CREDIT BUREAU
A privately owned, profit-making establishment
that—as a regular business—collects and compiles
data regarding the solvency, character, responsibil-
ity, and reputation of a particular individual or
business in order to furnish such information to
subscribers, in the form of a report allowing them
to evaluate the financial stability of the subject of
the report.
Credit bureaus ordinarily prepare and issue
reports for lending institutions and stores that
investigate the financial reliability of an appli-
cant for credit prior to the execution of the
credit agreement.
Credit bureaus are regulated by the federal
FAIR CREDIT REPORTING ACT (15 U.S.C.A. §
1681 et seq. [1970]) and by state statute to safeguard
against abusive and damaging practices.
Plain-language Cardholder Agreement
Erie Shores Credit Union, Inc.
VISA CARDHOLDER AGREEMENT
Effective: February 2002
This Agreement covers your credit card account with us, Erie Shores Credit Union, Inc.. The person (“Account Holder” or “You”) whose
name is embossed on the face of the Visa credit card (“Card”) provided to Account Holder and issued by us and each Account Holder, by
signing or using the Card, agrees with Issuer to the following terms:
1. Your Account. If you have a joint account, each Account Holder has the right to use the account up to the extended credit limit as
described below. Each Account Holder is bound by these terms and each, individually, will be liable for all charges, even if only one of you
uses the account. For joint accounts, each individual separately, and both individuals together, are referred to in this Agreement as “You”.
2. Credit Card Account Services. These services are available through your Card account, up to the amount of your credit limit.
a. Credit Purchases. You can use your account to purchase goods and services wherever Visa credit cards are accepted (referred
to in this Agreement as “Credit Purchases”).
b. Cash Advances. You can get a Cash Advance (referred to in this Agreement as a “Cash Advance”) from your account by
presenting your Card at a financial institution that accepts Visa. You can also use your Card to obtain up to $1005 per day in
cash from any authorized Erie Shores Credit Union, Inc. Automated Teller Machine (“ATM”). You may not obtain a Cash
Advance if your account is delinquent, closed or the amount of the advance would cause your balance to go over your credit
limit.
3. Your promise to pay.
3.1 You promise to pay us, when due, the total of all Credit Purchases and Cash Advances you make on your account. You also
promise to pay the total of any Finance Charge and other charges due on the account. You also promise to pay all costs and expenses,
including reasonable attorneys’ fees that we incur in enforcing this Agreement.
3.2 You may pay your entire balance at any time.
4. Additional Card Holders or Others Using Your Account. You may authorize others to use your account. You may add up to 3
additional card holder(s) to your account at no extra charge. Each additional card holder will receive a credit card with his or her individual
name embossed. You promise to pay for all Credit Purchases and Cash Advances made by anyone you authorize to use your account, with
or without a card, and whether or not you notify us that he or she will be using it. If another person has use of your account and you want
to end that person’s privilege, you must recover and return that person’s credit card, if any. If you are unable to recover and return the card,
you will continue to be liable for any charges made unless you tell us to cancel all cards and establish a new account for you, which will be
done automatically if you notify us of unauthorized use under Paragraph 22 of this Agreement. We may request written verification from
you regarding any change or cancellation to your account.
5. U.S. Currency. If you make a purchase or cash advance in foreign currency the transaction will be converted into U.S. Dollars by
Visa.
For Visa Accounts: To the extent that you have used your Visa card to purchase goods or services, or obtain cash in another
country, your statement may reflect the conversion into U.S. dollars of transactions which occurred, initially, in a different
currency. The exchange rate applied to such transactions is a (I) wholesale market rate or (ii) government-mandated rate in effect
one day prior to the processing date, increased by one percent.
