The Consumers’ Foundation yesterday released the results of a survey that showed wide discrepancies in the credit card interest rates offered to people with similar income levels and questioned the validity of banking institutions’ methods of evaluating how much credit to allow individuals.
The consumer rights watchdog said its recent survey of 49 individuals with stable employment and high salaries showed that despite their similar financial status, their credit card interest rates varied widely, from 5 percent to 20 percent.
The foundation said that interest rates may have a difference up to 9 percentage points for an individual who holds different credit cards from different banks.
A difference of as much as 10 percentage points can also occur for two individuals with similar purchasing power and credit history who hold credit cards from the same bank.
For example, the credit card interest rate can vary from anywhere between 11.74 percent and 20 percent for a doctor and an attorney who have similar credit histories, high earnings and hold credit cards from the same bank.
“The survey raises questions about whether banking institutions are conducting honest and fair credit checks and offering individuals appropriate credit card interest rates,” foundation chairman Hsieh Tien-jen (謝天仁) said.
The foundation also said that when cardholders make a minimum payment on their credit card rather than pay the full amount, it should not be a signal to banks that the individual has defaulted on the loan, neither should the bank use this as a reason to downgrade a person’s credit rating or up the person’s interest rate.
“The authorities should make credit information more transparent and investigate banking institutions’ methods of credit checking to ensure that customers are not charged interest at unreasonably high rates by banks,” Hsieh said.
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