Safer Credit Cards
Congress moved a full step closer to making it less hazardous for millions of Americans to keep using their credit cards. The Senate voted 90 to 5 Tuesday in favor of a reform that would prohibit credit card issuers from such unfair tactics as tripling interest rates overnight or passing out cards to clueless teenagers.
All customers would have to be notified 45 days in advance of any rate increase, and young people (under 21 in the Senate bill, 18 in the House version) would need an adult’s signature or proof that they have a way of repaying any new debt before getting a new card.