6. Your Credit Limit; Overlimit Fees. Your credit limit is shown on each of your billing statements. You agree not to use your account
in any way that will cause your balance to go over your limit. If you do, we may at our option, close your account, and/or exercise any of
our other remedies under this Agreement or at law. You must pay the full amount of your balance which is over the credit limit. The fact
that we do not ask you for that amount as part of the Minimum Periodic Payment shown on your billing statement does not relieve you of
your obligation to pay it immediately. We will charge you a fee each time your balance exceeds your credit limit by $1.00 or more. We will
not authorize any new Credit Purchases or Cash Advances if your records show that doing so will cause your balance to go over your limit.
If we do authorize any such Credit Purchase or Cash Advance, such authorization will not result in any waiver of our rights under this
section. If we increase your credit limit, we will notify you.
7. Law Governing This Agreement. TO THE EXTENT NOT EXPRESSLY PROHIBITED BY APPLICABLE LAW, THIS AGREEMENT AND
YOUR ACCOUNT, AS WELL AS OUR RIGHTS AND DUTIES AND YOUR RIGHTS AND DUTIES REGARDING THIS AGREEMENT AND YOUR
ACCOUNT, WILL BE GOVERNED BY AND INTERPRETED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF OHIO, (EXCLUDING THE
CONFLICTS LAW OF OHIO AND THE UNITED STATES, REGARDLESS OF WHERE YOU MAY RESIDE OR USE YOUR ACCOUNT AT ANY
TIME. This choice of law is made because of a strong relationship between this Agreement and your account to Erie Shores Credit Union,
Inc., because Issuer is located in Ohio, and to insure uniform procedures and interpretation for all of our customers, no matter where they
reside or use their accounts. If any term or provision of this Agreement is found to be unenforceable, this will not make any other terms or
provision unenforceable.
8. Limitation on Lawsuits. You agree that any lawsuit based on any cause of action which you may have against us must be filed
within one year from the date that it arises or you will be barred from filing a lawsuit. This limitation is intended to include tort, contract,
and all other causes of action for which you and we may lawfully contract to set limitations for bringing suit.
9. Honoring Your Card. We will not have any responsibility to you if anyone refuses to honor a Card issued on your account. Any
refund, adjustment or credit allowed by a Seller shall not be by cash but rather by a credit advice to us which shall be shown as a credit on
your account statement.
10. Security for This Account. If I am in default, I authorize the Credit Union to exercise its right of offset, to use any funds in its
possession which are titled in my name or joint name, except funds in an Individual Retirement Account to pay the balance due on this
VISA account.
If you have other loans or credit extensions from Issuer, or take out other loans or credit extensions with Issuer in the
future, collateral securing those loans or credit extensions will also secure your obligations under this Agreement. However, unless you expressly agree otherwise, your household goods and dwelling will not secure your obligations under this Agreement
even if Issuer has or later acquires a security interest in the household goods or a mortgage on the dwelling. If you have executed
a written agreement granting a security interest in any deposit accounts (checking, savings, or share accounts) or other funds
held by Issuer to secure your obligations under this credit card plan, such accounts and/or funds are additional security for your
obligations to Issuer arising from the use of your Card.
11. Payment Period. You will receive monthly billing statements from us. The New Balance shown on your statement is the total of
unpaid obligations, which have been posted to your account as of the statement date. You can either pay the entire New Balance or you can
pay in installments, but we must receive at least the Minimum Periodic Payment shown on your billing statement by the payment due date.
The Minimum Periodic Payment is figured as follows:
Your Minimum Periodic
If Your New Balance is: Payment is:
$10.00 or less The amount of your New Balance.
Over $10.00 2.5% of that portion of the New Balance
which does not exceed your credit limit, plus
the entire portion of the New Balance in excess
of your credit limit, plus any amount past due,
or $10.00 whichever is greater.
12. Payment Applications. Payments made to your account will be applied in the following order: Fees and Finance Charges; previously
billed purchases; cash advances; and new purchases. We may accept checks marked “Payment in Full” or with words of similar effect
without losing any of our rights to collect the full balance of your account.
