balance). (I think Chase made a strategic error in calling the $10.00 a finance charge).
Loading ...
on Mar 6th, 2009 at 3:09 pm
[...] the so-called ”fee” or “service charge” needs to be identified as a FINANCE CHARGE. Secondly, and this deals with accuracy, the last time I checked, I have not “earned [...]
on Mar 8th, 2009 at 1:58 pm
[...] percent APR will not be affected; Chase knows that under its newly imposed terms, the charges are FINANCE CHARGES. This is a trust [...]
on Mar 29th, 2009 at 7:28 pm
[...] Chase falsely stated: “Important: Your APRs will not be impacted by these changes” (Panel 1, Summary Section). I’m afraid that one probably does not even need to be “smarter than a fifth [...]