I had a bad experience with my credit card a few years ago; what's different now?

This question is about Credit Cards

John S Kiernan, Managing Editor

@John 02/15/18 This answer was first published on 02/14/18 and it was last updated on 02/15/18.For the most current information about a financial product, you should always check and confirm accuracy with the offering financial institution. Editorial and user-generated content is not provided, reviewed or endorsed by any company.

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The CARD Act is what’s different now. This credit card law, which took effect in Feb. 2010, has dramatically strengthened consumer rights and made the industry more transparent.
Among the highlights of the law are provisions that:

Reduce penalty fees;
Eliminate arbitrary interest-rate increases on existing balances;
Promote communication between issuers and consumers;
Require fair payment allocation.

As a result, you no longer have to worry about the bait-and-switch tactics that credit card companies used to be known for. Now, you can trust that what you see during the course of your credit card comparison is what you will get. And while the CARD Act unfortunately does not apply to business credit cards, any company that offers credit cards is now held to a higher standard overall.

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