New Rule Makes Now The Time To Settle Old Credit Card Debt Banks

Banks that issue credit cards are watching their default rates go through the roof and that's really bad news considering a proposed change in the Financial Accounting Standard. The new rule could force the banks to increase their cash reserves to cover bad loans leaving less money available for loans to small business and consumers.

So how does this impact the consumer?

Consumers who are behind on the bill from their credit card should seriously consider contacting the bank and negotiating a discounted settlement. Using a credit counseling service is a good idea so the offer is reasonable and there is a plan in place to pay the settlement. Savings of thirty to forty percent or more are possible.

It is a common practice of banks to bundle credit card loans into an investment vehicle and then sell them on the market. When they do this, they don't have to show those loans on their balance sheet as they are "off the books" deals. The change in the accounting standard will stop this practice and those loans will have to be shown on the bank's books.

Banks are regulated and are required to keep a certain percentage of outstanding loans as a cash reserve for defaults. If the loans are "off the books" they are not included in the balance sheet and therefore the bank does not have to keep a reserve on them.

The proposed change in the accounting standard will require that all loans, to include off the books loans, be carried on a bank's balance sheet. That means that banks are going to have to set aside additional cash to cover the reserve requirement of the formerly off the books deals. Between AMEX, Citigroup and Discover card, over $146 billion in new loans will be added to bank balance sheets.

Billions of dollars will be needed to cover the cash reserve requirement once those new loans are added to the books. Banks know that at least 10% of the loans are bad and the potential for that to go up is very real. The more defaults, the more the reserve needs to be replenished. As a result, banks are motivated to accept settlements for less than the amount owed. In fact some banks are making the first contact with card holders who are behind offering discounted deals.

There really is no downside for the consumer. By being late on the payments, the consumer's credit rating is already damaged. If the cash can be put together the consumer can get a significant discount on their debt. However, the time to act is now. Late fees and a default interest rate of 30% are still being applied so why wait.