Tips For Saving Money – Card Fees

Avoid late fees at any expense.

Tips For Saving Money – Debit CardFees

Late fees can be the beginning of the end. Although it may be overstated, there is a lot of truth to people ruining their credit score due to missing payments and paying their credit card bills late. Before you even know it, both the late fees and variable penalty interest are piled up and you can not even afford the minimum payment. If you don’t do something fast – it could really diminish your credit.

To make sure this does not happen to you, you should always pay your bill on time. We know it could be a hard to make your payments during challenging times. However, it is essential to do everything in your power to ensure that you stay on top of your bills and expenses. Even though you have a justified personal reason why you can not make a payment, it does not stop the credit companies from charging you fees and reporting the missed payment(s) to the credit bureaus. Inside your bill, you will find detailed instructions regarding payment amount, due date, and the different options to make your payment. Try to make it. Nevertheless, life is not perfect so here are some valuable facts and tips to help you with your payments, alternative options, and an after the fact solution if you already failed to pay your bill.

Always be prepared and be proactive.
If it is a credit card payment, it is a good idea to keep a log of your expenses so you will know what you next month bill will be before it is time to pay. If you can not afford the minimum payment, it is a good idea not to buy the item in the first place unless it is a necessity. If it is any other fixed payment, start visualizing yourself making that payment. In other words start setting aside money now for that payment so it can be paid the minute it is received.

General Credit Card tip: Always make sure that you have sufficient money before using your credit card, or at least enough for the minimum payment, so you can pay the bill the minute it arrives. This will keep you in good standing with your creditors and therefore giving you the ability to improve your score.

If you simply can not afford to make your payment, you should at least make the minimum payment if the option is available. Even though you may be able to pay more at a later time, you should always pay at least the minimum amount. At a later time, you can always send in an additional payment thus avoiding most or in some cases any fees.

The easiest way to ensure this payment is to have the minimum payment set aside from the day you receive your pay check. With you priorities in line, we always recommend to make a higher payment if you are able to. The higher your payment, the less overall interest you will be charged. However, by making the minimum payment, the most important issue of avoiding the late fees on your current and upcoming bill has been resolved.

Creditors may offer a skip-a-payment or defer-a-payment option.

Some credit cards even have optional deferred payment insurance coverage for the unforeseen situations in life. Check with your creditors to determine if these options are available. This service allows you waive your current month payment and is only offered for legitimate reasons. Use this service wisely as it is usually only offered once a year or less. Therefore, this should be your last case scenario. A true emergency and there are no other options available for you. This service will normally have a cost associated with it which will be charged on your following bill but can possible avoid any negative credit reporting to the credit bureaus. Review your creditors policies or discuss with there customer service representative as each creditor operates differently and may not provide this option.

Another good option is to use funds from another credit source such as a personal loan, credit card balance transfers, credit card convenience checks, etc. Get creative; ask a family member, a business partner, a best friend, anything to make your payment. Certainly this option will resolve the immediate solution of avoiding a late payment and further interest charges but should be used with caution. This option will increase your credit obligation which you will have to fulfill the following month. Please read the account detail terms from our alternative credit source for any applicable fees.

The final option is not really an option. It is an after the fact solution once the late fees have already been charged onto your account. This option has proven to be successful with our clients and readers only when there late payment is an exception and not a common occurrence. Once you have made your late payment, contact customer service and request the late fees to be removed because of “X” reason. This must be done with the following: a positive attitude, a smile, address the customer service rep by there name, with utmost respect, and speak in a pleasant voice. Provide a legitimate reason along with the fact that you have been a loyal customer for “X” amount of time and have never been late let alone miss a payment. If the customer service representative sees that this has not occurred frequently in the past, they will either reduce or remove the entire fee.

It works….. At this point, what do you have to lose?