I've often said owning a credit card company is a license to steal. You can change the rules at any time for any reason, including no reason. One of their most unfair tactics is so-called universal default, where a customer in perfect standing has his or her interest raised to a penalty interest rate of 25-30% APR or more (including on past balances) due to one instance of an alleged failure to pay a different creditor on time, or due to a decline in the customer's credit score. Yesterday New York Governor George Pataki vetoed a PIRG-backed bill which would have banned universal default. We are disappointed in his failure to protect New York consumers from an unfair, deceptive and punitive practice that is based more on a credit card company desire to ratchet up profits than on any sort of risk-based pricing. See truthaboutcredit.org for more information on credit card companies.