We know this because most credit card companies will instantly raise credit limits when they see that a customer who customarily pays the minimum is approaching their limit. In the end, these minimum payment suckers are the bread and butter, the cash cows of the credit card industry.

Another fact that may pique your interest is that there are currently over one and a half billion active credit cards in the U.S. Why so many? Well, as we mentioned, each family has about eight of them, and younger users are even more dependent on credit than older ones.

How about the history of plastic? No, credit card companies were not always the greedy, usurious corporations that we know and loathe today. In fact, credit cards began as charge accounts that were offered by specific stores. They were meant to be convenient and to encourage customer loyalty.

We should also talk about the power of credit. You see, credit cards aren’t normal bills. For instance, when you are a day or two late on your lighting bill, the company will often let it slide, or they may charge a dollar or two. But not credit card companies! It is their job to charge loyal customers as much as they possibility can when they are even a minute late on their payments.

But wait! It doesn’t stop there. Credit card companies are also free to raise your annual rates once you commit the unforgivable sin of being a minute late with a payment. This is all perfectly legal because the term credit card regulation is an oxymoron in America.

What don’t you know? Probably the most popular myth is that credit card companies hold all the power. Yes, it is true that they have an awful lot of it. But in the end, they do depend on their customers.

So, if you discover that your company has been raising your rates, call them up and demand that they reduce them. It might seem a bit simple, but trust us. If you’ve been a loyal customer and you pay your bills on time, they won’t want to lose you.

Lastly, there is no such thing as a fixed-rate credit card. Companies have the right to change any so-called “fixed” rate with prior notification. All they have to do is send the customer a letter that says their rate is going up and they can charge them more in the next bill. So, be wary of promotions that extol the benefits of fixed-rate credit cards.

So, what can you do to lower your debt? Listed below are a few easy steps.

1. As painful as it may be, you must start by calculating your total debt. Since all of your payment plans and schedules will be based on the result, this is the most important step.

2. If you have more than one card, cut up or lock up the card or cards with the highest interest rates. The easiest way to control your debt is to only use the cards with the lowest rates and to only use them in an emergency.

3. Once you have determined which cards have the highest rates, you should contact the respective credit card companies and ask them to lower your rates. Believe it or not, ordinary phone representatives often have the authority to lower your rates by a few points, which could mean hundreds of dollars of savings over the course of a year.

4. If the credit card company refuses to lower your rates, threaten to cancel the card and tell them to send you a final bill. This will let them know that you mean business.

5. Take advantage of any special offers, such as balance transfers that will allow you to obtain a lower overall APR.

6. Next, compose a second list that includes the balances of each card, listed from highest to lowest, of course.

7. The third and final list should include the credit limits of each card divided by the total balance. This will give you the debt-to-limit percentage.

8. At this point, you should examine each list and determine your most immediate goal. Do you want to get rid of your debt, close credit card accounts or improve your credit?

9. If you want to improve your credit score, you simply need to make the minimum payments. But this will not get you out of debt. That’s the dirty little secret. These payments are designed to keep you in dept forever.

10. Pay off the credit cards with the highest interest rates first! Really, it’s not brain surgery. These are the folk who are charging and overcharging you the most and you need to pay off these debts as expeditiously as possible and bid them a fond farewell.

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A chargeback or reversal is the simplest and most effective option a cardholder has at his disposal. As we mentioned, it is typically utilized when a customer identifies a fraudulent charge, but it can also be used when a buyer is unhappy with a legitimate purchase he has made. For example, if you buy a leather coat in a store and later discover that it is not real leather, you may want to initiate a chargeback.

Let us take a moment to go over all of the reasons that a chargeback may be used.

•The credit card holder does not recognize the transaction.
•The purchase was double charged.
•The buyer never received the item in question.
•There was an obvious error in the amount that was charged.
•The shipping charges were miscalculated.
•The buyer received the wrong product and the company refused an exchange.
•The consumer is dissatisfied with the quality of the product and believes that there was false advertising.

