警惕信用卡消费陷阱

In recent years, various banks have been competing to issue credit cards, whose numbers have been increasing sharply in China. Such a high increase in the number pf credit cards has created a situation with some people holding a number of credit cards, some of which remain unused.

When answering the question of how many credit card they had, some said they had two or three, while others said they had dozens.

"You'll be surprised by the number of credit cards I have. I've got more than 20 credit cards. As for these cards that I never get a chance to use, I only keep them in a cardholder at home. The only credit card I often use is the one issued by CGB, which usually has more sales promotions."

Despite having several or dozens of credit cards, common people's knowledge about using credit cards are still at a low level. And because the detailed rules for using credit cards are complex, many consumers usually do not know much about them.

When bank employees promote credit cards, they usually emphasize only their advantages and say little about the charges, fees and specific rules. Therefore, it is not surprising that many consumers often fall into traps while using credit cards.

Mr. Jia is a teacher from Hubei Province. Last year, he made a 150,000-yuan down payment on an apartment in Jingzhou city. But when he applied for a mortgage, his bank declined to give him one because of a poor credit record.

"The bank said I had bad credit record, that's why my application for a mortgage was turned down. I was told there was a seven-cent debt on my credit card from five years ago, and now it had increased to 60 yuan."

Jia says after checking with the bank, he found out the problem.

"Five years ago, I received a remittance of 500 yuan through my credit card, and I withdrew the money in another city. Then a two-yuan commission charge appeared. However, there was only 1.93 yuan available at that time on my card, so I had no idea that I still needed to pay seven cents."

Jia says he never noticed the seven cents, because he stopped using the credit card after graduating from college five years ago. Now although he has paid the 60 yuan, the bank still will not issue him a mortgage. It says he has already been listed on a nationwide blacklist of credit card holders.

Like Mr. Jia, many consumers complain about unknowingly being charged by banks for various reasons. For example, a credit card may have a zero deposit rate, but the bank will charge a fee for withdrawing money. Furthermore, credit card holders may also be subject to annual fees, service fees, punitive interest and late fees.

Because consumers usually know little about these items, they often "fall into traps."

Data from the People's Bank of China indicate that 318 million credit cards were issued nationwide as of last September, and the total overdraft amount had reached a record high of one trillion yuan.

But with credit cards gaining popularity among Chinese consumers, the number of complaints by cardholders is also on the rise.

Director of the Institute of Financial law Huang Zhen from the Central University of Finance and Economics says many cardholders mistakenly believe there won't be any charges if they don't use their credit card. But there could be other fees, such as an annual fee. He says if they fail to notice the fees, they one day will find a debt on their credit card.

Huang Zhen says while credit cards have changed people's spending habits, they have also brought them trouble because of poor information services by banks as well as unreasonable charges and penalties. For example, credit card holders must find out beforehand if their annual fees will be subject to interest.

For CRI, I am Zhang Wan.