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Consumers Resolve To Kick Credit Card Habit

Tightening of limits spurs borrowers to turn their backs

December 24, 2008

• Credit Tips And Tricks • Get Control of What You Owe • No Easy Way Out Of Credit Card Debt • Penalty Fees, Interest Rate Hikes, and Misleading Contracts Await Credit Card Shoppers • "Convenience Checks" Carry a Heavy Price Tag • New Forms of Credit Scoring • Understanding Credit • Credit Bureaus: Who You're Dealing With • Reading Your Credit Report • Credit Scoring: The Fickleness of FICO • Credit Knowledge: A Long, Hard, Struggle --- News • Retailers Applaud GAO Report On Interchange Fees • Schumer Moves to Clean Up Credit Reporting Ads • Report: Deceptive Credit Card Practices Remain Widespread • Dodd Bill Would Freeze Credit Card Rates • Annual Credit Card Fee Makes a Comeback • Credit Card Holders Angrily Abandon Their Cards • Fed Proposes New Credit Card Rules • Lawmakers Propose Faster Adoption Of New Credit Card Rules • Acid Test: Prepaid Debit Card vs. Big Bank • J.D. Power: Customer Satisfaction With Credit Cards Falls • How To Survive The New Credit Card Rules • New Credit Card Law Not A Cure-All • Consumer Credit Continues To Shrink • Consumers Using Credit Cards To Stay Afloat, Survey Finds • Credit Cards Giving Consumers Heartburn • Obama Signs Credit Card Bill • Olive Garden Settles Credit Card Data Exposure Suit • Video — Credit Card Law May Produce Unintended Consequences --- • More about credit cards

Credit card companies appear to be tightening up policies and reducing the amount of credit to some consumers, and consumers apparently think that's just fine.

A new poll by Bankrate, Inc. found that 40 percent of consumers say they would not be upset if their credit lines disappeared. In fact, of the respondents who have credit cards, nearly one-third say they will probably charge less in 2009.

A much smaller group — only 5 percent — responded that they would be devastated with the loss of access to their credit cards. The poll is included in this month's segment of Bankrate's Financial Literacy Series: Fast track to becoming credit savvy.

Consumers also weighed in on credit card company terms and regulations and taxpayer bailouts to consumers in credit card debt. Key poll findings include the following:

Most people (72 percent) emphatically disagree that credit card companies are entitled to change the terms of your account at any time for any reason, and nearly the same number (71 percent) strongly believe that credit card companies should be more closely regulated.

Two-thirds of Americans (67 percent) say they strongly disagree that taxpayers should bail out consumers who find themselves in a big financial bind due to credit card debt.

Only 6 percent of Americans report their line of credit was decreased. A whopping 44 percent say their line was unchanged; 41 percent say their line was increased.

In looking to future use of credit cards, nearly one-third (32 percent) of respondents say they will probably charge less next year, while half say they won't change their usage. Only 1 percent plan to charge more and 15 percent say they don't plan on using credit cards at all in 2009.

When asked to pick the single biggest reason they use credit cards, 40 percent say it is more convenient than paying with cash, and 19 percent say they use them to finance emergency expenses.

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