Improving Your Credit Card Terms for Credit Cards for Bad Credit
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by: barrywaters
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Word Count: 429
Date: Wed, 17 Dec 2008 Time: 6:30 PM
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The first and best trick to try is merely to call your credit card issuer and ask them for a better interest rate. A national survey found that 56 percent of the time, credit card companies offered lower rates to customers as an incentive to not switch credit card companies if the customers telephoned to say that they had gotten a better offer and were planning to leave. Customers lowered their annual interest rate by an average of five to six points, and some companies offered them perks like no interest for half a year. One customer more than halved her exorbitantly high interest rate, an important consideration if you have a credit card for bad credit. If the credit card company refused the customers requests, the customers suffered no penalties. As long as you are polite to the credit card representatives, asking for a reduction in your interest rate is risk free and has an exceptionally high success rate.
If you pay an annual fee, the same method can convince your credit card issuer to waive it. If you want to change your due date or move to a better rewards program, you do not even need to threaten to leave. Just ask.
You can improve your credit card terms remarkably even if you originally got your card under terms designed for credit cards for bad credit. You may even be able to get a deal equal to those enjoyed by premium credit cards. This is especially likely if you have had your credit card for a while (two or three years on average; four years or more is ideal), if you have made most of your payments on time for the past year or two, and if you are using a relatively small percentage of your line of credit. Even if you have had a credit card with your issuer for under a year, though, or have made late payments or used much of your line of credit, you may be able to convince your credit card company to improve your terms. A little civil persistence can do wonders for your credit card terms. It will not hurt you to ask.
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For more on credit cards for bad credit, stop by a site I recommend.
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