PITTSBURGH -- The lagging economy has credit card companies hiking their annual percentage rates on customers.
"I've never seen a percentage rate that high," said Diana Popelas.
The number Popelas saw was tiny and hidden at the bottom of a paragraph on page 2, but the 106.08 percent Annual Percentage Rate increase was huge.
"They're backing us into a corner," said Popelas.
Popelas' Macy's bill, with a balance of a little more than $250, had an interest rate of 19.49 percent.
That was until September's bill arrived with more than 100 percent interest and a warning of a $1 fee every time Popelas didn't pay her balance in full.
Popelas admits she has had some credit problems recently, but even Macy's spokeswoman Beth Charlton was surprised at the rate.
Charlton told Channel 4 Action News' Marcie Cipriani she couldn't discuss Popelas' account, but said that the increases are "something that is happening across the country because of the cost of doing credit and because of the challenges of the economy."
For most, Macy's has bumped the number to 24.5 percent.
"We're going to keep seeing the rates going up. I would guess they're going to go up by 4-5 percent," said Duquesne University professor Audrey Guskey.
Guskey advised that rate hikes are something all consumers should expect and should be prepared to fight.
"A lot of times, if you call your credit card companies and you've been a good customer, and you tell them you're interested in lowering your rate and you're thinking about closing your account, chances are they're going to look at your account. If you're a fairly good customer, they may decrease your rate a little bit," said Guskey.
Macy's asked that Channel 4 have Popelas contact the company directly regarding the high interest, but Popelas has decided to handle the bill herself.
"We're not going to use credit cards. If we don't have the money, we don't buy it," said Popelas.
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