Credit Cards Interest rates/ APRs

• 93 percent of cards allowed the issuer to raise any interest rate at any time by changing the account agreement. (Source: Pew Safe Credit Cards Project, March 2009)
• Only eight percent of cards with penalty rate conditions offered to restore the original rate terms when payments are made on-time, usually after 12 months. (Source: Pew Safe Credit Cards Project, March 2009)
• 72 percent of cards included offers of low promotional rates which  issuers could revoke after a single late payment. (Source: Pew Safe Credit Cards Project, March 2009)
• For families having any bank-type cards, the median number of such cards remained at 2; the median credit limit on all such cards rose 21.4 percent, to $18,000, and the median interest rate on the card with the largest balance (or on the newest card, if no outstanding balances existed) rose 1.0 percentage point, to 12.5 percent. (Source: Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances, February 2009)
• Among 41 credit cards Consumer Action looked at from 20 banks, the average interest rate for purchases was 13.54 percent. That’s a drop of nearly a full point from the 2007 survey results. Interest rates on purchases ranged from 6 percent to 22.75 percent, with the 12 fixed rate credit cards averaging an interest rate of 11.82 percent and the 29 variable rate credit cards averaging 11.82 percent. (Source: Consumer Action credit card survey, July 2008)
• 77 percent of surveyed credit card issuers (17 of 22) answered “Yes” to the question “Can you increase my APR or change my terms ‘any time for any reason’?” This includes all Top Ten issuers – even Citibank, which pledges not to change a customer’s terms before the card’s expiration date. (Source: Consumer Action credit card survey, July 2008)

Credit Cards Fees

• 92 percent of cards included a fee for exceeding the credit limit, including 100 percent of all student cards. The amount of the overlimit fee is $39 on most accounts. (Source: Pew Safe Credit Cards Project, March 2009)
• 64 percent of respondents said having “no annual fee” was an important reason why they chose the credit card they did the last time they got a new card. (Source: Aite Group survey, January 2008)
• Thirty-five of the 41 credit cards (85 percent of those surveyed) did not charge an annual fee. That marked a larger number of credit cards with no annual fee than in 2007, when 72 percent had no annual fee. The cost of those fees ranged from $18 to $79, for an average annual fee of $43.50. That average fee is down more than a dollar from 2007′s number. (Source: Consumer Action credit card survey, July 2008)
• The average late fee was found to have dropped to $25.90, down from $28 in 2007. Consumer Action reported that late fees reached up to $39 per incident. (Source: Consumer Action credit card survey, July 2008)
• One-fourth of the students surveyed in US PIRG’s 2008 Campus Credit Card Trap report said that they have paid a late fee, and 15 percent have paid an “over the limit” fee. (Source: U.S. PIRG, “Campus Credit Card Trap”)
• 95 percent of surveyed issuers have over-limit fees. The average over-limit fee, among institutions with over-limit fees, is $29.13. (Source: Consumer Action credit card survey, July 2008.)
• Foreign transaction fees of 3 percent are charged on all purchases made in another currency by Bank of America, Chase, Citi, Digital FCU, HSBC Bank, Town North Bank, U.S. Bank and Wells Fargo. The 3 percent fee is the highest found by Consumer Action this year. Only Capital One (and Arkansas National Bank which went out of business following the survey) does not charge foreign currency transaction fees. (Source: Consumer Action credit card survey, July 2008)

