Do you know the interest rate charged by your credit card company on your purchases?

When do they charge interest and when do they levy a late fee?

Is there any service tax applicable on the goods that you purchase using your card?

Do you know how to go about filing a complaint against a credit card company for harrassment? Can these companies employ illegal means to recover their dues?

Are you liable to pay your spouse's credit card dues in case of her/ his sudden demise?

In a chat with readers on May 8, Get Ahead personal finance expert Harsh Roongta answered these and many more queries related to credit card problems customers face.

For those of you who missed the chat, here is the transcript.

Anil asked, My wife was having SBI card which she got from SBI bank in PUNE. Afterwards whenever we had any inquiry, none of the bank employees were ready to help us. This is ridiculous for me as the bank which is giving me the card is unable to help us in case of any inquiry. What they say is you call the helpline number which is flooded with call and we have to hold our call for half an hour and we are paying for that.

Harsh Roongta answers, That is an understandable issue as the card is issued by a separate organisation which is a joint venture between GE and SBI, though the brand on the card is that of SBI alone. Your confusion is understandable though as all these are only technical matters as far as you are concerned. However, I am afraid, in your specific case you have no other alternative other than the help line number or the SBI cards website to lodge your complaint or make your query.

Balaji asked, What is the interest rate generally credit card companies levy if I my due after 52 days?

Harsh Roongta answers, Interest rates on most credit cards vary between 27 per cent to 40 per cent per annum (assuming you have paid the minimum due amount by due date). If you have not paid anything by the due date, then you will have to pay the late payment fee as well as overdue interest which will also be at a higher rate.

raja asked, Sir, I was using ICICI Bank's credit card. They have debited an amount of Rs 6,000 against the payment of MTNL telephone bill from my credit card. But I don't have any MTNL phone. After making lot of phone calls to their Hyderabad office, they are unable to give me any satisfactory answer. I have stopped all the payment for the same. Now, tell me what should I do to solve this matter.

Harsh Roongta answers, Please lodge an official complaint on the ICICI Bank website. If your query is not resolved within 2-3 weeks to your satisfaction, you should complain to the banking ombudsman in your area. The list of banking ombudsman is available on www.rbi.org.in.

Balaji asked, Is there any service tax applicable if I buy any electronic goods through my credit cards?

Harsh Roongta answers, There is no additional tax on purchase of the item itself. However, if you do not pay the entire amount due on due date, then you will need to pay interest on the amount rolled over and on this interest there is a service tax chargeable.

Kapil asked, Hello Sir, I am using the credit cards of almost 10-12 banks since last 7 years and have never faced any problem of any kind. Even you can say I have enjoyed a lot of offers, discounts, bonus points etc. Don't you think the main problem is with the credit card holder as they can't keep the proper record and timely check up of credit card outstanding?

Harsh Roongta answers, You are right, Kapil. Provided you keep proper records and pay your dues on time (do not use credit cards to borrow money), credit cards can be a real boon and convenience. However, if you are of the kind who cannot control your spending on impulse buys, then you should probably not use credit cards at all.

Debashis asked, I did an online transaction with my credit card. First time before the transaction was over it threw some error. So I did it the second time. Now the same amount is coming to my bill twice. I have complained. They told you pay the bill amount minus the extra amount. What shall I do?

Harsh Roongta answers, Don't depend on any verbal instructions. File an official complaint on the bank's website and if they do not reverse one of the debits, complain to the banking ombudsman. Address and details on http://www.rbi.org.in/.

mukesh asked, I had an outstanding with SBI of Rs 2,700-odd amount and I received a call from ICICI for transfer of funds. I informed them to transfer Rs 3,000 and they transferred Rs 83,000 to my SBI card and now SBI is not refunding the excess paid to them of Rs 80,270.84. Kindly advice how can I get the refund at the earliest? It is more then 6 months now.

