Perlmutter, EdWhile new rules are supposed to protect you from surprise rate hikes on your credit card, some companies are slamming their customers anyway. That’s because the new rules haven’t taken effect yet, says Fort Collins’ Ed Robert, who tells 7News he received a letter from his company that “meant much higher fees.”

Such stories—and there are lots of them—led 18 members of Congress, including three from Colorado, to send a letter of their own to major credit card companies, asking them not to raise fees before new rules take effect next year, reports the Denver Business Journal.

“In a time when many Americans are struggling to pay their mortgage, when health care costs are skyrocketing, and many are out of work, unfair credit card practices threaten many families,” says Democratic Congressman Ed Perlmutter, pictured, who signed the letter, which was sent to the CEOs of Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase & Company, American Express Company, Capital One Financial Corporation, and Discover Financial Services.

Perlmutter’s fellow Colorado representatives Betsy Markey and John Salazar also signed. As for consumers, it appears we are fed up with credit card companies and are attempting, amid economic adversity and shocker fees, to pay off our cards, writes The Washington Post.