No thanks Macy's

Using a department store credit card (or a charge-a-plate per my high primal thinker) was a relatively simple transaction. Pay off the balance each month and avoid astronomical interest rates or run up a balance and enrich the card issuer. Not good enough for Macy's!

A notice of change in terms arrived in the mailbox recently. At first glance it seemed innocent enough. As usual the APR on balances was going up but so what. Pay off the balance and forget about the APR. Not so fast.

Macy's sales are down so it appears that their MBA's were put to work to come up with some credit card changes which could generate more income. Section 5 of the notice pictured above was the result. The key phrase:

" We will begin charging interest on purchases on your Revolving Account Type on the transaction date"

So my statement would now show a monthly interest charge even though I paid off the previous balance? Not exactly , Macy's had provisions for refund on the following months statement provided I met certain conditions. In the meantime they had the use of my money.

Those "certain conditions" are stated in something other than plain English. The best I can determine is that there is a 50-50 chance that I would see a refund for the interest charged (my lawyer is still going over the fine print trying to decipher exactly how I get this refund or rebate).

Its the fault of Congress! They declared war on predatory lenders but are losing the war before it really gets started. The lenders have more MBA's armed with all sorts of gimmicks! What the lenders forget is that the consumer has some amunition.

Concluding that Macy's is trying to screw me, a Macy's credit card no longer graces my wallet.

As I keep telling the high primal thinker, department store charge-a-plates stink!