Does anyone know if the Revolving Credit number truly tracks credit use of credit cards, or just charges incurred?
I wonder how many consumers use their credit cards the way that I use mine? I use them for as many things as possible - to capture the small "reward" (cash back or mileage, etc.), the float, and for the dispute/fraud protection.
I pay the entire balance every month, though.
Any monthly bills that I can pay (automatically or manually) on a credit card (example, my cell phone bill) are done so using a credit card. (Others are paid using a free web-based payment service through my credit union. I absolutely will not do electronic checking-account debits, except through the payment service, due to a bad experience. The ONLY way to shut these off, should the company making the debits be uncooperative, is to CLOSE your checking account. No such thing as a "stop payment" on these.)
BTW, I only use one specific card for online purchases. (Although I do use it for some other purchases as well.) I decided to do this after TWO instances where I had a card re-issued because online stores were hacked and all of the card numbers were re-issued as a precaution. I now rest easier knowing that only one of my cards will be affected if this happens again. One of my cards has a REAL pesky security department, which calls me on EVERY on-line purchase. Good for them. Inconvenient for me. I use another card for my online purchases...
My use of cash is pretty limited. Supermarket and drugstore purchases are always on a credit card. Use of my ATM/debit card is limited to getting cash. (This is the best way to purchase currency in a foreign country, BTW - but check with your bank first on their specific policies.) I will use cash for purchases under $10.
It seems to me that, although more typical consumers probably makes a more "blended" use of their credit cards (using them both for credit extension and for every-day purchases) that there probably has been a trend toward putting more and more everyday expenses on a credit card.
So, this gets me to thinking that this number may not be so terribly meaningful for tracking consumer credit use, unless them numbers are adjusted to back-out "deadbeats" like me. (The newspeak industry term for a consumer who pays-off their credit card debt in full every month is "deadbeat".) |
