Your Cardholder Rights
As a nationof rules, we have certain protections from credit card issuers who do not want to play a fair game. Be certain to know your basic rights concerning your credit card account. You have been afforded certain protections. This article will cover the most important and meaningful of these.
You are entitles to have your credits posted promptly for your payments. By law your payment must be reflected on their books the day they receive it or the next business day after if it was received if arriving in the afternoon generally. The terms of operation of the particular issuer do matter, but the bottom line is that your payment must be treated with due process once it arrives in their hands..
Be certain to follow the postal instructions so your funds reach the issuer's billing department without any hassle. If you accidentally send your payment to the wrong place it could take weeks or more to correct, and you would still be liable for your payment not reaching the credit card issuer or financial institution in time. If by chance you can't find the mailing envelope that arrived with your bill, make sure you correctly copy the address from the billing statement correctly; or telephone the issuer to make certain that the address is correct.
You might be entitled to refunds of credit balances. When you make a deposit that is over the total amount of credit allowed on your card, you are entitled to have the extra funds added or be issued a refund for the excessive amount of your deposit. Your money must be returned to you within seven business days of your request. If a credit remains on your card for more than 6 months, the issuer must make a good faith effort to send you your monies due.
Keep a close eye out for errors on your billing statement. Many people have a tendency to not notice this. Credit card issuers have the burden to be certain that your statement is correct, as they hold the responsibility to act when corrections are needed and justified. Albeit, many people have noticed that this is not the case in reality. Still consumers must be aware that they have the upper hand and that the law is on their side. Most of the time, folks receive a terms brocure from their credit card company that covers the individual rules for the credit card; and again every year or so after that. You might even receive a summary of these rights with your bill. Make sure you are aware of the rules in the long version instead of the smaller "key point" list that may come with your bill.
If you find a problem with your credit card bill, you can have a temporary hold put on the transaction while it is being disputed. If the resolution of the dispute ends in your favor, you will receive a credit for the amount. The dispute can be due for any a number of reasons including having recieved broken goods, services you purchased but did not receive. Remember that you still are responsible for payment of any amounts that are not in dispute on the bill, and that your due dates and the like are not adjusted because of a pending dispute.
About the Author
Sam Donaldson writes numerous articles for the http://www.credit-cards-with-rewards.com website. He has over 20+ years experience in finance.
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