Credit scores

• From Q3 2008 to Q1 2009, the average TransUnion credit score fell 6 points to 651, the credit bureau says. Scores fell even further in the some economically challenged states: California fell 10 points and Arizona, 11. (Source: USAToday.com, April 2009)
• The U.S. average VantageScore® is 769. The average score rises to 837 when looking solely at the over-60 population. (Source: Experian marketing insight snapshot, March 2009)
• Nearly two-thirds of American adults (64 percent) — or 144 million people — have not ordered a copy of their credit report in the past year; this grows to nearly three-quarters (72 percent) among Hispanic Americans. (Source: National Foundation for Credit Counseling, 2009 Financial Literacy Survey, April 2009)
• More than one-third of American adults (37 percent) admit that they do not know their credit score. (Source: National Foundation for Credit Counseling, 2009 Financial Literacy Survey, April 2009)
• Only 2 percent of undergraduates had no credit history. (Source: Sallie Mae, “How Undergraduate Students Use Credit Cards,” April 2009)
• On average, today’s consumer has a total of 13 credit obligations on record at a credit bureau. These include credit cards (such as department store charge cards, gas cards, and bank cards) and installment loans (auto loans, mortgage loans, student loans, etc.). Not included are savings and checking accounts (typically not reported to a credit bureau). Of these 13 credit obligations, nine are likely to be credit cards and four are likely to be installment loans. (Source: myfico.com)
• The average consumer’s oldest obligation is 14 years old, indicating that he or she has been managing credit for some time. In fact, one out of four consumers had credit histories of 20 years or longer. Only one in 20 consumers had credit histories shorter than two years. (Source: myfico.com)
• The average consumer has had only one credit inquiry on his or her accounts within the past year. Fewer than 6 percent had four or more inquiries resulting from a search for new credit. (Source: myfico.com)
• Corpus Christi, Texas, residents have America’s worst credit scores. (Source: Men’s Health magazine’s personal debt survey, July 2008)
• Sioux Falls, S.D., boasts America’s best credit scores. (Source: Men’s Health magazine’s personal debt survey, July 2008)

Credit limits and usage

• In 2007, 97 percent of consumers indicated they used a credit card in the past year. In 2008, that number plummeted to 72 percent. (Source: Javelin, “Credit Card Spending Declines” study, March 2009)
• Credit card usage fell dramatically from 2007 to 2008, with only 64 percent of consumers indicating they used a credit card in the month preceding the September 2008 survey, compared to 87 percent of consumers in 2007 — a 23 percentage point decline. (Source: Javelin, “Credit Card Spending Declines” study, March 2009)
• 80 percent of Americans 65 or older indicated they used a credit card in the month preceding the September 2008 survey. That’s 13 points higher than any other age group. They also used debit cards far less than other age groups. Only 47 percent of those over 65 said they had used a debit card in the month before the survey, 19 points lower than any other age group. (Source: Javelin, “Credit Card Spending Declines” study, March 2009)
• 63 percent of Americans aged 25 to 34 indicated they had used a credit card in the month preceding the September 2008 survey. (Source: Javelin, “Credit Card Spending Declines” study, March 2009)
• Just 51 percent of Americans aged 18 to 24 indicated they had used a credit card in the month preceding the September 2008 survey. 71 percent of that age group said that they had used a debit card in the same period. (Source: Javelin, “Credit Card Spending Declines” study, March 2009)
• 92 percent of cards included a fee for exceeding the credit limit, including 100 percent of all student cards. The amount of the overlimit fee is $39 on most accounts. (Source: Pew Safe Credit Cards Project, March 2009)
• For families having any bank-type cards, the median number of such cards remained at 2; the median credit limit on all such cards rose 21.4 percent, to $18,000, and the median interest rate on the card with the largest balance (or on the newest card, if no outstanding balances existed) rose 1.0 percentage point, to 12.5 percent. (Source: Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances, February 2009)
• 58 percent of Hispanics have not used a credit card in the past 30 days. (Source: Experian Consumer Research study, November 2008)
• 31 percent of Hispanics typically pay cash for their purchases. (Source: Experian Consumer Research study, November 2008)
• More than 23 billion credit cards transactions were processed in the United States in 2007, and they are projected to grow by 26 percent over the next five years. (Source: Nilson Report)
• 55 percent of credit card users keep a balance on their credit card, up 2 percent from 2007. (Source: ComScore, September 2008)
• Approximately 14 percent of Americans use 50 percent or more of their available credit. (Source: Experian National Score Index Study, February 2007)
• At about 17 percent each, Alaska and Hawaii have the largest concentration of consumers who use 50 percent or more of their available credit. (Source: Experian National Score Index Study, February 2007)
• Residents of Jackson, Miss., use the highest percentage of their credit limit. (Source: Men’s Health magazine’s personal debt survey, July 2008)
• Lincoln, Neb., residents use the lowest percentage of their credit limit. (Source: Men’s Health magazine’s personal debt survey, July 2008)
• 95 percent of surveyed issuers have over-limit fees. The average over-limit fee, among institutions with over-limit fees, is $29.13. (Source: Consumer Action credit card survey, July 2008.)
• 37 percent of consumers say they are using their credit cards less. (Source: Javelin Strategy & Research, “Credit Card Issuer Profitability in a Difficult Economy,” July 2008)