If you have been paying off your credit balance in full each month it is possible for this to happen especially if you returned damaged goods and the refund for the return was credited to your card’s account.

This is sometimes up to the individual merchant. However in most cases the refund must be facilitated by the credit card company and more than likely they will just credit it to your credit card account.

After the merchant processes your refund it can take from one to or four weeks to process it. This is so another month can pass and you can be hit with balance charges. Remember the credit card company is in this to make a profit, not issue refunds.

ViSA has a security program called CISP that stands for a Cardholder Security Information program. This standard of security is so successful that the other major credit card companies have also adopted it as well.

For many students the horror stories about falling victim to credit card debt make it easy to forget that there are many good reasons to sign up for a credit card as a college student. The most important reason is to establish your own credit history. When it's time to transition from college to the real world, you will find that in today's society it can be a very difficult without a credit record. Your credit history is looked at by potential landlords, lenders, and even employers. You could find yourself turned down for an apartment or a car loan if you apply and there is no credit record for them to refer to. Even if you able to get approved, you could find yourself paying an enormous deposit or being charged an outrageous interest rate. Even getting the lights and telephone turned on when you do find a place to live could well cost you more if you don't have credit. Without a credit card, many utility companies will require a $100 deposit which you won't get back for a year.

The true cost is your sense of what is real money and what is debt. Too many people see their credit card as another form of income. They make the deadly mistake of thinking that using it won't cost them to use it. Most people in deep debt lead catastrophic lives. The cost is more than financial - it is demoralizing spiritually and emotionally to never to be able to overcome credit card debt. Overwork due to financial stress and health problems as a consequence are also a common side effect of owning a credit card, that is if you don't know how to manage it.

Probably the best approach is to completely adjust your spending habits and track what you are spending where. You need to look at where you are leaking the most money that you don't have. You need to create a budget and stick to it. This budget should include a couple of luxuries as well as the bare necessities of life.

Most people get into credit card debt because they suffer delusions about their personal finances. The fundamental problem is that you are living beyond your means and postponing the inevitable bankruptcy.

Whatever you do, don't let a debt collector talk you into paying with postdated checks or by electronic payments. Always pay a lump sum with a money order. Unfortunately when you pay a debt with a post dated check or through using an electronic payment you are putting your trust in shady types. Unscrupulous bill collectors have not problem going into your count and draining it once they have your account number.

One of the best ways to get a debt collector off of your back is to request a written notice of whatever he or she is calling you about. According to the law, a debt collector must send you a written notice telling you the amount of money you owe and the name of the creditor. If within 30 days of receiving this collection notice you write a letter back disputing the debt, a debt collector may not contact you again until they can verify the debt.