Paying with plastic—by credit or debit card—certainly has benefits. You can buy goods and services with a credit card now and pay for them later. And debit cards, which deduct payments automatically from your deposit account, offer a quick, easy way to make small purchases and avoid interest charges. But you must understand the terms and conditions of the card you use—and indications are that many consumers do not.

FDIC Consumer News knows that the banking product consumers gripe about the most—about one third of all consumer complaints received by federal banking regulators—is the credit card. Banking regulators also get questions about debit cards now that they are more popular as a payment option. That's why we offer this special update.

So don't stop reading now—charge ahead!