How to Negotiate Late Credit Card Debt Payments

Late credit card payments rack up late fees and high interest charges. Paying on time is ideal, but sometimes life interferes and the payments are made late. Before you resign yourself to paying those high fees, try phoning your bank. The banks know that the longer it takes to collect a debt, the less likely it is that they will collect it all. The best time to negotiate fee and interest rate waivers reduction is before you send in your payment.

Instructions

1

Determine how much of the debt you can afford to pay today. Even if you can't make the minimum payment due, any payment you do make counts in your favor.

2

Many banks allow their representatives to waive fees for customers in good standing. Call into the customer service number on your statement. Explain the situation that caused the late payment.

3

Offer to make a payment today in exchange for having the late fee waived and the interest reduced. Most banks will automatically deduct the money from your checking account using information from your check. Find out if there is a fee for this service--if there is, ask for it to be waived.

4

If the customer service representative cannot help you, ask to speak to a supervisor. Supervisors have more authority to make exceptions.

5

If possible, ask to be set up on an automatic payment schedule. Arranging to have the minimum amount due automatically debited from your checking account will prevent future late payments. Additional payments to pay down the debt may still be made every month.

6

Ask if this late payment has changed your interest rate. Unless you are more than 60 days late, banks are now required to give you 45 days' notice of such an increase. However, if you have worked out a debt-repayment plan and failed to stick to the terms, the bank may increase your rate. The increased rate will only apply to new purchases.