As credit card companies put the squeeze on, consumers fight back

Now that the CARD Act is in effect, credit card companies have been stripped of some of the practices they used to rely on to rake in the big bucks. As a result, many card issuers are embarking on all sorts of consumer-unfriendly behavior, including hiking interest rates, adding new fees and charging more for existing fees. We reached out to consumers who are fed up with the new ways card companies are putting the squeeze on them to see how they're fighting back.

When TV production consultant Nicole Dunn opened her February credit card statement from issuer Capital One last month, she was surprised to see that her interest rate was going up - and not by just a little. Her former 12% rate was getting hiked to a stiff 22.99%. What made it all the more galling, Dunn says, is that she was a good customer. She'd had the card for seven years and had never been late with or missed a payment.