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Why I love my credit card
One of the first things I did when I started earning a bit of money was applying for a credit card. That sounds like I suddenly got a huge salary, which is not the case, but people living on a student loan are generally not suitable for a credit card, so I didn't get one from the bank until I managed to get an income from somewhere else.
The main reason I wanted that card was to shop online without having to borrow my father's card all the time. Read: that I could buy what I wanted without having to justify it to my overly sensible father who doesn't understand that that dress from Alexander Wang is really very important and that I really need it badly. No matter how immature I may be when it comes to opening letters and other complicated matters, surprisingly enough, I am quite organized with that card. As in, I don't buy more than I can afford and therefore don't get myself into debt.
And for up to 21 days after your statement, no interest is charged on the outstanding amount, so the idea that a credit card is scary and dangerous always seems a bit nonsense to me. And if you pay via direct debit, you don't have to worry about it at all. Moreover, making purchases is actually only safer because there are all kinds of guarantees that protect your online purchases if something goes wrong.
Do you remember that I started the year with a renovation at my home? One of the many purchases I made for that was a kind of custom-made bookcase costing almost 1000 euros. I made a down payment of 300 euros and would be able to pick up the bookcase after 6 weeks and pay the rest. But to this day (we are almost half a year later), I have never heard anything from that company again.
If I had made that payment with my credit card instead of with iDeal, I would have been protected against this kind of nonsense because there is something nice called “the Delivery Guarantee” which insures you against fraudulent online companies that first take your money and then leave you hanging and are no longer reachable. And another nice thing is the “Purchase Insurance” which insures almost all your online purchases made with a credit card for 180 days against loss, theft, and damage.
Anyone who doesn't believe me should take a look here, everything is explained clearly there. When you think about it, you can hardly do without a credit card in this day and age, and you really don't need to have a million-dollar salary to get one. And if I'm not mistaken, you can even apply for a prepaid credit card these days. So take that card, say nothing to your parents (you'll get that again), but do be a bit sensible. Always check the terms of your own credit card as well. The terms of credit cards not issued by International Card Services may be different. But if I can do it, really everyone can.
