Extra Options for your Credit Card

Posted by Nick Niesen on October 29th, 2010

Most people don?t want to spend a lot of money on having a credit card. They will shop around for the best possible deal they can get on a credit card. They will wish to get as low an interest rate as possible and definitely not pay a monthly or annual fee for the card. Getting the best price on a credit card makes a lot of sense for most people, in fact for the vast majority of people; however, there are circumstances in which you will wish to pay more for a credit card than you have to.

One thing that many people opt for is a fee-paying credit card. This fee will be payable either annually or monthly, and you will have to pay it no matter how much or how little you use the card. Paying the fee will entitle you to certain benefits. For example, you will be given a preferential interest rate that will be among the lowest credit card interest rates on the market. If you currently have a high outstanding credit card balance that you frequently pay interest on, then having access to a reduced interest rate will have the potential to save you your annual fee many times over. Another benefit of the feeing paying card is that it may give you access to a higher monthly spending limit. This will be valuable if you rely on your credit card to make a lot of vital purchases.

If you use your credit card abroad a lot, you will know that most cards charge high exchange fees, and transaction charges on all transactions made in foreign currencies. To save on these sometimes very high fees, you can opt for a fee-paying credit card and you will no longer be subject to them. This can be a very wise saving for all people who use their credit card abroad a lot.

Another extra charge you can optionally incur on your credit card is that you may opt for optional payment protection insurance. This insurance will be calculated based on the outstanding balance you have on your credit card. It will be charged as a percentage of that balance and is designed to protect you against circumstances in which you become unable to keep up with repayments. This covers instances where you may become unable to make your repayments if you lose your job or become ill or unable to work through no fault of your own.

A fee-paying credit card can also help a cardholder when they are in trouble, especially while abroad. Some of the services that a fee-paying credit card provides are second to none. With many cards, if you were to lose your credit card you just call a special international help line number where you will find assistance. Most fee-paying credit card services will provide a new credit card within 24 hours and will supply cash until your new credit card is ready.