If you have good credit and use credit cards, get ready to start paying more.  Faced with the imminent passage of a credit card bill in Congress that will severely limit their ability to squeeze every last dime out of those with bad credit, credit card companies are setting their sights on a group whom the bill didn’t seek out to protect as diligently to make up the difference; those with good credit. As Edward L. Yingling, chief executive of the American Bankers Association told the New York Times:

It will be a different business.  Those that manage their credit well will in some degree subsidize those that have credit problems.

While the credit card bill will make it harder for lenders to raise interest rates quickly and without more prominent disclosure to their customers, credit card users with good credit can still expect their rates to go up, soon.  Also perks such as rewards dollars and other incentives traditionally offered to those with better credit ratings will soon be a thing of the past.

LINKS:

NY Times: Credit Card Industry Aims to Profit from Sterling Payers

WaPo: The Credit Card Bill could be bad for those with good credit

Bloomberg: Senate Nears Completing Credit Card Bill, Blocks 15% Rate Cap