Common rewards card mistakes, credit limits, fraud and chargebacks, credit reports, buy now pay later, points expiry and how to complain.
Most rewards card regret comes from a handful of patterns: paying interest that wipes out the points, keeping a high-fee card for perks that are never used, letting points expire, or missing the date a balance transfer reverts. Australian law also gives cardholders specific protections that are worth knowing before something goes wrong.
Start with rewards credit card mistakes to avoid. Then read about credit limit increases, reducing your limit and cancelling online, fraud, chargebacks and the ePayments Code, how credit cards show on your credit report, buy now pay later compared with credit cards under the 2025 rules, points expiry, devaluation and cancelling a card and complaints, AFCA and official sources.
If you are already behind on card repayments, the free National Debt Helpline (1800 007 007) can help before you apply for anything new.
Pitfalls, Protections and Official Sources
How buy now pay later compares with a credit card in Australia since BNPL became regulated credit on 10 June 2025: costs, surcharges, rewards, disputes and credit reporting.
Pitfalls, Protections and Official Sources
How to complain about a credit card issuer in Australia, step by step: internal dispute resolution, AFCA, ASIC, the OAIC and free help, plus a list of official sources for card rules in 2026.
Pitfalls, Protections and Official Sources
What to do about unauthorised or disputed credit card transactions in Australia: chargebacks under card scheme rules, the ePayments Code on who bears losses, scams, and escalating to AFCA.
Pitfalls, Protections and Official Sources
What a credit card adds to an Australian credit report under comprehensive credit reporting, how limits and applications affect later borrowing, and how to manage rewards cards around a home loan.
Pitfalls, Protections and Official Sources
Australian rules on credit card limits: the ban on unsolicited limit increase offers, how to request or refuse an increase, reducing your limit or closing a card online, and over-limit fees.
Pitfalls, Protections and Official Sources
How credit card and frequent flyer points can expire or lose value in Australia, what to do when a program changes, and how to cancel or downgrade a rewards card without forfeiting points.
Pitfalls, Protections and Official Sources
The most common ways rewards, cashback and frequent flyer cards cost Australians money, from carrying a balance to expired points, with illustrative numbers and the fix for each.
