August 10, 2010
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News: How Fair Are Credit Card Applications
Have you ever wondered how your credit card company stands against other lenders in being open and fair with cardholders? How about those contracts that are periodically mailed to you saying new terms and conditions? Do you find them difficult to read and understand? If so, this information will be helpful to you; especially if you are searching for a new credit card company. A recent study examined the credit card applications of the top 10 lenders for clarity in a number of activities that rated the companies on a scale of 1 to 10. Rating categories included: annual fee, rewards program, new purchases, and balance transfers.
Coming in first place was Capital One with an overall rating of 96.4 percent. The bank lost its points in the rewards category for its Orbitz.com online application for its Visa Platinum credit card whereby it did not adequately defined the value of its points. Bank of America took second place with a 95 percent rating. The bank lost its points on its online application which failed to clearly explain how the cardholder can both earn and redeem rewards. In third place was Wells Fargo with an 87.9 percent. Wells Fargo lost the majority of its points in the balance transfer category for its lack of clarity on the balance transfer fees. The bank lost a few points in its credit card rewards programs which failed to clarify the value of its rewards points.
The majority of the credit card companies lost its points in the balance transfer and rewards terms. They fared in order of ranking HSBC/Orchard Bank 86 percent, Discover 82.5 percent, Citi 82.1 percent, Chase 81.4 percent, American Express 78.3 percent, USAA 77.5 percent, and coming in last place was U.S. Bank with a 59.3 percent. U.S. Bank lost points in every area examined. If you're looking to find a new card account, it pays to do your homework.