🚀 go-pugleaf

     In articles on the subject of ATM charges Ed Falk urges people to
change banks when they attempt to institute unreasonable charges.  I urge
you to do the same with credit cards.  I have never paid any credit card
company an annual fee.  The minute a company institues an annual fee I
cancel that card and get another no fee card.  It has been distressing
to see the rise of annual fees in recent years and the refusal of the
issuers to lower interest rates when rates in general have been falling.
I think this has happened because so many card holders just quietly acc-
epted whatever charges the issuers wanted.

     Of course, if you don't pay off your balance every month then you
should be interested in a lower rate.  Find a card that has a lower rate,
cancel your current card, and tell your current issuer why you're cancel-
ing.

     In the current environment if you don't have an established credit
record you might have to pay some fees and high rates for a while.  As
soon as you have established a good record, drop those cards.

     As an example of the kind of thing that goes on, and what we can do
about it, a friend had a City Bank card.  When they instituted fees that
he didn't like he called them to cancel the card.  He was told that that
wasn't necessary; he was a good customer and they would just remit the
fees for him.  He cancelled it anyhow; nothing in the notification they
sent him indicated that this was an option; if he hadn't asked they would
have happily accepted the fees from him.

				Charlie