Creditors not implementing new rules until they have to

Politicians lobbying to speed up the implementation date of the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 to force creditors into action may have a point, as few credit card companies have adjusted to new regulations that will aid those who have been forced into credit card counseling.

According to BillShrink.com, issuers have yet to apply a new consumer protection law in the CARD Act that gives cardholders the right to fair allocation of payments that will first pay off balances with higher interest rates.

Similarly, no creditors began programs to provide educational information to card holders on how to properly pay off their bills in order to leave their credit score in the best position, while only four had done away with the $5 to $15 surcharge for bills paid over the phone rather than online or by mail.

A recent study by the Pew Trusts found similar results regarding a section of the CARD Act going into effect in August 2010 that will required penalty fees and charges to be "reasonable and proportional" to the infractions they were being levied against.

Despite that, the report found that 99 percent of bank cards had a late fee while 80 percent had an overlimit fee, both of which had a median price of $39.