A recent study shows that consumers aren’t using their credit cards quite as regularly as they have in past years.
According to First Command’s Financial Behaviors Index, only 11 percent of those polled said they increased the use of their credit cards, while 32 percent said they’d reduced it.
The index also showed that awareness of new consumer credit rules may have influenced the decisions consumers made. The new Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure (CARD) Act has provisions, due to take effect in February, that put limitations on lenders’ abilities to increase interest rates.
Of those polled who said they were aware of the Credit CARD Act, 22 percent said they reduced the use of their credit cards.
“The consumer protections of the Credit CARD Act of 2009 are coming into existence at a time when many Americans have already taken positive steps to ensure their own financial well-being,” Terri Kallsen, executive vice president of strategic development at First Command Financial Services, said.
Some of the rules from the Credit CARD Act already took effect last year. One provision gave consumers the choice of opting out of increases in their interest rates, allowing them to pay off their debt at the old rate and then closing the account.
A new law aimed at protecting consumers may prevent many college students from gaining access to credit.
