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Added for You - Credit Cards Shamed into Cutting Charges
There is an old saying that goes something like this--- what goes around comes around. This saying is plausible, but not entirely correct. What goes around does come around, but in a different shape and form. To more fully appreciate this new “feudal society” we will be entering, we must first examine where we have been and the consequences flowing from that time and place.The period from about l995 to 2000 was a very unique interval in our economic/business history. The economic events that occurred in this time period happen at most twice in a century. This period of time is called a founders economy, and th
These new rules seem destined to shame retailers into slashing their charges – that's not to say that 25% pa interest is a snip! Main line credit cards issued by banks are currently charging around 14% to 18% and we think that's too high!
Indeed, between 80% and 90% of store cards held by some 11.5 million customers charge more than 25%. But some retailers have jumped the gun realising that their sky-high charges couldn't last forever. Three store cards have already taken steps to trim back. Harvey Nichols has cut their interest from 28.5% to 21.9%, River Island has trimmed down from 29.9
After you’ve completed the inventory of existing files, the next step is to establish user-friendly retention guidelines. Often, offices are glutted with paper and computer files because people using them aren’t given guidelines about what to keep and what to eliminate. Ironically, some organizations do have such guidelines, but they’re not communicated to the people who really need them, or not provided in a user-friendly form. One company I worked with had a guidebook that was nearly a hundred pages long, but poorly organized, and contained information most people didn’t need.As a general rule, retention guidelin
The main culprits by far are store cards where interest rates are as high as 30.9% - even though the Bank of England's base rate stands at just 4.5%. The worst culprits were TJ Hughes and the Faith Card followed by Owen & Owen. You can find them heading the Table of Shame shown below in this article.
The commission has also come down on high penalty charges for missed or late payments and Payment Protection Insurance. Average penalty charges are currently ?15 per event – but the Commission is also right to argue that these charges are excessive.
As for Payment Protection Insurance, the Commission has joined the consumer body “Which”, the National Consumer Council and indeed the Financial Services Authority in concluding that whilst this insurance can be a good idea, credit card operators have abused it. The Commission has therefore decreed that Payment Protection Insurance must no longer be sold in a combined package with a credit card; it must always be purchased as a separate stand alone transaction. That'll be good news for the Internet where many of the cheapest Payment Protection Insurance deals can be found. With premium savings of up to 60% in comparison with credit card and loan packed arrangements, business on the Internet will flourish.
So what do the new rules from the Competition Commission say? The five main changes are:
• If a credit card charges more than 25% interest, it must carry a prominent warning that there are cheaper ways to borrow. This warnings must be displayed on every monthly statement.
• The interest rate and penalty charges must me clearly displayed on the front page of each monthly statement.
• The monthly statement must warn of the consequences in terms of higher interest charges, of just paying the minimum monthly repayment.
• Credit Cards must offer every customer the option of automatically clearing their monthly balance each month by direct debit. These direct debits would avoid any possibility of interest charges and late payment penalties.
• Credit Card operators must not sell Payment Protection Insurance in a combined package with credit cards. The insurance must be sold as a separate and optional transaction that enable purchasers to see the true cost.
These new rules seem destined to shame retailers into slashing their charges – that's not to say that 25% pa interest is a snip! Main line credit cards issued by banks are currently charging around 14% to 18% and we think that's too high!
Indeed, between 80% and 90% of store cards held by some 11.5 million customers charge more than 25%. But some retailers have jumped the gun realising that their sky-high charges couldn't last forever. Three store cards have already taken steps to trim back. Harvey Nichols has cut their interest from 28.5% to 21.9%, River Island has trimmed down from 29.9%
I once had a client who came to me desperately seeking advice on how he could improve his business, as he was having acute staffing problems and was working incredibly long hours to keep the business afloat.What I told him in our first session shocked him; it was basically this:“You don’t have a business, you have a job.”This is the trap that so many business owners fall into – they mistakenly believe that because they are the “owner,” somehow they truly own the business. WRONG!Merely owning and running a business does not you mean that you’re a business owner in the truest sense; it simply mea
The commission has also come down on high penalty charges for missed or late payments and Payment Protection Insurance. Average penalty charges are currently ?15 per event – but the Commission is also right to argue that these charges are excessive.
