Beware of the HAL/Barclay Credit Card!

[sail7seas]

How do you check into a hotel without a credit card? Most require it. Same for rental cars.

 

What about an unplanned for emergency when traveling?

Many of us pay our credit card balances in full each month. We don't charge more than we know we have the money to pay but I like the peace of mind, while traveling, to know if an emergency arises, we have immediate access to considerable funds.

 

[LHC]

My debit card is a Visa card backed by them, so I use it and pay for my room using it. In case of emergencies, my money market (3-6 months of expenses set aside for EMERGENCIES) can be linked to my debit.

 

Living following the Dave Ramsey plan has given me financial freedom and even spiritual Peace. It works for me, maybe not for everyone, but the plan can focus your life for not only today but the future.

 

Linda

[serendipity1499]

I am also one of those who never charges more than I can afford to pay off when the credit card statement arrives. However, for those not as fortunate as I your solution was the perfect one - pay off the balance, shred the card and never again charge more than you are comfortable paying off each month.

 

Many, many years ago as a single parent with an ex-husband who refused to pay child support I was up to the eyes in debt. It took me years to pay off the debt because of the usurious interest rates and once free I vowed never to pay an interest charge again.

 

Now it is a pleasure to see something I want, use my charge card (using the bank's money for at least a couple of weeks) and then pay the charge when it comes due. Of course I am careful about how much I spend, but I am debt free and loving it.

 

Valerie:)

 

I was in the same boat years ago although did not have children..Up to my ears in debt from my Ex, taxes due on land & trying desperately to pay off a Credit Card with a high interest rate..It was a revolving door & could never get out of debt..When I remarried 37 years ago, my DH who never had a Credit Card except Sears, was appalled at my debt.. DH's salary went for living expenses for three of us (I adopted his Son) & my salary paid off this large debt within a few months..I vowed never to be in the same boat again..When we retired the only thing we owed was for our first home mortgage & a small SBA loan at 1% for a new bulkhead damaged by a Hurricane...We paid for our present home in cash from the sale of our first home..

 

Yes, but you are costing yourself hundreds of dollars a year by doing it that way. You can do the very same thing (save for big expenditures), but pay for it with a credit card rather than a debit card, and then the credit card company will pay you for using their card. I get $50 - $100 deposited in my checking account every month because the credit card company pays me $2 for every $100 I charge.

 

I agree..We have a Chase CC (old Shell card) which pays us back 1% for every dollar we spend & 3% for gas..We charge everything including insurance, doctors, groceries gas etc..Some of our household monthly bills are auto- charged to our credit card..We rarely use cash..Every month the entire amount is auto deducted from our checking account..We use the cash back each month to reduce our payment..From 2005 to 2008, we received $1533 cash back from Chase.. Only problem with the Chase card is they charge approx. 7-8% for purchases in foreign currency when it's converted into USD..So to beat this, we each took out a CapitalOne Card with a $5,000 Max for our purchases in foreign currency..CapitalOne gives us 1% back & also auto deducts the full amount from our checking account each month..The Credit Card Companies still make $$$ on us as the merchant/cruise line etc. pays a percentage of our purchases..

 

I book my cruise with my debit card and transfer my savings funds for vacation to my debit card when it is time to pay.

For one I do not want the hassel of the CC, I do not want to pay to carry one each year, nor in this economy want it jerked up no matter what my financial status is.

 

I use a card Visa purchased with cash from my AAA, which means no one has assess to my personal accounts when I travel. Again, I load it with cash from my vacation savings account.

I do not want a freebie with my headache. IF I want something I save to get it. No cash, no purchase. LHC

 

I bold-ed the sentence's in your post...What headache? We never have a hassle at all & certainly do not pay for our credit cards... We have the full amount deducted each month & get cash back..We also never purchase anything if we don't have $$$ to back it up...

A problem with debit cards is that you are not protected if something you purchase is defective or not delivered..ie: If someone contracts for a new home air conditioner, & pays on a CC..If the unit is defective, they can call the CC company & have the charge removed while they investigate the complaint.. That normally can't be done on a Debit Card..Our new $6,000 unit gave us a cash back of $60.00 which I don't consider a small freebie or chump change to be ignored..

JMO...:)Betty

[MadManOfBethesda]

For one I do not want the hassel of the CC, I do not want to pay to carry one each year, ....

 

You don't have to pay anything to have a credit card. No interest, no annual fee, no nothing.

 

But if you don't want the "hassle" of having one, and don't mind throwing away $100s, if not $1,000s of free dollars every year, that's entirely your right. I'm glad that you're happy and content.

 

Me?

 

I'd rather receive $50, or $75, or $100+ in free money every month for making all my purchasing with plastic and then writing one check at the end of the month.

[BuckeyeGal1956]

Did you ever have to deal with their customer service? Was my experience exception rather than rule?

--------------

Most credit card companies today have their call centers based in India. A few weeks ago I was out of town and missed scheduling an online payment. (I always pay off my credit cards in fuyll!) Two days after the due date I realized my error and called the "800" number. I spoke with a gentleman who could barely speak English. When I asked that the late payment charge be waived due to my excellent payment history he said they couldn't do that. I insisted on speaking with a supervisor. He wasn't available, but I could schedule a callback within 24 hours. I said I'd wait. This exchange occurred three times. Finally the supervisor came on the line and before I could even fully explain my request he told me my account was being credited for the late payment charge.

So my advice is - ask for a supervisor! And tell them you will wait, don't accept the offer for a callback.

[carolcp]

You got at great deal on the interest rate! I have a card that I always pay off every month. Then the February bill arrived at my house the day it was due. I paid it and the late fee for $39.95 and interest.

The next month, I sent in a check every other week to cover the charges made to the card. The daily average balance for that second month was $30.00 I got hit with a finance charge of 40% APR because the previous months bill was late!!!!! The card got shredded.

 

Carol

[world~citizen]

The first time I used the card and left a balance on it they jacked up the rate to 26.24% without warning or reason. Neither our credit scores or finances would give a reason for the move on a piddly $2k balance, so I assume it must be some opportunistic policy they have.

 

In some countries, that is called usury.:eek:

[Mr. Oregon]

Terms and Conditions for the HAL card may be found here: https://www.juniper.com/app/japply/lp/TnCs.jsp?prodidreq=CCVVS19004

 

Barclays Bank Delaware clearly set out when the default APR will apply (which can be as high as 27.24%). Caveat lector.

 

Scott.

Point well taken. But I find it shocking when ones financial needs has the financial means such that the card is a luxury not a necessity to be treated with disregard. Excuse the rusty Latin but I believe the phrase is Absum venditio.

[PatsyAnne]

Credit card companies make money when people don't pay the balance every month. It sounds like those companies won't base their business on the people on this thread, because I've just read a lot of very responsible comments about the use of cards, from not using them at all to using them for their benefits and paying them off.

 

We have a card that pays 2% cash back on travel so we put all of our travel on it, and then pay it off before any interest is due. And there is no problem with the cash expiring or blackout dates :D... just the problem of wasting it on useless items like food instead of cruises!

 

Speaking of call centers, when I was working I called our internal help line once to get help with my laptop, and when I checked the trouble ticket I saw that the agent was trying dispatch a techie from Colorado to Oregon to fix my phone. That explained the long response time...

 

Trish