Banking & Credit Cards
How banks, credit cards, and payment systems work. Covers products, rates, fees, regulations, and what consumers need to know to navigate the banking system.
Latest in Banking & Credit Cards
Report a lost debit card within two days and your fraud liability is capped at $50; wait longer and it can hit $500
Anyone who has ever lost a debit card knows the sinking feeling of checking a bank balance and finding charges they never made. Federal law...
A new rule taking effect July 1 lets the Education Department strip some employers of public-service loan forgiveness eligibility
Borrowers counting on Public Service Loan Forgiveness to erase their federal student debt face a new threat: a final rule that, starting July 1, gives...
Medicare Advantage insurers reversed 36% of long-term-care denials on appeal, the watchdog found, so appealing often works
Medicare Advantage enrollees who challenged denials of long-term acute care won reversals 36% of the time, and those who fought skilled nursing facility denials won...
Many credit cards quietly add a year to a product’s warranty and refund recent price drops, perks people rarely claim
Millions of credit cardholders in the United States carry cards that automatically extend a product’s manufacturer warranty by up to a year and reimburse the...
The FTC is mailing a third round of refunds from a $586 million fund to people who were scammed through Western Union
About 6,000 people who lost money through fraud schemes facilitated by Western Union are receiving checks as the Department of Justice distributes roughly $66 million...
You can tell your bank to turn off overdraft coverage so a $5 debit-card purchase can’t trigger a $35 fee
A single debit-card swipe for coffee or gas can still cost a bank customer $35 in overdraft fees, but federal rules give consumers a straightforward...
Imposter scams remain America’s top fraud, and the safest move is to hang up and call the number yourself
Americans lost nearly $3 billion to impersonation fraud in 2024, and the single best defense costs nothing: hang up the phone and call the company...
Scammers copy the codes off store gift cards before you buy them, so check the packaging first
Thieves are tampering with gift cards hanging on retail store racks, copying the card numbers and PINs, then waiting for an unsuspecting buyer to load...
$250,000 per person is FDIC-insured at each bank, so spread cash to cover more
Anyone holding more than $250,000 in a single bank account faces a straightforward risk: the amount above that threshold is not federally insured. The Federal...
Report an unauthorized debit-card charge within 60 days and your bank must put the money back
Anyone who has watched a mysterious charge drain their checking account knows the panic that follows. Federal law sets a hard deadline: consumers who notify...
VA home loans require no down payment and no mortgage insurance for eligible veterans
Nearly 90 percent of VA-backed home loans close with no down payment, and the program charges no monthly mortgage insurance, giving eligible veterans and service...
A free credit freeze at all three bureaus blocks crooks from opening new loans in your name
Anyone whose personal data has been exposed in a breach can now lock down all three credit bureaus at no cost, stopping thieves from taking...
Thriveworks therapy patients can file a $10 claim over a data breach before July 21
Patients who received therapy through Thriveworks face a tight deadline to file a claim for a fixed payout tied to allegations that the company shared...
The FTC is mailing $3 million in refund checks to 1,821 homeowners caught in a mortgage-relief scam
The Federal Trade Commission is sending refund checks to 1,821 homeowners who lost money to a mortgage-relief operation that falsely promised government-backed help. The payments...
Krispy Kreme will pay data-breach victims $75, or up to $3,500 with proof, if they file by June 22
Krispy Kreme customers whose personal data was exposed in a late-2024 cyber incident face a tight deadline to file claims for payments of $75 without...
Lakeview Loan Servicing will pay home borrowers up to $5,000 over a 2021 data breach, with claims due June 22
Borrowers whose mortgage data was exposed in a 2021 breach at Lakeview Loan Servicing, LLC face a June 22 deadline to file claims worth up...
Parent PLUS borrowers have until June 30 to consolidate and keep access to income-driven repayment
Parents who borrowed federal PLUS loans to help pay for a child’s college education face a hard deadline: they must consolidate those loans into a...
Defaulted student-loan borrowers could see 15% of their paychecks garnished again as collections restart
Millions of borrowers who fell behind on federal student loans face the return of a collection tool that can strip up to 15% from every...
Two older student-loan plans, PAYE and ICR, stop taking new borrowers on July 1
Federal student-loan borrowers who want to enroll in Pay As You Earn or Income-Contingent Repayment are running out of time. The Department of Education set...
A Chinese national was sentenced to 12 years for a $27 million scam that targeted U.S. seniors
Zhao Wang, a Chinese national who orchestrated a $27 million fraud and money laundering operation targeting approximately 2,000 older Americans, was sentenced to 151 months...