Kard Kardashian: Attorney General Issues Warning on Perils of Teen Credit Cards

Nov. 26, 2010 — -- If you want to keep up with the Kardashians, the family's new credit card that targets teens may not be the way to do it.

In a statement released today, Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal warned consumers of the perils of credit cards marketed at young adults and disclosed that he has demanded that University National Bank, which issues the Kardashian Kard, provide specific details about how the card is promoted and sold in Connecticut.

"Keeping up with the Kardashians is impossible using these cards -- laden with pernicious and predatory fees that swallow card value," Blumenthal said. "These cards are feckless financial tools designed to promptly diminish in value with virtually every transaction -- and even when consumers don't use the card at all."

He said that the card appears to invoke the Kardashian's extravagant and luxurious lifestyle, while specifically targeting young adults. The "gotcha fees" and other charges will cause consumers to lose money before they can even use it, he said.

"The family is marketing a dangerous financial fantasy," he said.

University National Bank said it had not yet been contacted by Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal's office but would review his request and respond accordingly once they received his official notification.

"We share a common interest of serving our communities and thank him for his ongoing consumer advocacy," the bank said in a statement. "As with all financial products, University National Bank seeks to ensure the highest level of consumer protection and disclosure. Prepaid products are proven to meet a financial need and we continue to monitor all prepaid programs for business viability and compliance with consumer protection provisions."

Kardashian Sisters Launch Prepaid MasterCard

Earlier this month, the Kardashian sisters -- Kim, 30, Khloe, 26, and Kourtney, 31, celebrated the launch of their Kardashian Prepaid MasterCard at New York City's Pacha nightclub.

When asked by "Entertainment Tonight" which one of the trio spends the most, Kourtney said, "No question, it's Kim." Kim, who once admitted to spending $2,500 on a pair of lace-and-python Christian Louboutin booties, nodded her head in agreement.

Kim and her sisters teamed with MasterCard to create a prepaid credit card for teens as young as 16 years old. The card allows parents to put a predetermined amount of money on the card, then track their teens' spending habits via cell phone.

Despite the Kardashian clan's lavish lifestyle, Mobile Resource, the company releasing the card, believes the family can breed budget-friendly spending habits in their fans.

"It is clear that the Kardashians are very wealthy, Kim also just spent $30,000 on a purse," a representative for Mobile Resource told ABCNews.com when the card first launched. "They can well afford their expenditures. They wanted to take state of the art technology to their fan base, providing them with a vehicle to protect their money and control and track their spending with all instant alerts to their cell phone."

Kardashian Card Not First Credit Card to Target Teens

The Kardashian card isn't the first prepaid credit card targeted at teens. The Visa Buxx card, which also allows parents to put a fixed sum of money on an account, was launched last decade. But the Kardashian card is the first to be endorsed by an uber-famous family.

Kim is well-known to the teen set not only for her hit reality show on E! but also for posing with Justin Bieber in the September 2010 issue of Elle magazine and prompting scads of his tween fans to cry bloody hell when she tweeted that she'd messed up his hair during their beachside photo shoot.

The prepaid credit card is far from Kim's first business venture. In the five years or so after becoming famous, she's lent her name to products as diverse as diet pills, sunless tanner, perfurme, jewelry and clothing. Next up for Kim: hosting the hour-long ABC special "25 Years of Sexy: People Magazine's Sexiest Man Alive!" Nov. 17.