Whether you are new to the world of credit cards, or a seasoned veteran, understanding the information in your credit card statement can be confusing. There is a lot of information packed onto a single page, and if you’ve never taken the time to review your statement in detail, it may be a good idea for you to do so. That way you are more likely to notice if there are any abnormalities with a statement that might indicate identity theft or merchant errors.

The statement should display your account number prominently. This is the number that uniquely identifies you to the credit card company. When purchases are made using your credit card, they are all attached to this account number and charged to you. If you need to call customer service for any reason, you will be asked to provide the account number.

If you’ve ever used one of your credit cards and had difficulty making an online purchase or a purchase over the phone because the merchant says your name doesn’t match, it’s probably because you have used a middle initial on your card but not in the checkout process, or vice versa. On your statement you can view your name as it is saved in relation to your credit card account. Jane L. Doe is different from Jane Doe or Jane Lee Doe, so it’s important to note how your account is set up.

The statement date displayed on the credit card statement shows you all transactions that took place between the last statement date and the current one. The payment due date is the date which your credit card company should receive payment in order to avoid late fees and additional finance charges. While some companies allow you to postmark your payment on the due date, most want to receive it by the due date, so plan accordingly.

The credit line shows you how much money the credit card company will allow you to charge on their card at one time. You can charge multiple transactions, but the total amount owed must not go over this amount. If you do manage to spend more than your credit line, you will pay over-the-limit fees. The credit available displays how much of your credit line you still have available to spend.

The new balance information displays how much you have charged and have not yet paid back. If you pay the entire amount in this column, you will not be charged interest. The minimum amount due is the amount of money that you are required to send by the due date.

The transaction list is a detailed listing of everything that has occurred with your account since the last statement. It will detail purchases, returns and refunds, and interest charged to the account. If there is anything you don’t remember buying, contact the company listed in the transaction listing or call your credit card account immediately.

There is also a section that shows how your current balance was calculated. It shows purchases, finance charges, interest, your last payment information, and then the total balance of the card is shown again in this section as well as the minimum amount you must pay that month to stay current with your payments. You should always try to send more than the minimum, if not the entire balance, each month to avoid finance charges, and interest. The finance charge summary section will show you how interest and finance charges are applied to any balance that remains on your card from one month to the next.

This article has been provided courtesy of Creditor Web. Creditor Web offers great credit card articles available for reprint and other tools to help you search and compare credit cards.

If you are looking to apply for a credit card, than you’ll need to ensure that you have sufficient creditworthiness. In reality, this is no easy task - so if you are having problems with this, the following 5 credit building tactics should help.

1. Open a current account

All credit card companies like to see that their potential borrowers are responsible when given the opportunity to borrow money. However, if you only have a deposit account then there is no real chance that you could ever do overdrawn. A way to correct this is to open a current account with a high street bank and use it responsibly, i.e. don’t go overdrawn! In any event, in any application you make to a credit card issuer they are going to ask you for details of your current account so you may as well take the opportunity of using the past history of your current account to help in establishing your credit rating.

2. Have all your utility bills in your name

A second way you can start to build up credit brownie points is to put all your utility bills, e.g. your water, gas and telephone bills, in your name and make sure that you pay them all on time! Again, it is very likely that the credit card issuer will ask you to provide them with at least one utility bill when you apply for the card, so you may as well make use of this now as a tactic to start building up your credit history.

3. Apply for a charge card or store card

As most charge cards require you to pay off the balance in full each month, using this as a tactic to enhance your credit history is sound. Not only are you not really afforded the chance to default on a payment, but as the details are provided to several different rating agencies you can use this to building up your credit history.

4. Get a car loan

Applying for, and repaying in a timely manner, any type of loan is one of the fastest credit building tactics you can use. If you drive, and know you can afford to repay a car loan, you should give serious thought to taking out a car loan - even if it is just to refinance repairs on your existing car!

