taxes, justice, interest charges... you know, "grown-up" stuff.

sunday morning started off pleasant enough. i woke up without my alarm, feeling rested and content. did our taxes, and actually thought about opening a barbri book or two. i was going through our mail and paying bills when...

ok, i actually need to stop for a minute. i just re-read the past few sentences and realized how much my life has changed over the past 3-4 years. filling out IRS form 1040 and paying bills is the start to a nice little sunday? ohhh, back to college, and sundays past... a nice little sunday started around noon with brunch at the caf, where friends would regale you with tales of what you had done the night before, and everyone shared some disgustingly greasy hashbrowns to ward off impending hangovers. actually, i'm fairly certain hangovers weren't even an issue in my world, at that point. but okay, i digress. just had to point out that, yes, i absolutely do understand just how odd it is that taxes & bill paying are current weekend highlights.

but, ok, back to the VISA statement. i open up the bill and see the amount due: $321.21. which would probably be "in the ballpark," if i weren't so OCD about constantly checking my account balance and knowing exactly how much i've charged. but since the aforementioned is true, i was sure that the balance due should have been something around $290-ish. so i'm looking over the bill, and i see the following, in tiny INCONSPICUOUS print near the top:

"To avoid initial interest charge: If you pay your new purchase balance of $296.96 by Feb. 23, 2010, your initial interest charge of $24.25 will be refunded on your next statement."

ok, are you kidding me? i am pre-emptively being charged interest? there are no less than three locations on the face of my bill where, IN BOLD, my balance due is shown as $321.21. apparently the friendly folks at macy's VISA are hoping i don't read the small print and just pay that extra $24.25. their "disclosure" is completely misleading anyway. the initial interest charge will be refunded? that raises two questions: (1) do i pay the $321.21 to avoid penalty, thereby giving macy's VISA the additional $24.25 which can then be refunded? (2) do i simply pay the correct amount of $296.96? because if i do, then what does macy's VISA have to refund?

the ambiguous disclosure prompted a call to macy's VISA customer service and, as you might imagine, left me feeling less than satisfied. the customer service rep (and yes, i know, it's not her fault; she has no control over the credit card policies being implemented or changed at macy's VISA) tried to explain the policy to me, but couldn't quite explain what the disclosure meant. she did reiterate that i was to pay only the $296.96, but agreed that the disclosure was misleading and that the average consumer would have no idea how to proceed without potentially incurring late fees/interest charges. then, the kicker. i expressed my surprise at macy's VISA's decision to implement this new pre-emptive interest charge policy in the face of all this new, supposedly consumer-friendly, protective legislation recently enacted. and the customer service rep. responds, "well, actually, that's exactly why macy's VISA did this. we're trying to help our consumers and protect them."

ummm, whaaaa? by adding a charge not yet incurred in the hopes that your customers mistakenly pay that amount? there are lots of other ways to protect consumers, IF that were the true goal. perhaps macy's VISA wants to show customers the interest charge they will incur if their bill is not paid in full by the due date. that type of disclosure could be duly noted at any number of locations on the bill. and the "balance due" amounts shown could, and furthermore SHOULD, reflect the actual charges incurred (minus the bogus interest charge).

yeah, so i'm fired up. and, obviously, it's not because i was duped. it's because i'm fairly certain that this new practice will result in customers paying charges they absolutely should not be paying. (and if my interest fee was $24.25 on a $296.96 bill, imagine what other fees would be for larger balances!) predatory practices like these are exactly the types of things that should be targeted by new consumer protection legislation. because $25, $50 or $75 a month more in the pockets of american families can be vital in this economy. it might pay for the additional heat expenses incurred during the winter. it might buy a week's worth of groceries. it might pay for an unexpected doctor's visit. the reality, like it or not, is that we are a credit card carrying society. some people make their financial situation work because they are able to take advantage of the predictable policies of, for example, credit cards. when credit card companies change those policies willy-nilly, it's unfair and can cause real financial stress for real people.

a little example, from la casa de fueger. i get paid twice a month, on the 5th and the 20th. regardless of the number of weeks, etc., i can count on those two paychecks each month. now, this can be a little dicey at times (esp. in those months where there's an extra week, which means more groceries, more gas, and larger utility bills, but the same amount received). additionally, it seems that 75% of the bills we pay are due between the 25th -- 3rd of the month. the last few days before my paycheck on the 5th could be a little stressful, but since our credit card statement closes on the 16th, i can always charge groceries and pay our credit card bill with my next paycheck. this works well, and has for the past 6 months. but let's say the statement end date/billing date changed. i mean, i guess we'd just rely on savings and replenish that amount later in the month, but what if we didn't have that option? because, especially in this economy, i don't know that a lot of american families have savings accounts to rely on. and this BS policy pisses me off. it's a company taking more money out of the pockets of its consumers completely unnecessarily. and you can bet that if i paid the $321.21 listed as due, macy's VISA would not be refunding my $24.25 with interest calculated from the time it wrongfully accepted the extra funds. oh god no. but if we, as consumers, pay our bills even ONE day late, we're going to accrue fees and charges, no matter what.

i get that credit card companies are running a for-profit business. they wouldn't provide these "services" if doing so wasn't incredibly lucrative. and i agree, if you don't pay your bill in full or on time, then you have to deal with the consequences of that decision. however, to pre-emptively take more consumer money underservedly is a different story, in my opinion.

what's the solution? i guess cancelling my macy's VISA is one option. and i can't imagine that the company is going to do anything in the face of my cutting-up-my-card defiance. but i do hope that this long, ranting post will encourage you to take a look at your own credit card statements a little more closely. i have to believe that if macy's VISA is doing this, then other companies are getting in on the fun, too. don't give out an interest-free loan in the form of an un-incurred interest charge! just. say. no. power to the people! haha.

(i will return to my regularly scheduled posts involving felt, silk and adorable creations later this week!)