Update: This credit card has changed since this article was published. You can check out the most up-to-date details on this card here: American Express Serve®.

On its surface, American Express Serve® looks like a prepaid card - albeit a great one. You load money on to it, you use it to make purchases, and you keep it in your wallet. 

Pretty standard, right?

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy Festivus from everyone at Creditnet!

'How do you plan on improving your credit score in 2013?'

I posted this question to the always reliable and active Credit Talk Forum the other day, and was met with a few responses from some loyal contributors that have been around the forum a lot longer than I have.

This guest post was written by Rob, a personal finance blogger and editor of www.money-fox.com, the personal finance blog that aims to help you to become more financially resourceful.

With an increasing number of people feeling insecure in their jobs and the cost of living continuing to rise, recent studies have shown that young people feel more confident and have better self-esteem if they know their credit score is good.

You may have read about a report from TransUnion last month that said both average credit debt and delinquency payments had swelled slightly from the same period last year. In the midst of the biggest shopping season of the year, the average American is carrying close to $5000 in credit card debt. That's up 5% from last year. (Delinquency payments are only slightly on the rise, from 0.71 to 0.75 this year.)