Photo by Photos8.com 2010 already looks like it's shaping up to be the year of ever-expanding fees for credit cardholders. While legislators are still celebrating and patting themselves on the back for passing the CARD Act of 2009, consumers, on the other hand, haven't experienced much to be happy about at all. Credit limits continue to get slashed, interest rates are on rise, and credit issuers are resurrecting old fees or adding new ones in an effort to recapture lost profits.

[caption id="attachment_1019" align="alignleft" width="90" caption=" "]Photo by HikingArtist.com[/caption]

How can a company find customers willing to pay almost $400 in fees for a credit card that will only finance 30% of purchases from a single catalog? It's hard to imagine, but the FTC seems to have caught one dead in its tracks.

According to a press release issued on November 3rd, a formal complaint was issued in federal court alleging that Low Pay, Inc. used deceptive mailers to market its card to consumers with credit problems, charging them hundreds of dollars in up-front fees and often reneging on its refund policy. In response, Low Pay has apparently agreed to pull the plug on its questionable practices while they battle it out with the FTC.

The actual complaint explains in more detail how the FTC believes Low Pay pulled this whole thing off. Here's what was allegedly going down:

Should you opt out, opt in, opt in to opting out, or opt out of opting in?

So many choices!  But when it comes to over-the-limit fees, there's only one answer in my mind— opting out.

One of the major provisions in the CARD Act of 2009 is that banks will no longer be able to charge over-the-limit fees unless customers choose to be allowed to make purchases in excess of their credit limits.  So, you will have the right to "opt out" of over-the-limit fees, which are often as high as $39, by simply telling your bank you would rather live within your credit limit.

Most people don’t think of credit cards as a terribly exciting topic of conversation. When was the last time you were hanging out with a bunch of friends and felt an overwhelming urge to brag about how many “ThankYou” points you banked with your CitiCard this year? Probably not going to be the life of the party if that’s the best you can come up with. That is, unless you’re hanging out at my house.