Credit cards are a useful financial tool when used responsibly. That means paying off your balance in full before the end of your grace period. Personal finance expert Pattie Lovett-Reid recently wrote an article on credit card rules to live by. We thought it would be fun to borrow some of her rules and expand upon her list. Although this may be common knowledge for some, everyone needs a refresher sometimes.
The C.D. Howe Institute is the latest to weigh in on a topic that’s been in the headlines a lot lately: credit card interchange fees. Mati Dubrovinsky, a senior policy analyst at the C.D. Howe Institute, wrote an interesting piece for the Globe and Mail on why lower fees is not the answer.
Photo by Mike Mozart CC by 2.0
Just when you thought things couldn’t get any worse, another major retailer may have been compromised by a credit card data breach. Following in the footsteps of Target and Home Depot, Staples is the latest retailer to be hit with a potential credit card data breach. The breach couldn’t have come at a worse time – it comes amid the chain’s plan to close as many as 225 stores in Canada and the U.S.
Although credit cards may have evolved a lot over the years, cardholders are still required to sign the back of credit cards. While most people sign without giving it much thought, have you ever stopped to think why you’re asked to sign on the reverse side of your credit card? With a string of high-profile credit card breaches in the news – most recently at The Home Depot – security is top of mind for many cardholders.
As the saying goes, there are always two sides to every story. Last week we wrote about how wrangling between MasterCard and Visa is delaying lower credit card interchange fees. While consumers and retailers both want lower interchange fees, the solution isn’t so cut-and-dry.
Premium credit cards are a great way to earn rewards – too bad they almost always come with hefty annual fees. Although the annual fee may be worth it if you’re a big spender, for a lot of people the fee could prove more costly than the rewards you’ll actually earn. The good news is there’s a way to have your cake and eat it, too.
