By Associated Press
New York City, NY – US Senator Charles Schumer says college students under 21 should be required to get parental consent to get credit cards.
Schumer says New York state's 889,000 college students are carrying nearly $2 billion in credit card debt, partly because of hidden interest rates and dishonest marketing practices.
Schumer says one reason for the mounting debt is that the low interest rates the credit card companies tout often triple within seven months. Another reason is fees that are buried in the fine print.
To address the problem, Schumer proposes that credit card companies be required to obtain parental consent before issuing cards to dependent students under 21.
He said the companies should be required to provide advance notice of any rate increase and tell consumers of their right to cancel.