As for Payment Protection Insurance, the Commission has joined the consumer body “Which”, the National Consumer Council and indeed the Financial Services Authority in concluding that whilst this insurance can be a good idea, credit card operators have abused it. The Commission has therefore decreed that Payment Protection Insurance must no longer be sold in a combined package with a credit card; it must always be purchased as a separate stand alone transaction. That'll be good news for the Internet where many of the cheapest Payment Protection Insurance deals can be found. With premium savings of up to 60% in comparison with credit card and loan packed arrangements, business on the Internet will flourish.
So what do the new rules from the Competition Commission say? The five main changes are:
• If a credit card charges more than 25% interest, it must carry a prominent warning that there are cheaper ways to borrow. This warnings must be displayed on every monthly statement.
• The interest rate and penalty charges must me clearly displayed on the front page of each monthly statement.
• The monthly statement must warn of the consequences in terms of higher interest charges, of just paying the minimum monthly repayment.
• Credit Cards must offer every customer the option of automatically clearing their monthly balance each month by direct debit. These direct debits would avoid any possibility of interest charges and late payment penalties.
• Credit Card operators must not sell Payment Protection Insurance in a combined package with credit cards. The insurance must be sold as a separate and optional transaction that enable purchasers to see the true cost.
These new rules seem destined to shame retailers into slashing their charges – that's not to say that 25% pa interest is a snip! Main line credit cards issued by banks are currently charging around 14% to 18% and we think that's too high!
Indeed, between 80% and 90% of store cards held by some 11.5 million customers charge more than 25%. But some retailers have jumped the gun realising that their sky-high charges couldn't last forever. Three store cards have already taken steps to trim back. Harvey Nichols has cut their interest from 28.5% to 21.9%, River Island has trimmed down from 29.9
Step 1. What to do: Attract more Web-visitors. How to do it: Decide what niche to fill by defining what your audience really wants.The number one priority of any website marketing initiative is to attract more website visitors that in-turn creates more sales leads and ultimately more sales. In order to attract these visitors you need focus on a niche audience that will find your website material relevant enough to either pickup the phone and call you, or at least send you an email inquiry. Most websites try to do too much and say too much and as a result visitors loose interest. Design your website
So what do the new rules from the Competition Commission say? The five main changes are:
• If a credit card charges more than 25% interest, it must carry a prominent warning that there are cheaper ways to borrow. This warnings must be displayed on every monthly statement.
• The interest rate and penalty charges must me clearly displayed on the front page of each monthly statement.
• The monthly statement must warn of the consequences in terms of higher interest charges, of just paying the minimum monthly repayment.
• Credit Cards must offer every customer the option of automatically clearing their monthly balance each month by direct debit. These direct debits would avoid any possibility of interest charges and late payment penalties.
• Credit Card operators must not sell Payment Protection Insurance in a combined package with credit cards. The insurance must be sold as a separate and optional transaction that enable purchasers to see the true cost.
These new rules seem destined to shame retailers into slashing their charges – that's not to say that 25% pa interest is a snip! Main line credit cards issued by banks are currently charging around 14% to 18% and we think that's too high!
Indeed, between 80% and 90% of store cards held by some 11.5 million customers charge more than 25%. But some retailers have jumped the gun realising that their sky-high charges couldn't last forever. Three store cards have already taken steps to trim back. Harvey Nichols has cut their interest from 28.5% to 21.9%, River Island has trimmed down from 29.9
When you’re first venturing out into your own business online, you’re going to fall into one of two categories, either you have a budget for advertising and product development or you do not.If you have a budget, you invest in online tools and learn how to develop your own product, you advertise and are hopefully making money in a short period of time. This is the advantage you have of starting out with a budget.If on the other hand you are starting your online career on a shoestring, it may feel like you’re chasing your tail before you really start to see any kind of profit. For the rest of this article I
• The monthly statement must warn of the consequences in terms of higher interest charges, of just paying the minimum monthly repayment.
