Avoid Secured Credit Card Scams

If you are a person with little or no credit the prospect of getting a secured credit card has no doubt crossed your mind, especially when ads for them are almost every there is space for advertising. Secured credit cards can be one of the most effective ways to rebuild or build credit, however, some companies use deceptive advertising in order to entice you to use their service.

A secured credit requires you to open and maintain a savings account with the issuer of the card and your available line of credit is anywhere from fifty to one hundred percent of your balance. In addition to having to open the savings account you may also be expected to pay a variety of application and processing fees that can sometimes run into the hundreds of dollars. Before you apply for a secured credit card you should always ask about such fees and whether or not they will be refunded if the application is denied.

Companies using deceptive advertising will often do so by leaving out extremely pertinent information in regards to their service. They will not inform you that you will be liable for the cost of a 900 line phone number call, they may not tell you upfront the total cost of all the fees involved or they might withhold pertinent information regarding requirements and when your application is denied refuse to return application fees.

These companies are simply preying on your desire to have a credit card and to improve your credit and are counting on the hope that by promising you all the good things that you will overlook the fact that they didn't tell you about the hidden things.

One of the easiest ways to spot a secured credit card scam is if it offers extremely easy credit. The fact is that no one can guarantee you will receive credit and any reputable credit card issuer will examine your credit prior to making any promises or offers.

You should never make a 900 line phone number call to a company offering to procure a credit line for you. Any phone number with that prefix, you will be responsible for all charges associated with the particular and the company offering the secured credit card may never even mail the card out to you.