A 3 Day Grace Period?
What to Do If Your Credit Card Company Isn’t Offering Enough of a Grace Period.
You receive a credit card statement in the mail and you notice that the payment is due in two or three days. If you don’t pay on time, your interest rate is going to increase drastically but you don’t even have time to put the payment in the mail. What do you do?
Between a Rock and a Hard Place
Unfortunately, credit card companies aren’t required to give you a grace period, although the good ones do. If you notice that one of your credit cards is consistently putting you through this time crunch, don’t use that credit card anymore. Try using one that gives more time to get the bill paid.
Online Billing
If you can’t use another credit card or if this is the only credit card you have, another option you have is to opt for online billing if it’s available through the credit card you’re using. This way you can have your invoices sent to you directly via email and you won’t have to wait for the time it takes to have your statement processed and mailed out to you. You’ll know well in advance when your credit card payment is due.
In the Meantime
In the meantime, you need to get this bill paid or you’re going to have a late payment on your credit history. Your best bet is to pay the bill with a check over the phone if the credit card company offers that option or see if you can pay the bill online. This will ensure that you don’t make the payment late and don’t get stuck with late fees and increased interest rates.
Just be careful if you pay by phone that the credit card company doesn’t charge a fee. Many credit card companies don’t, but there are a few who will charge you extra money for taking a payment over the phone. If this is the case, opt to make your payment online if at all possible. Oftentimes, online payments will post the same day the payment is made, giving you more than enough time to avoid late fees and fines.