| Volume 22 Number 12 |
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The People’s Lawyer’s Tip of the Day
All banks are not created equal. Their services may be the same but prices are not. Shop around. Ask about free checking and online banking. Find out what the rate of interest is on deposits and what they charge for bounced checks, stop-payment orders and other services. Set up a line of credit instead of agreeing to "free" over-draft protection. A little comparative shopping can save you hundreds of dollars a year.
Tax Payments by Plastic Rewarding
Nobody enjoys paying taxes, but several credit card issuers hope to lessen the pain by offering reward points or airline miles for cardholders who pay their federal income tax with plastic. Some credit card issuers like American Express and Discover offer cash back when you use their plastic to pay off Uncle Sam. Click here for more.
Top Five Ways to Get Extra Cash Fast
Odds are good that in an emergency, most people would be scrambling for cash. But there's no need to turn to payday loans or other high-risk options that leave you in even more desperate financial straits than when you started. Instead, look into these five options to get the extra cash you need - in a hurry: Click here for more.
Refund Anticipation Loans Still Troublesome for Taxpayers
An annual report issued today by the Consumer Federation of America and the National Consumer Law Center once again underlines the insidiousness of refund anticipation Loans, or RALs: short-term, high-interest loans marketed by tax preparers and lenders and often pitched as a way to get your refund immediately. Click here for more.
The Small Print That's Devastating Major Consumer Rights
It may be in tiny print among the ads stuffed into your credit-card bill. Or a few lines buried in a multi-page health insurance agreement, home-repair contract or college loan. The language is often dense legal-ese, but make no mistake: It translates into a giant trap door for consumers. Click here for more.
Your Money
What intertest rates do you need to reach your savings goal? Click here for more.
For the Lawyers
Fair Credit reporting Act Amendment is not retroactive. The 7th Circuit has held that the amendment to the FCRA that precludes a private right to action may not be retroactively applied to claims that accrued before the statutes effective date Click here for more.