Hello and

welcome to Money Girls Quick and Dirty Tips for a richer life.

I'm your host Laura Adams. If you're like most Americans you have a credit card or

two in your wallet and wouldn't leave home without it.

Back in show 126 called Take Charge of your credit cards.

I mentioned upcoming legislation for consumer protection

called the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure, or Card Act of 2009.

The first phase of the new law was implemented on August 20th, and the remaining two phases

will go into effect in early and mid 2010. In this show I'll cover the three major

provisions of the first phase and give you 10 tips to help you win the battle of consumer

versus credit cards.

The first change that all credit card users will Battle of Consumer versus Credit Cards.

The first change that all credit card users will notice is that you'll get more

advance warning about changes to your account.

If a credit card company wants to make any substantial changes to your terms such as increasing your interest rate or fees,

they have to notify you in writing at least 45 days in advance.

Prior to the new legislation, consumers only got a 15-day heads up about these types of impending changes if they

received any notification at all.

The second provision in the Card Act is that you can just say no to your card issuers' proposed

changes to your account. The company must inform you in

writing about your right to opt out of their changes. If you don't want to pay a higher

interest rate or more fees you can cancel your account before they make any changes.

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