CARD Act 2009 Phase 2

Rate and fee changes effective February 22, 2010

Beginning February 22, 2010, all financial institutions must follow provisions that affect Annual Percentage Rate (APR), fee and finance charge increases on existing balances. They must also follow new provisions on over-the-limit and payment fees. Here’s a summary of what’s changing.

Beginning February 22, 2010	What we're doing
APR, fee or finance charge increases on existing balances
Creditors may not increase the Annual Percentage Rate (APR), fee or finance charge on an consumer credit card, except under the following instances.   Advance notice Creditors must give you a 45-day advance notice of the changes. The notice cannot take place during the first year of your account and must include the option to reject significant changes If you reject the changes, the creditor may freeze your account and prevent future purchases   Time Period Creditors may increase your APR when a specified time period, such as a promotional period, ends. Promotional rates must last at least six months.   Variable rate Creditors can increase your card’s APR if it’s tied to an index not under the creditor’s control such as the Wall Street Journal prime rate.   Penalty rates Creditors must wait until your payment is 60 days past due before they can apply a penalty rate. Once you successfully make six months of minimum payments, the creditor must reduce your APR back to the original APR.   Special arrangements Once you complete a workout or temporary hardship arrangement, or fail to comply with the arrangement, the creditor may increase your APR. The increased APR may not exceed your APR prior to the workout plan.   Service members If you’re on active duty and qualify for a reduced rate under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, creditors can increase your APR once the Act ceases to apply.	Advance notice We’ll continue to provide you with a 45-day notice of any significant change in terms.       Time Period First Tech credit cards have only one APR. We don’t currently offer promotional rates. If this changes, we’ll be sure to outline the terms of the special rate.   Variable rate Our credit cards currently have a variable APR based upon the Wall Street Journal prime rate. Our rate will change as the prime rate changes.   Penalty rates At this time, we don’t participate in penalty rates.   Special arrangements Once your temporary arrangement ends, we’ll ensure your interest rate doesn’t exceed the amount prior to your workout plan.   Service members Once you notify us, of your service status, we’ll ensure your interest rate doesn’t increase while you’re on active duty.
Overlimit fees
Opt-in Creditors can only charge you an overlimit fee if you opt-in to the fee. One per cycle Creditors can only charge you one over-the-limit fee per billing cycle.	Opt-in In the near future, we’ll send you information on how to opt-in to the $10 overlimit fee. At that time, if you prefer not to opt-in, we’ll decline future transactions that take you over your limit. One per cycle We believe in keeping our fees low. That’s why, if you go over your limit, we currently charge only one $10 overlimit fee per billing cycle. Going forward, we’ll keep it that way.

Learn more about other February 22, 2010, provisions affecting payment requirements and disclosures and other term changes.

If you have any questions, please give us a call at 800.637.0852.