The Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act (also known as the CARD Act ) was enacted in 2009 to protect borrowers from predatory and unfair practices by credit card companies. There are some major changes to what is allowed under the new law. It's important to know what they are as you now have more rights to monitor and protect.

Although there are financial benefits to the CARD bill, one of the most important benefits is actually in the realm of personal privacy. Before CARD was enacted, one credit card company could alter your terms based on behavior reported to credit bureaus by another credit card company! If you'd defaulted on your Kohl's card, for instance, and Mastercard found out, Mastercard would then lower your credit limit or raise your interest rate, or both. This is called "universal default" will no longer be allowed. This won't undo the harm that was done in the past, but it will keep it from happening in the future.

In the informational domain, credit card companies are now required to give you 45 days' written notice before raising the interest rate on existing card. Further, card issuers now must disclose your cost of borrowing more clearly than they had in the past, and the amount of time it will take to ay off your bill must also be spelled out.

On campuses and college events, the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act restricts lenders from marketing to students. This will make it far harder for college students and anyone under age 21 to acquire a credit card and get themselves into serious financial trouble. Any young person who applies for a card will need a parent to cosign the loan, or proof (in contrast to a simple declaration) of income sufficient to service debt that might be accrued. See: "New Credit Card Choices For College Students" for more on this topic.

There are many credit card industry practices that have long been slammed by consumer rights advocates, and that have helped lead many Americans off of a financial cliff. The Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act ends the credit card industry's days of operating in a virtual Wild West, and with broad bipartisan support, has made credit cards more consumer-friendly. Although it's hard to predict the savings for each individual borrower, the nonprofit Pew Charitable Trust found that the new practices will save consumers at least $10 billion.