Credit cards are a great ally if they know how to occupy, but at the same time they can be a potential enemy if their use is exceeded or not used properly.
To better explain how to use them in your favor, Cristian Lecaros, spoke with El Economista where he gave some tips for using credit cards without getting into debt. This is due to the report of the Department of Studies of the National Chamber of Commerce, Services and Tourism (CNC), with data provided by Transbank, where they reported that online sales with credit and debit cards grew 30% in the first half of 2018.
This may be great news regarding the ease of obtaining them, but the options for possible over-indebtedness increase. Above all, considering the current delinquency reported by the “Seventeenth Debt Report to June 2018” where one out of every three Chileans over the age of 18 has delinquent debt during the second quarter of 2018.
Because of this, Cristian Lecaros, explained three important tips:
1- Take into account why you have a card
The first thing to keep in mind when you offer us or take out a card is know what it is going to open a credit card, as the name says, is credit, and is based on the bank or the issuing institution is giving a line of credit in cash that is not of the person, a Unlike the debit card, where money is used that belongs to the person and is in that account, a credit card, on the other hand, can take ‘credit’, money that is from the institution and that provides it with conditions.
2- Discipline and order in the payment
The person has to have a budget and all the expenses well detailed and ordered, to pay the installments at the end of the month or the total amount that was used, is the ideal. if you have a well-ordered finances and have the budget to pay for these expenses, you can use and make good use of this instrument.
3- Use the benefits delivered in your favor
Generally what is recommended is to have two cards in different banks, this because normally one can have particular benefits, such as discounts for air travel, and the other give facilities to buy in 6 installments without interest for appliances or 10 installments price counted to pay the school of the children. The idea is to use one card on a day-to-day basis and another one for bigger expenses.
These are just some of the tips to use credit cards without getting into debt, but remember that the most important thing is always to be disciplined with your payments, use the payment fees well, review the associated costs, control the quota and, above all, have awareness of your financial limits. A good financial education will help you to manage them in your favor and without problems.
BIN Checker – BIN List Database Lookup
Our BIN list database is highly accurate, with global coverage. We frequently update the database and cross check it with several sources.
