Credit cards are plastic cards or metal cards offered by financial institutions. They enable you to make purchases by borrowing money up to a certain limit. The money is a loan only that it’s not given in cash form. When you exhaust the set limit you pay with the set interest and you can use your credit card again.
The following are the advantages of using credit cards.
Safety
Getting stolen money back is not guaranteed, but with a credit card the moment you misplace it or get robbed you can call the financial institution to cancel any transaction that may be made. This is the main reason why most people prefer using credit cards. I feel safer carrying my credit card with me than a large amount of money.
Credit cards come with security processes to prevent you from any fraud cases. Always report any insecurities you have to your financial institution to take more precautious steps.
Interest-Free Days
Credit cards come with interest-free days on purchases. Some offer 55days of free interest from the day of purchase. This enables you to pay for the purchases without being charged the interest within those days. If you fail to pay during this period you will have to pay together with the interest being charged. There are also no interest-free days for certain transactions like cash advances.
International Currencies
Credit cards can be used to transact in any currency, but they charge you the currency conversion fees. This way you can shop in online foreign countries without having to follow long bank procedures. They are the safest mode of payment when doing online shopping in overseas countries, and since they will have incorporated a payment gateway from somewhere like TokenEx (https://www.tokenex.com/blog/what-is-payment-gateway) the transactions between merchants, service providers, banks and customers will be able to take place. If they didn’t have this, your online shopping habits will be non-existent. Credit cards can also give you financial freedom since you’re not limited to some currencies.
Improves Your Credit Rating
Keeping your credit history good increases your chances of getting other loan approval in the future. So it’s always good to keep your credit card accounts details and payment history clean. Your financial institution will always refer to your former performance to approve you for bigger loans.
Caters For Emergency
Credit cards are of great help during emergencies and you don’t have cash in hand. In case certain issues arise credit cards can be used to cater to the expenses. After paying for such needs make sure you pay back the money in time to avoid being charged interest. Credits cards with no annual fees are the best to use for emergencies.
Refunds are Possible
This is one of the main reasons I like using credit cards. In case you didn’t get satisfied with the services offered or products, it is possible to ask for a refund through your credit card institution. So, you don’t have to worry about going on a loss due to poor services or products. While doing online shopping I like checking if there is a refund in case if I’m not satisfied with what I ordered.
They Have Reward Points
You get to earn reward points on eligible products like grocery, frequent flyers, and fuel. For every dollar, you use the reward points that are redeemed on the bank’s rewards programs. They can give you products from the reward store or cashback. The frequent flyer credit card enables you to get reward points through your airline every time you use the card.
Credit cards that offer rewards come with a higher interest rate and annual fees. So this will cause a strain in your pockets if you can’t afford them, consider having non-reward credit cards. While this appreciation makes shopping with credit cards more enjoyable it may be only suitable for those who can afford it.
