Most of us face problems with Credit Card companies one time or the other. Sometimes the mistakes are from our side. Most of the time, it is the highhandedness of these banks. Everyone has their personal hate list of banks - Citibank, ICICI, HSBC, etc. The basic problem is because there is no LAW that controls credit card operations in India. Credit cards are unsecured loans, that's why they charge so much interest. However, most credit card companies have a right to "set off". Which means, they can usurp your hard earned money that is lying in your savings account, most of the time without your permission. And then the chase begins. It is daylight robbery. But no one cares. The police will say it is a civil matter and not register cases. The courts will take hell a lot of time to resolve cases. RBI has an ombudsman but he is not available most of the time. There are ways to deal with this issue. First and foremost, decide if you need a credit card. Use it for convenience, never for credit. When you use it, pay your dues in time. Be very very responsible. Even after all this if you are still harassed, stop paying. NO LAW IN INDIA CAN FORCE YOU TO PAY FOR YOUR CREDIT CARD BILLS. Just do not give any cheques that will bounce. A criminal case will be filed against you under section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act. THEN, ONLY THEN, YOU WILL BE FORCED TO PAY. I am NOT advocating you to cheat or not pay. All I am saying is if you get harassed by these credit card companies, try your best to resolve your issues. Put everything in writing. You should not only have the intention of repaying your money, you should also show that intention in writing. Then no one can harass you. You will harass them. But be careful. They can take money from your savings account if you have an account with them. For example, if you have a Citibank Suvidha account, and take a Citibank Credit Card, your Suvidha account will be debited under the right to set off. So NEVER NEVER have a credit card account AND your savings account with the same bank. That is a golden rule. NEVER authorize an auto-debit. Pay your bills in time and be happy. If you have any questions, feel free to write to me for free legal advice. I will respond mostly on the weekend. You can reach me on arunkumarp@gmail.com. Be credit free. Thanks..
Re: Remedy for problems related to Credit Cards
by Waqar Qureshi on Apr 25, 2009 06:51 PM Permalink
Dear Arun, thanks for the above advise and guidance. However, I am facing such a problem where someone called my parents and claimed that he is a Sub-Inspector in Delhi Headquarter and has a case against me from my Credit Card provider. So, if there is no law then how did they manage to get a case against me? Please advise. My email address is wikkoo@in.com
RE:Remedy for problems related to Credit Cards
by Arun Kumar on Feb 08, 2007 03:34 PM Permalink
Mistake in email id - correct id is arunkumarpj@rediffmail.com