Harsh Roongta answers, Your best bet is to withdraw cash on your SBI card and deposit it back into your ICICI credit card account. Although you will end up paying a one time fee of about 3 per cent (about Rs 2,400 on Rs 80,000), atleast you will save on the interest that you must be paying on your ICICI Bank credit card.

AG asked, My bank says that they won't charge if late till 52 days. But still they charge the late fee and threaten to recover money the hard way. Please help.

Harsh Roongta answers, I think there is a lot of misunderstanding about the maximum free days allowed for payment. The maximum free days are available only for purchases made on the first day of the billing cycle. For purchases made on the second day you get only 51 days and so on till you get only 21 days for the purchases made on the last day of the billing cycle.

Also, the free period is not available if you have rolled over any amount in the past billing cycle. So my advice is please pay up the interest and fees that the bank is asking or you risk being reported to the credit bureau as a defaulter which will make it difficult for you to get any credit in the future.

RAK asked, I owe the credit card company a huge amount and am finding it difficult to repay it. What can I do to clear my debt without putting too much of a strain on my financial situation.

Harsh Roongta answers, Unfortunately, there is no simple answer to your problem. Your past sins have a way of catching up with you. I would strongly recommend that you make all attempts to pay up the credit card dues in full. The bank may otherwise report you to the credit bureau as a defaulter making it difficult for you to raise any loans in the future.

Harpreet asked, What happens if we don't pay credit card outstanding amount and is unable to pay back the personal loan EMIs? Do they employ any illegal means or just declare their card holder defaulter and put her/his name in the black list. Is there any thing to worry out?

Harsh Roongta answers, Well, there are serious economic implications in terms of not being able to access any loans in the future. Also, the bank will take legal action to get you declared as a defaulter which means all assets owned by you will need to be paid over to the bank to satisfy the liabilities. The process is no longer as slow as it used to be earlier, so I implore you to take this seriously.

sujeet CM asked, Hi I am Sujeet; I found fraudulent transactions on my credit card. Several airline tickets were booked online using my credit card number; I disputed this with the bank and the bank says it is investigating the matter. What action should I take from my side.

Harsh Roongta answers, No other action required for the time being as long as the bank does not re-debit the amount to your credit card. If they do, you should complain to the banking ombudsman. Details on www.rbi.org.in.

nalini asked, My husband lost heavily in business . In the meantime he has used credit cards excessively. In between he was not able to pay the premiums. Then he got a good job and then thought of paying regularly but with all the stress he had faced he collapsed had a massive attack and died. Now the credit card people are behind me. Am I responsible for those payments? He has no property nor any insurance. I am broke and started going for a job at the age of 52 what can be done?

Harsh Roongta answers, Unless you have inherited any asset from your husband, you are not legally responsible for the debts of your husband. If you have inherited any assets than you are responsible only to the extent of the assets inherited.

You should file an official complaint with the concerned bank on their website and complain further to the banking ombudsman (details on www.rbi.org.in) if the bank still does not stop the collection process.

Sumit asked, Hi Mr. Roongta, How to cope up with credit card dues payment? I have taken personal loan from ICICI credit card to pay my dues, but in monthly statements, they add principal+ interest + service tax. If I am taking loan from the same bank, of which I have a credit card then why do they put service tax on it?

Harsh Roongta answers, Any interest payable on a loan taken on a credit card is chargeable to service tax. A better bet is to take an independent personal loan from your bank and use it to pay off the credit card dues.

Supratik asked, Is it a statutory financial discipline on the part of the banker to warn/ alert the card holder if any abnormal transaction happens on her/ his account?

Harsh Roongta answers, There is no such legal requirement though most banks have fraud alert systems within their credit card authorisation systems. So, for example, your card may be declined if you have never in the past used it in a jewellery store and you may get a call from your bank on your mobile checking whether it was you who actually initiated that transaction. If you confirm, they may request you to re-swipe the card and approve it this time. But all this is not a legal requirement on the part of the bank.

Part II: Tomorrow 

Harsh Roongta is the CEO of apnaloan.com, a site that help people get the most competitive loans.