Credit Cards Knowledge Base

Bank’s shares pressured by risk-tendency statement.

LONDON (MarketWatch) — U.K. bank Barclays PLC warned Thursday that consumers weren’t paying off their credit card debt.

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But we are paying our debts, aren’t we ?

A man at a local restaurant paid for his dinner with a credit card.
The bill for the meal came, he signed it, and the waitress folded the
receipt and passed the credit card along. Usually, he would just take it
and place it in his wallet or pocket. Fortunately he actually took
a look at the card and, lo and behold, it was an expired card of another
person. He called the waitress immediately and she looked perplexed.
She took it back, apologized, and hurried back to the counter under
the watchful eye of the man.

All the waitress did while walking to the counter was wave the wrong
expired card to the counter cashier, and the counter cashier immediately
looked down and took out the real card. No exchange of words - nothing at all!
She took it and came back to the man with an apology. Verdict: Make sure the
credit cards in your wallet at yours. Check the name on the card every
time you sign for something and/or the card is taken away for even a short
period of time. Many people just take back the credit card without even
looking at it, thinking that it has to be theirs.

A few days ago I went into a restaurant to pick up an order that I had called in.
I paid using my Visa Check Card which is linked directly to my checking account.
The young man behind the counter took my card, swiped it, then laid it flat on the
counter as he waited for the approval, which is a standard procedure.
While he waited, he picked up his cell phone and started dialing. I noticed
the phone because it is exactly the same model I have, but nothing seemed out of
the ordinary. Then I heard a click that sounded like my phone sounds when I
take a photo. Now I’m standing there struggling with the fact
that this boy just took a picture of my credit card. Yes, he played it off
well, because had we not had the same kind of phone, I probably wouldnever
have known what happened. Needless to say, I immediately canceled that card
as I was walking out of the pizza parlor. All I am saying is, be aware of
your surroundings at all times.

A credit card user is issued the card after approval from a provider (usually a general bank, sometimes from a captive bank created to issue a particular brand of credit cards, such as American Express Centurion Bank), in which they will be able to make purchases from merchants supporting that credit card up to a prenegotiated credit limit. When a purchase is made, the credit card user indicates his/her consent to pay, usually by signing a receipt with a record of the card details and indicating the amount to be paid. More recently, electronic verification systems have allowed merchants (using a strip of magnetized material on the card holding information in a similar manner to magnetic tape or a floppy disk) to verify that the card is valid and the credit card customer has sufficient credit to cover the purchase in a few seconds, allowing the verification to happen at time of purchase. Some services can be paid for over the telephone by credit card merely by quoting the number embossed onto the card (the credit card number), and they can be used in a similar manner to pay for purchases from online vendors.

On a monthly basis the credit card user is sent a statement indicating the purchases undertaken with the card, and the total amount owing. The cardholder must then pay a minimum proportion of the bill by a due date, and may choose to pay more or indeed pay the entire amount owing. The credit provider charges interest on the amount owing (typically at a much higher rate than most other forms of debt). Credit card issuers may waive interest charges if the balance is paid in full each month, which allows the credit card to serve as a form of revolving credit, or they may choose to apply any payments toward recent rather than previous debt. Interest rates can vary considerably from card to card, and the interest rate on a particular card may jump dramatically if the card user is late with a payment on that card or any other credit instrument. As the rates and terms vary, services have been set up allowing users to calculate savings available by switching card, which can be considerable if there is a large outstanding balance (see external links for some on-line services).

Because profit margins in the credit card industry can be quite high, credit providers often offer incentives such as frequent flier miles, gift certificates, or cash back (typically 1 percent) to attract customers to their program. [source : wikipedia.org]

Credit card - a card allowing someone to make a purchase on borrowed money. Credit cards are one of the most popular forms of payment for consumer goods and services in the United States.