• Credit Cards must offer every customer the option of automatically clearing their monthly balance each month by direct debit. These direct debits would avoid any possibility of interest charges and late payment penalties.
• Credit Card operators must not sell Payment Protection Insurance in a combined package with credit cards. The insurance must be sold as a separate and optional transaction that enable purchasers to see the true cost.
These new rules seem destined to shame retailers into slashing their charges – that's not to say that 25% pa interest is a snip! Main line credit cards issued by banks are currently charging around 14% to 18% and we think that's too high!
Indeed, between 80% and 90% of store cards held by some 11.5 million customers charge more than 25%. But some retailers have jumped the gun realising that their sky-high charges couldn't last forever. Three store cards have already taken steps to trim back. Harvey Nichols has cut their interest from 28.5% to 21.9%, River Island has trimmed down from 29.9
These days, searching for an auto loan after bankruptcy is not nearly as discouraging as it once was just a few years ago. There are now multiple lending agencies who specialize in bankruptcy clients. Securing an approved car loan is much simpler than finding financing for a personal loan. This is due to the fact that the financial lending company has your automobile to use as collateral should you not make your payments. In fact, getting a car loan after bankruptcy is a valuable tool to get you back on the correct financial path of life. Utilizing an auto loan to rebuild credit is excellent as long as you find an appr
These new rules seem destined to shame retailers into slashing their charges – that's not to say that 25% pa interest is a snip! Main line credit cards issued by banks are currently charging around 14% to 18% and we think that's too high!
Indeed, between 80% and 90% of store cards held by some 11.5 million customers charge more than 25%. But some retailers have jumped the gun realising that their sky-high charges couldn't last forever. Three store cards have already taken steps to trim back. Harvey Nichols has cut their interest from 28.5% to 21.9%, River Island has trimmed down from 29.9% to17.9% and Monsoon from 29.9% to 18.9%.
But who are the bad boys? Here is our Table of Shame:
TJ Hughes 30.9%
Faith Card 30.9%
Owen & Owen 30.7%
Burtons 29.9%
Dorothy Perkins 29.9%
East 29.9%
Evans 29.9%
HMV 29.9%
JD Sports 29.9%
Kwik Fit 29.9%
La Senza 29.9%
Laura Ashley 29.9%
Miss Selfridge 29.9%
Russell & Bromley 29.9%
Ted baker 29.9%
Topshop/Topmam 29.9%
Wallis 29.9%
Warehouse 29.9%
House of Frazer 29.3%
Bhs Gold Card 29.0%
Habitat 29.0%
Oasis 29.0%
Harrods 28.9%
Fenwicks 27.9%
Selfridges 27.6%
Bentalls 27.2%
Jaeger 27.1%
B&Q 26.8%
French Connection 26.8%
Argos 25.9%
Homebase 25.9%
New Look 25.9%
Note: Some of these cards do offer lower interest rates for payment by Direct Debits. Source: Competition Commission/Moneyfacts March 2006
These credit cards are operated by a number of large finance companies, the largest being GE Capital the American giant. The profits are shared between the card operator and the retailer who is often incentivised by being awarded a higher share of the profit if they hit certain key debt thresholds. This has encouraged stores to put immense pressure on shoppers to take cards out.
The Chairman of the House of Commons Treasury Committee, John McFall has accused retailers of putting profit before customers saying “If you buy a suit from one of the stores then you would expect the retailer to ensure that it was well made and reasonably priced. These principles do not seem to apply to their store cards”.
Let's all hope that the action taken by the Competition Committee does the trick!
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