New Credit Card Rules Coming Soon, to the Benefit of Cardholders

I read this Reuters article tonight about new credit card rules that may soon be effective. There aren’t many details, but from what I read, it could be a good news to consumers. According to the article, the Federal Reserve, along with other two federal agencies, will vote next Thursday on new credit card regulations that

may bring some relief to customers who face a variety of ways for being hit with late fees, universal defaults, shorter payment periods and confusing payment allocations for different balances.

If the reforms do go through, credit card users can expect changes in areas concern them the most:

• Credit card companies cannot increase rates at will;
• Universal default, which permits changing card terms if the borrower defaults on another bill such as utilities or a gym membership, will be banned;
• Double-cycle billing, in which card companies reach back to earlier billing cycles to help calculate interest charged in the current cycle, will be eliminated.

Let’s hope the regulations can pass.

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