A just-published 2010-2011 survey by the consumer rights group Consumer Action confirms what all too many credit card users already know–today’s rates are extraordinarily high. The average variable rate was 13.20 percent in 2009, but jumped to 15.06 percent in 2010. The rise went straight to credit card companies‘ bottom lines as the Prime Rate remained steady at 3.25 percent during that period.

Consumer Action made an interesting point about how banks use credit card rates to prop up margins. The prime rate tumbled by well over a half between 2008 and 2009, from 7.25 percent to 3.25 percent. Yet the average interest charged on variable rate cards inched down over the same period by only 1 percent. Don’t expect the same sluggish response if (or, rather, when) rates start to rise.

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