 TITLE: What Is Regulation Z and How Does It Protect Borrowers? CONTENT: How Regulation Z Protections You With Credit Cards\n--------------------------------------------------\nSince the enactment of the Credit CARD Act of 2009, Regulation Z has provided expanded protections and rights for credit card holders including:\n*   **Liability for unauthorized use**: Your maximum liability for credit card fraud is just $50, and a lender must meet certain requirements before it can hold you liable for any amount of an unauthorized charge.\n*   **Promotional rates**: If a credit card offers a promotional interest rate, the card issuer must state when the promotional period will expire, what the ongoing APR will be after the promotion ends and whether a promotional fee applies and how much. It also requires lenders to note that a deferred interest promotion may incur interest retroactively if you don't pay the balance in full by the end of the promotional period.\n*   **Marketing to college students**: Regulation Z limits how credit card issuers can market their products to college students. For example, they can't offer goods—such as a gift card or T-shirt—as an incentive, and cannot advertise to students within 1,000 feet of college campuses.\n*   **Disclosures**: When you open an account, credit card issuers must provide clear information about a card's interest rate, fees and other finance charges and make certain additional disclosures. You're also entitled to a notification when your card issuer changes your variable interest rate.\n*   **Penalty fees**: If you miss payments on your account, some card issuers may choose to assess a penalty fee. According to Regulation Z, this penalty must be reasonable and proportionate to the violation, and there are hard limits on such fees.\nCredit cards and other types of open-ended credit, including home equity lines of credit, are also covered by a billing dispute process. If you provide information about a billing error within the past 60 days, the lender must send written acknowledgment of the dispute within 30 billing days.\nIf the creditor confirms the billing error—which must happen within two billing cycles and no more than 90 days later—it must correct the error, refund the disputed amount, update fees and other charges associated with the error, and provide the customer with a correction notice. END