Credit Card Glossary Q-Z

Some credit “terms” that might “interest” you

Rebate Card - A credit card which enables consumers to accumulate cash, merchandise or services based on their card usage.

Remaining Balance - Unpaid principal on a loan.

Revolver - Credit card issuer term for somebody who doesn’t pay off their balance in full each month.

Revolving Credit - Line of credit that doesn’t have a specified repayment schedule but may require a minimum payment to cover interest.

Secured Card - A credit card that a cardholder secures with a savings deposit to ensure payment of the outstanding balance. Often used by people new to credit and people trying to rebuild poor credit ratings.

Simple Interest - Interest calculated on the principal balance only, without compounding.

Smart Card - Credit card with a pre-determined limit which is subtracted with each purchase. Similar to a gift card.

Standard Card - Basic credit card offered by issuers.

Term - Time to the maturity of a loan or deposit, expressed in months or years.

Transaction Date - Date the goods or services were purchased or date a cash advance was made.

Truth in Lending Act - Federal law which requires lenders to supply specific information so borrowers can compare loans. This information includes: finance charges in dollars and as an annual percentage rate (APR); the credit issuer or company providing the credit line and the size of the credit line; length of grace period, if any, before payment must be made; minimum payment required; any annual fees; and fees for credit insurance, if any.

Universal Default - A policy of certain lenders which enables them to penalize customers who pay any creditor late. It’s commonly used by credit card companies and is usually the fine print of their contracts.

Usurious Rate - Unnecessarily or unlawfully high interest rate.

Usury - An illegal or excessive amount of interest; the act or practice of lending money at high interest.

Variable Interest Rate - Percentage a customer pays for borrowing money. It’s generally usually expressed as an annual percentage, and it fluctuates in tandem with a rate index.

Zero Balance - When the outstanding balance has been paid and no new charges have been incurred during the billing cycle.