Disputing Late Charges on Credit Cards

Don't take late charges sitting down. Credit card companies already make plenty of money from you, and if you have a legitimate reason for being a few days late on your payment, be sure to call up. They can most likely reverse the charges.

This has happened twice to me already. I pay all my credit card bills online, so on a regular basis, I submit authorizations on the credit card company's site to take money from my bank account on the payment due date. The two times I forgot to do this, I was very busy and just forgot until a few days after the payment date.

At the end of the next cycle on my most recent situation, two charges were slapped on. A late charge for $39 and a finance charge of $5. I immediately called up the credit card company and as soon as I asked about the charges, the customer rep offered to remove them while providing the helpful hint that I should pay on exactly the right time to avoid these charges.

This is great for those of you out there who can pay on time but occasionally get busy and/or forgetful. Of course, if you are unable to pay or haven't paid for over a month, this method may not help you.

But you should at least try.