What happens when a cardholder initiates a chargeback? For starters, the bank or Credit Card Company will investigate the complaint. If the claim is valid, they will recoup the money owed and return it to the cardholder. Occasionally, the merchant can verify that the transaction was genuine, in which case the money will not be returned.

But more often than not, a chargeback is legitimate and it can almost always be attributed to technical errors between the merchant and the bank or service provider. By far the most common technical error is the double charge, which happens quite often in the online marketplace.

The chargeback is an essential option for online consumers. However, it is the proverbial thorn in the side of online merchants and the reason that many of them go out of business. Why is this? Well, when a chargeback is validated, the merchant will be assessed a stiff penalty by his bank or merchant service provider for the mistake. This is not out of spite. The bank or service provider has to spend time and money investigating these claims and when they refund them they must also pay a transaction fee. That is why many merchants appeal these charges if they believe them to be erroneous.

In the end, the chargeback is a blessing for consumers and a bane for online sellers. However, no one denies that they are necessary, since online billing is occasionally erratic and double billing is quite common.

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What are they? Not surprisingly, a payment gateway gives companies the ability to accept online payments. These payment gateways are ordinarily available to customers around the world and they ensure a secure transaction each and every time.

How do companies obtain them? Payment gateways are offered by online service providers. They perform this essential service whenever a consumer purchases a product from a client’s website. At that time, the payment gateway will present itself to the consumer and will ensure a secure transaction.

Why do online businesses need payment gateways? As we mentioned, online gateway companies are members of the internet service industry and it is their job to guarantee a secure transaction for both the customer and the client. At least that is what they tell people. The simple truth is that these companies exist to see to it that their clients make money. And this does not happen if they drop the proverbial ball.

For instance, a payment gateway service provider is charged (no pun intended) with the responsibility of accepting or declining credit card transactions on behalf of the merchant, their client. In the beginning, payment gateways were used because they are extremely secure and safe. Today, there is almost no chance that a payment gateway, also called an IP payment gateway, can be hacked or infiltrated.

Another popular type of payment gateway is called an IVR, or Interactive Voice Response Service. These programs are used when someone want to use a credit card to pay a bill over the phone. Typically, they are used in conjunction with automated answering services by big companies. The main difference between these payment gateways and online payment gateways is that the online versions encrypt all data. But either way, merchants can still accept payments automatically, without human support.

In this article we will discuss a few of the most important considerations when it comes to selecting the right credit card.

Know what you need: Taking on a new credit card simply because the bank offers you an appealing deal is almost always a mistake, especially if you already have multiple cards. As you may know, the more cards you have, the more attractive deals you will receive. But if you don’t need a new credit card, why apply for one? After all, credit cards will always end up costing you money one way or another.

Look into the Company: If you do decide that you need a new credit card, it is always a good idea to research the bank that is offering you a new card. Do they have positive customer reviews? Or do they have a history or stratagems and schemes designed to bilk people out of their hard-earned cash. Yes, we are a bit skeptical when it comes to credit card companies, and if you want to keep your money, you should be too!

Compare the Deals: If you have received more than one attractive offer for a new credit card, it is important to compare them. The most common mistake is to focus solely on the introductory rate. Because what is far more important is the regular APR rate that the company will drop on you when the introductory rate expires.

Investigate the Authenticity: Believe it or not, there are a number of phony credit card companies out there. These companies fish around for desperate clients who are looking for fast credit. They will then request pages and pages of personal and financial information from these clients. And if the client is foolish enough to comply, the phony credit card company will then sell this information to other unscrupulous sorts on the Internet.

Affordability: In this end, this is really the only question that amounts to anything. Can you afford another credit card? If you are a reasonable and responsible person that only uses credit in an emergency, then an attractive deal may serve you well. But for most people, the temptation of low interest rates is far too great, and they do not consider the fact that they will be paying a regular APR in short order.