Last week, investigative journalist Gary Weiss wrote a Forbes.com article on credit card arbitration. It highlighted a process that I didn’t know a whole lot about. It seems that most (if not all) credit card agreements these days have some teeny-tiny print about mandatory arbitration. It basically means that if you have a dispute with your credit card, you can’t go to court. You’ve already agreed to go before an arbitration board (the National Arbitration Forum), and they are apparently often unfriendly to consumers.

Like Gary, I thought that I really have nothing to worry about. I pay my credit card bills on time, in full. I’ve got perfect credit and I plan on keeping it that way. But alas, that doesn’t mean I’ll avoid the scary arbitration board. Something completely out of my control could put me there. Suppose my identity is stolen, charges are made in my name, and the credit card issuer doesn’t believe me and wants to force payment? Bam! Arbitration board here we come.

Yahoo News reports on a 61-year-old woman who got the shaft from the arbitration people. Irene Lieber says that one of her credit cards was stolen a couple of years ago, and a collection agency tried to get her to pay charges she says weren’t hers. She says she asked to see who signed for the purchases in question, but the credit card company wouldn’t provide documentation. Irene decided to ignore them.

Early this year, Irene received a letter from the arbitration guys. She was confused and got some legal help. Her lawyer tried to get more information on the claim against her, but before she could get any answers, Irene received a notice that her credit card company had won a $46,000 judgment in arbitration.

One of the biggest problems with arbitration? Consumers give up their rights to file suit in court, and usually don’t even have the right to appeal a decision by the arbitration board. Credit card companies like arbitration because they say it is an easier, cheaper, and faster way to resolve issues. Opponents say that the process is usually unfairly weighted against consumers.

A group called Public Citizen keeps tabs on the National Arbitration Forum, and says that in 19,000 cases in California, 95% of decisions were against consumers.