Perks could disappear with new credit card rules

The Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 provides my family with a sense of justice. The notice credit card companies will be required to give before cutting rewards and raising interest rates will be welcome. It also is encouraging that interest rate hikes will no longer be retroactive.

But what happens from now to February 2010, when the law goes into effect? We got a taste of what the next few months could look like two months ago, when an online payment we made on our Bank of America card did not go through.

We have a balance of $3,600 on our Bank of America credit card. For some reason, the payment we scheduled online did not happen. We are good customers, and we had never missed a payment before. However, our interest rate went from 9.9 percent to 28.9 percent immediately. The minimum payment, as a result, rose from $76 to more than $128. We called and protested, and our interest rate was restored to us (after a "credit review" that dinged our credit score). But the stark reality of an interest rate change impressed itself upon us.

When I heard about the sweeping reforms contained in the Credit CARD Act of 2009, I thought, "The credit card companies have nine months to jack up interest rates and slash rewards programs without notice." My husband's remark, though, brought the issue into sharper focus. "If we didn't have a balance, it wouldn't be an issue," he said.

He's right, of course.

While carrying a balance is not something we normally do, the costs of a new house, cuts to my husband's work hours and the slow depletion of our emergency fund, we have been turning to credit cards more. We have carried a balance for two or three months at a time. Additionally, we are bracing for what we are sure will be an increase in our monthly insurance premiums.

We worry now about higher interest rates. While 28.9 percent is unlikely, I am concerned about a rate of 15.9 percent. A few extra dollars may not seem like a lot. But in uncertain times, when my husband's wages are threatened, my work as a freelancer could fall off and our health care costs climb, those few dollars take on greater significance.

Also disappointing is the prospect of losing our reward points. We have saved them for years in the hopes of using them for a vacation. Now, the credit card company could take them away. Bank of America has nine months to reduce or end rewards programs. With the economy, we are not in a position to take what we have and make up the difference ourselves. Maybe we'll just take our rewards points and apply them to our credit card balance before the companies can do anything about it.