HDFC CC and smart tips regarding Credit cards. Review on HDFC Bank Visa Credit Card

I have read a lot of reviews on credit cards given by MS users and would like to give some insights of my own.

I have been using a Visa - HDFC credit card since 2004 and have found it to be quite ok. Since then my card   has been upgraded from silver  to gold and now a platinum card.

Advantages: 1) Accepted by all merchants 2) Uses visa secure password for online transactions.

I  have not defaulted on any of the payments( I pay on-line)  and fortunately had no billing issues; my calls to  customer care has a count of only two, hence no frustations for me touch wood.

It is always good to go  for a CC  offered through your company's  bank( eg if you salary is deposited to HDFC or ICICI bank)  by as they offer many discounts, schemes etc and do not have much paper work.

Please ensure that your Customer care has immediate card blocking facilty and the card is secure for online transactions.Word of mouth publicity also helps hence always take suggestions from  your friends and family if you want to go for a new CC  as compared to online reviews cause you would be getting mostly negatives reviews( A person who has suffered is more likely to put up a review rather than a person  who is happy with the product).

I believe that the effectiveness of a credit card is really largely a matter of personal responsibility and accountability. here are some tips which helped me:

1) Do not go in for a race of having a large number of credit cards. At the most have 2 or max 3.The more cards you have the more you will give into impulsive shopping and spending.

2) You need to know the billing cycle of your CC. eg if it is from 13th-12th then it would make sense to  have purchases made on 15th  as you opposed to that of 10th as you it will be shown in the next billing cycle and you get a credit time of 45 days

3) Knowing how much is the interest rate(APR) that would be charged by banks is also very important. Generally, companies charge between 2-3% per month.Do not buy things for which you cannot compete the  payment in the next 2-3 installments.

4) Keep a note of your CC  and the help line number with you( NO DONT KEEP IT IN YOUR WALLET WITH UR CC).In  case of loss of card you can report it immeadately with the relevant details without much wastage of time

5) During online transactions make sure the website is of repute( irtc, bookmyshow, amazon etc).If your are a first time user on a site make sure it is a secured site(starts with https) and has a lock sign.

6) If possible do not make transactions from cyber cafes, if you do use a public pc, ensure you delete the cookies after use.

7) If you make CC payments by check make sure to deposit it   2 days before the billing due date to avoid possiblity of defaultingAlways prefer online payment of credit card bill if possible as its happens immediately.

Note that CIBIL( credit information bureau India ltd) keeps a record of your credit history and a person defaulting frequently  on his credit card  bills is more likely to be turned down by banks for a home or a car loan.

Needless to say things like checking your monthly statements for any issues, avoid giving your Tpin num to any one, always have the card swiped in your presense etc goes a long way in your CC security.

There has been many instances where people have been promised lifetime free card by the sales dep and after one year you will see an annual fee in your statement. In such case call the customer care tell them of the issue and inform them that you would be cancelling your card on account of the wrong info provided. In 80% cases they will revert the annual fee:).

Make sure you don't compromise on the habit of saving money as CC often makes us forget this great habit of saving things for a rainy day.

Hope this was useful.

Regards,

Rajiv