You Are Not Trapped in Bad Terms, Even If You Have a Credit Card for Bad Credit
Posted 06/17/09
The least charming facet of credit cards for bad credit is the high interest rate that almost inevitably comes with them. However, you can do something about the interest rate. It is possible to negotiate better credit card terms regardless of how high your interest rate is, even if you are stuck with credit cards for bad credit.The first and best trick to try is merely to call your credit card issuer and ask them for a better interest rate. According to a national survey, when credit card customers called their credit card company, said other companies had offered them lower interest rates, and told their current company that they were going to switch, 56 percent of the time their current company offered them lower rates as an incentive to stay. They dropped an average of five or six percentage points off their annual interest rate, and some of them got perks like zero percent interest for six months. One customer with an exorbitant interest rate managed to reduce it by more than half, encouraging news if you have a credit card for bad credit. Customers suffered no penalties if their credit card issuer refused to lower their interest rates. As long as you are civil, requesting a lower interest rate is a risk free method of improving your interest rate with an excellent chance of succeeding.
The same method can be useful for convincing your credit card company to waive your annual fee. If you would like a different due date or want to transfer to a different rewards program, you do not even have to claim you are planning to leave for a different company. Just ask politely.
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.