13. Immediate Repayment of Your Full Balance. You will be in default, and we may, without notifying you, temporarily suspend your
credit, close your account, cancel all credit cards issued on it and require immediate payment of your entire balance if any of the following
occurs:
a. You fail to make a payment when it is due;
b. You do not follow the terms of this Agreement in any way;
c. You have made any false or misleading statement on the application for your account;
d. You fail to pay any other loans you owe us;
e. You become insolvent or die;
f. There is an attachment, execution or levy against your property or you make an assignment for the benefit of creditors;
g. A bankruptcy petition is filed by or against you or your spouse;
h. A guardian, conservator, receiver, custodian or trustee is appointed for you;
i. You are generally not paying your debts as they become due; or
j. There has been a material adverse change in your financial standing.
14. Reevaluation of Credit. We can reinvestigate and reevaluate any information you provided on your credit application at any time, and in
the course of doing so, we may ask you for additional information, request credit bureau reports and/or otherwise verify your current
credit standing.
15. Periodic FINANCE CHARGE. Your account will be subject to the Monthly Periodic FINANCE CHARGE Rate and corresponding Annual
Percentage Rate applicable to the Erie Shores Credit Union, Inc. accounts, set forth in the Initial Disclosure provided to you by us.
The Periodic Finance charge on Cash Advances is calculated as follows:
A Finance Charge will be imposed on Cash Advances from the date of the Cash Advance, or from the first day of the billing cycle in
which the Cash Advance is posted to your account, whichever is later, and will otherwise be calculated in the same manner as
explained for Credit Purchases.
The Periodic Finance Charge on Credit Purchases is calculated as follows:
A Finance Charge will be imposed on Credit Purchases only if you elect not to pay the entire New Balance shown on your monthly
statement for the previous billing cycle within 25 days from the closing date of that statement. If you elect not to pay the entire New
Balance shown on your previous monthly statement within that 25-day period, a Finance Charge will be imposed on the unpaid
average daily balance of such Credit Purchases from the previous statement closing date and on new Credit Purchases from the
date of posting to your account during the current billing cycle, and will continue to accrue until the closing date of the billing cycle
preceding the date on which the entire New Balance is paid in full or until the date of payment if more than 25 days from the closing
date.
The Finance Charge for a billing cycle is computed by applying the monthly Periodic Rate to the average daily balance of Credit
Purchases, which is determined by dividing the sum of the daily balances during the billing cycle by the number of days in the cycle.
Each daily balance of Credit Purchases is determined by adding to the outstanding unpaid balance of Credit Purchases at the
beginning of the billing cycle any new Credit Purchases posted to your account, and subtracting any payments as received and
credits as posted to your account, but excluding any unpaid Finance Charges.
16. Transaction Finance Charge. The Transaction Finance Charge is a one-time charge made each time a new Cash Advance is posted to
your account. The charge for each Cash Advance obtained through any ATM is $2.00. The charge of each Cash Advance obtained through
any other source is $2.00.
Since Transaction Finance charges are one-time charges that must be included in calculating the Annual Percentage Rate, the actual
Annual Percentage Rate shown on your periodic statement may exceed the corresponding Annual Percentage Rate (which is based on
Periodic Finance Charge) in any month for which a new Cash Advance is posted to your account.
17. When Finance Charge Begins. The Transaction Finance Charge is assessed on the date the new Cash Advance is posted to your
account. The Periodic Finance Charge for Credit Purchases and Cash Advances begins on the dates as described in paragraph 15 of this
document.
18. Other Charges. The Total Other Charges is the sum of:
a. Membership Fee. We charge a membership fee of $0 per year, which will be billed to your account during the same “renewal
month” each year. If we assign your account a renewal month other than the month of your first billing statement, we may assess a
partial Membership Fee prorated for the period until the first renewal month. All Membership Fees are payable when posted to your
account and are non-refundable except as otherwise provided for by law. This annual fee shall be treated as a credit purchase for
purposes of calculating Finance Charges unless prohibited by law.
b. Late Charge. If we do not receive at least your minimum required payment within 10 days after the closing date subsequent to
the payment due date indicated on your billing statement, we will impose a late or delinquency charge of $25.00.
c. Overlimit Charge. Each time your New Balance exceeds your maximum authorized credit we will impose an Overlimit Charge
of $25.00.
d. Replacement Card. We reserve the right to charge you $15.00 to replace a card.
e. Non-Sufficient Funds. We reserve the right to charge $25.00 for non-sufficient funds.