5. Do a credit rating check

Once you have completed the 4 credit building tactics above, apply for a credit report to perform a credit check. Provided you have been sensible with repaying all of you debts and bills in a timely manner, you should now have sufficient creditworthiness to apply for a credit card. In the event that you find an error on your credit report, make sure you take step to fix this as soon as you can. Furthermore, it is good practice to get into the habit of ordering credit check on an annual basis even after your credit card has been approved to that you can keep a track of your credit rating history as this will have the biggest effect on your credit building skills!

Joseph Kenny writes for the Personal Loans Store and offer more information on secured loans and other loan topics available on site.

Visit Today: http://www.ukpersonalloanstore.co.uk

A lot has been written in the past few years about the importance of both credit reports and credit scores. The credit report is a listing of all significant financial transactions by a consumer and whether or not those transactions were completed on time and as agreed. The score is a distillation of everything contained on the credit report, boiled down to a three-digit number. That number is supposed to indicate to a creditor or a lender, at a glance, whether or not the consumer in question is worthy of another loan.

Until recently, the three major credit bureaus, Experian, Trans Union and Equifax, all used different but similar systems to devise the credit score, which ranged from 300 at the low end to 850 at the high end. The different systems meant that a consumer checking his or her score with each of the credit bureaus would receive three different credit scores. This led to some confusion as to which score was the “correct” one. The bureaus have recently attempted to solve that problem by creating VantageScore, a unified scoring system that all three bureaus will use. This should result in a consumer receiving the same score no matter which bureau provides it.

But this hasn’t entirely stopped the confusion over credit scoring. Unlike the old systems 300-850 range, the VantageScore uses a different scale that ranges from 501-990. In addition to the numeric score, the VantageScore system will also provide a letter grade, ranging from A-F, as follows:

901-990 - A
801-900 - B
701-800 - C
601-700 - D
501-600 - F

Now the source of the confusion has changed. Many people have erroneously assumed that a score in the old system will be transferred to the new system. That means, to their way of thinking, that a top score in the high 700s or low 80s under the old system is now merely “average” under the new one. How, people are wondering, did a top score suddenly become mediocre?

The answer, of course, is that it didn’t and that comparisons between the old system and the new one are like comparing apples with oranges. The new system is completely different and will use a new set of criteria to create the new score from the ground up. A score in the 800 range under the old system will almost certainly become a score in the 900 range under the new one. Consumers have no reason to be alarmed, and in time, the new system will be better and more easily understood than the old one. After all, nothing tells you that you have done well better than being told that you have received an “A”.

©Copyright 2006 by Retro Marketing. Charles Essmeier is the owner of Retro Marketing, a firm devoted to informational Websites, including End-Your-Debt.com, a site devoted to credit reports and scores, debt consolidation, payday loans and personal bankruptcy.

It’s almost as if you can’t turn on the TV anymore without seeing at least on commercial for credit and debt counseling.

They promise to help you get your bills reduced and a payment schedule setup to make your life easier.

Now just who are these non-profit credit and debt counseling companies and why would they want to help you get out of debt when there is no money for them to make?

Ooops. The non-profit part is a bit misleading. You see, the majority of these companies are owned, in part or whole, by major players in the credit industry.

Credit card companies and other lenders sponsor these credit and debt counseling because they can get a lot of people to start paying them again that have been having problems.

It’s sure better to have these organizations getting people to pay than getting collection agencies to collect the defaults.

If you decide to look at any of these credit and debt counseling companies, remember who they really are.

They are the creditors trying to get you to continue paying them. They may try to get you in a situation that requires more money than you have.

If you go into credit and debt counseling you are still the only one who is on your side. Same as the credit repair battle.

You will have to make the choices in your best interest and not on the suggestion of credit and debt counseling organization.

These places have helped a lot of people. But you don’t hear about all the ones who were talked into getting themselves in a worse position than they started in.