Comments on: ChangeInTerms.com site poll finds 97% of respondents have experienced abusive treatment from a credit card company “for no reason” (meaning, the customer did not do anything wrong).

By: Guy Bertram

Guy Bertram — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 20:16:09 +0000

Friends don’t let Friends use Chase Bank.

By: Alessandro Machi

Alessandro Machi — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 08:45:08 +0000

I’m still paying off expensive professional video equipment that the makers of the equipment won’t repair anymore “because it has wires on the front panel” (that’s how they originally made it!)

It’s not like I can contact the credit card company and get them to stand behind the product I purchased with their loaned money, so the gall of them to charge up to 30% interest makes it a mobsters in suits enterprise.

By: anna

anna — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 23:19:49 +0000

Ha. Look at this …
Protesters at Chase NYC Offices, Want Mortgage Aid

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/12/14/business/AP-US-Mortgages-Protest-New-York.html

By: Alessandro Machi

Alessandro Machi — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 03:21:20 +0000

Marv, even if the margin is only 16%, it’s 16% of a lot of money. The McDonald’s example is not necessarily valid because the entire process is heavily employee related. The amount of paid people hours in the credit card industry versus the amount of money that they loan out is nowhere near as intense as the amount of McDonalds workers actually servicing each and every transaction.

Plus, customers that mess up and can’t keep up with payments will face a few years of even higher interest rate charges because of past mistakes. 16% as a top end rate is fine by me. I’d rather have less credit available if banks are more worried someone won’t pay it back because their profit margin is less.

By: M

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 16:42:56 +0000

The guy with the multiple accidents/DUI’s should not be allowed to drive at all – revoke his license. He is putting everyone else at risk by being on the road.

The same applies to people who are bad credit risks – don’t offer them credit at all. The high interest rates that are currently allowed merely serve to create debt slaves for those who choose to attempt to pay the debt. When these people ultimately default, the risk is passed on to other customers who are not to blame.

The ability of the banks’ to charge usurious rates of interest merely acts as an irresistible incentive to trick customers into defaulting. Paying a bill ONE day late, should not automatically place a customer into an extremely high risk category. As long as the banks are allowed to skirt state usury laws, they will continue to employ these tactics.

By: anna

anna — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 08:44:08 +0000

“Not sure I follow Anna’s rant”
Of course you don’t.

By: marv

marv — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 03:52:21 +0000

Obviously higher risk customers should pay more. Do you feel that your auto insurance should cost the same as the guy with multiple accidents/DUI’s?

Same principle

By: marv

marv — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 03:49:26 +0000

Alessandro I don’t know what the basis of your insight/opinion is but I actually managed a lending institution for some time and have some sense of the cost associated with the business.

The costs to a responsible lender to make sure of the ability/intent of the borrower to repay are/should be considerable. This is without regard for such things as the costs to operate offices, advertise, staff customer service, send bills, develop IT platforms and interfaces etc.

The fact that the actual commodity is currency does not reduce overhead.

No other business I have been involved in would consider 16% a good annual margin even if it were pure profit. Only a fraction of it is because of the costs I have listed.

That is the highest rate you feel is appropriate? Mcdonalds makes $.08 per Mcdouble (Lowest margin item) They keep less than 3 days inventory on average. This means that they turn that same $1 one hundred and twenty times in the year which you propose a lender recieve less than 16% gross margin for.

This is over 60 times what you feel is appropriate for card providers to make and they have no risk of non-payment.

Not sure I follow Anna’s rant but that friggin clown scares me more that my banker.

By: steve

steve — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 01:48:41 +0000

It seems Chase is onto a new game. It is sending out new credit check offers to cardholders promising a low interest rate for a short period of time.
As soon as the cardholder uses the check, Chase does not honor it, saying the line was cancelled. This triggers the cardholder to be overlimit. Chase then charges the overlimit fee, lowers the credit limit, and then raises the current card rate. Read all the posts in consumer affairs.com.

By: anna

anna — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 00:34:04 +0000

Sorry, the last sentence was clearly typed in a hurry.
Now new and improved version:
What did I say the other day about scientists?