Oh The Tricks That Credit Card Companies Play
A Common Credit Card Deception
When it comes to suspicious activity, I'm usually willing give the credit card company the benefit of the doubt. However, there are some things that just seem to jump out at you and scream scam. If you're currently paying a credit card off that has an introductory interest rate or special interest offer, there are some things you need to know.
Where's My Bill
My wife and I had just gotten back from vacation and she was expecting our credit card bill to be waiting for us when we returned. After all, this month was the month we had to pay the balance in full to avoid accumulating any interest. If we don't pay the balance in full by the due date this month, interest will accrue back from the date we first made the purchase (a washer and dryer) with the card.
So, as I was saying, we get home and my wife runs to the mail (she's quite "structured" when it comes to these things) and starts ranting and raving that the credit card statement isn't even there, so how can she pay the bill. She calls the credit card company and tells them she needs her statement. They tell her they'll reissue one, but if they do it won't give her enough time to make her payment by the due date.
What happened is that my wife ended up making the credit card payment online or we'd be paying quite a pretty penny in interest we never thought we'd see.
The Coincidence Factor
So, my wife calls her friend to tell her what happened. At the same time we bought our washer and dryer, my wife's friend had purchased a stove and fridge. Same deal -- no interest for x amount of months as long as you pay it off within that period of time.
Guess what?
Our friend hadn't received her statement either and she was 2 days shy of late payment and accruing all that interest. Luckily for her, my wife had given her the heads up.
So, my friends... If you use credit cards for those "no interest for x amount of months" sales, make sure you know exactly when that last payment is due by and don't rely on a statement to tell you. I wonder just how many people end up paying interest on those purchases because the credit card statement never arrives.