Consumers Council of Missouri

    The House of Representatives recently passed the Credit Cardholders’ Bill of Rights.  This land mark legislation is now in the Senate.  Consumers Council of Missouri has signed on as a supporter of the Dodd/Shelby substitute to the bill which will curb some of the most arbitrary, abusive and unfair credit card lending practices that trap consumers in a vicious cycle of debt.

The bill prohibits:

*  Applying unfair interest rate hikes retroactively to balances incurred under old rates;

* Assessing hidden and unjustified interest charges on balances already paid off;

* Piling on the debt that consumers owe by requiring them to pay off balances with lower interest rates before those with higher rates;

* Charging late fees even though consumers mail their payments seven days in advance of the due date; and

* Charging excessive upfront fees to subprime cards targeted at consumers with blemished credit histories.