| Ever wonder why your credit card bill comes to you | | | | cartel, or price fixing structure. Also there is the |
| from the likes of Sioux Falls, South Dakota? Basically | | | | possibility that the credit card which is shown as being |
| because this state is the home of some major credit | | | | in default may not actually be, but instead it could be |
| card issuers who take advantage of the state's lack | | | | the result of an error on the lending institutions part. If |
| of interest in credit card consumer protection laws. | | | | this is the case, while the customer has full legal rights |
| Also this may be due in part to a lack of a state | | | | to have the error corrected on his credit report, any |
| corporate income taxes. There are many financial | | | | lender who instituted the universal default rate is under |
| service companies located in South Dakota including | | | | no obligation to return to the normal rate. It simply goes |
| Great Western Bank, Total Card Inc., BankFirst, Capital | | | | without saying that this sort of position leaves many |
| Card Services, HSBC, PREMIER Bankcard, and Wells | | | | credit card holders in a state not unlike that of anger. |
| Fargo. | | | | Simply put, this is not right. |
| Credit card fees over the years recently have | | | | Over the last few years there have been several |
| skyrocketed from $2.6 billion in 1980 to over $22.5 | | | | attempts by concerned congressmen to simply have |
| billion in 2006. The thing that has a great number of | | | | the practice of universal default outlawed. One such |
| consumers and advocates irked is a common practice | | | | congressman was Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn. Still, these |
| named "universal default""universal default". In this | | | | card companies are also amongst the political party |
| scheme when you are late paying any bill, the credit | | | | contributors, and seeking meaningful changes such as |
| card company will raise your rate, sending some rates | | | | these in the face of subtle corruption has always been |
| far higher than 20%. There have been many criticisms | | | | a daunting task. "I've never been able to get a bill |
| of this structure including the concept of one lender | | | | passed of any major significance because they're so |
| charging a higher price when their customer defaults | | | | big and so influential," says Dodd. |
| with another lender has been compared to having a | | | | |