19. If You Change Your Name or Address. You agree to notify us in writing within twenty days if you change your name, your home or
mailing address, or home or business telephone number.
20. Our Right to Cancel Your Account. We can cancel your account at any time, or reduce the amount of your credit line, without notice
to you, except in those situations where notice is required by law. If we cancel your account, you agree to destroy all Cards issued on your
account by cutting them in half and returning them to us. You will continue to be responsible for full payment of the balance on your
account and all charges to your account, including those not yet received by us, as well as subsequent Finance Charge and other charges.
Each Card is our property, and you agree that the Cards are not transferable and to surrender any Card upon demand.
21. Change in Terms of Your Account. We can change any terms of your account at any time. We will provide you with such notice as is
required by law by mailing a notice to you at the latest address shown in our records. Subject to applicable law, any change will apply to
the current balance of your account, as well as to future balances.
22. If Your Card is Lost or Stolen or if an Unauthorized Use May Occur. You agree to notify us immediately if your card is ever lost or
stolen or if an unauthorized use may have occurred. The telephone number to call is (800) 325-3678, and you agree to follow up your call with notice in writing to us at: Credit Card Security Department, P.O. Box 30035, Tampa, Florida 33630. You also agree to assist us in determining the facts, circumstances and other pertinent information relating to any loss, theft or possible unauthorized use of your credit card and comply with such procedures as we may require in connection with our investigation, including assisting in the prosecution of any unauthorized user.
23. Liability for Unauthorized Use of Credit Card. We may hold you liable for the unauthorized use of your credit card. You will not be liable for unauthorized use that occurs after you notify us orally or in writing of the loss, theft, or possible unauthorized use. In any case, your liability will not exceed $50.00.
24. Credit Information. You agree that we may release information to others, such as credit bureaus, regarding the status and history of your account. However, we are not obligated to release any such information to anyone unless we are required by law to do so.
25. Waivers. If, for any reason, we do not make use of any of our rights under this Agreement on a particular occasion, that will not limit our rights in the future in any way.
26. Our Address. To send payment: Payments must be sent to the address listed on the front of the billing statement after the phrase “make check payable to.” To inquire or send correspondence: Write us at the address indicated on the front of the billing statement after the phrase “send inquiries to.”
27. Important Notice to Our Customer Who Contacts Us by Phone. Cardholder agrees that Issuer, its agents and service companies may, without the need to seek additional confirmation from Cardholder, monitor and/or record any telephone communications with
Cardholder to insure that inquiries from you are handled promptly, courteously, and accurately.
28. Visa Rules and Regulations. The services being provided to you under this Agreement are made possible by Issuer’s status as a licensee of Visa U.S.A. You recognize Issuer’s responsibility to comply with the current Visa U.S.A. rules and regulations and changes to them in order to continue to provide these services. Visa cards may not be used for any illegal transaction.
29. Regulation Z Initial Disclosures. By using your card, you acknowledge receipt from us of the Initial Disclosures required by Regulation Z of the Truth-In-Lending Act and that the terms contained in the Initial Disclosures apply to you and your use of the card and
are incorporated in full into this Agreement. The information about the terms and costs of the Card described in this Customer Agreement is accurate as of the Effective Date. This information may have changed after that date. To find out what may have changed, call us or write
to us.
Write to: Erie Shores Credit Union, Inc.
P.O. Box 9037
1688 Woodlands Drive
Maumee, OH 43537
Call at: (800) 248-8110 or
(419) 897-8110
