How to Avoid Late Fees - From Library books to Credit Cards and More!

Everyone hates late fees, especially we couponers. Why especially us? Well, we break our butts to save .25 here .and 50 there, in otherwords we invest our time in saving a few cents here and there because we know it all adds up. One $39 late fee could wipe out an entire week or more of "savings".....it sucks...trust me I've done it!

Here are some tips to avoid late fees:

Credit Cards
The late fee on a credit card can be quite high....and there is nothing like the frustration of getting socked with one just because it "slipped your mind"!

• Pay it as soon as it comes in
   
• Set up an automatic payment through your online bill pay. I set mine up to send out $100 on the same date each month. I then log in and change it to the amount due or cancel if we have no bill that month. However, were I to forget I'm still covered as my bank will automatically send out the payment.
   
• Make a payment by phone or through the credit cards web site if available. Check on the front and back of your bill. If a company accepts payments by phone or online, it will should so on the bill. Just call the number provided for bill payments and make the payment over the phone, or log on and create an account to pay online.
   
• Have more then one credit card? Try batching your due dates. Call the companies and see if you can have all your cards due on the same date to avoid confusion and make less work for you!
   
• Sign up for online alerts. With an online alert, a credit card issuer will send you an email reminding you that your payment due date is coming up
   
• Follow all payment guidelines.The Fair Credit Billing Act requires issuers to credit your payment the day it is received, but each credit card company is allowed to set specific payment guidelines. (You’ll find these guidelines on the back of your credit card bill.) If any of these guidelines aren’t met, your credit card company could take up to five days to credit your payment. Use the pre-printed envelope provided by your credit card company. Be sure to include your account number on the check and remember to sign it. And don’t forget to include the billing coupon provided by your card company, apply proper postage, and mail your payment to the proper billing address, if you miss one of these steps it could lead to a late fee!
    
• Worse case scenario, Fed Ex it.....check the charges it may be less then the late fee you will incur!

Library Books
Hey that .10 cents a day can really add up! Especially when it's per book.

• Sign-up for an account with your Libraries web site, they will send you out a "reminder". This feature comes in handy!
   
• When you have an account you can also check to see what and how many books you need to return. Nothing is as frustrating of patting yourself on the back for returning a pile of books only to find out a couple weeks later one was missing, my daughter used to hide her favorites under her bed because she did not want to "give them back". That's how I learned this trick!
   
• Have one designated spot for all your Kid's library books. We have one bin in my daughters room where they go. This avoids a mad search through the house and late fees when the mad search turns up nothing!
   
• Take advantage of library "forgiveness" days. Many libraries have one (or a few) days a year where they will "forgive" any library fines. Check the library calendar for these days.
   
• Can't find one? Renew it to give you more time to search for it!

Movie Rentals:
I can't tell you how many times I've been out running errands and realized I forgot a movie at home....it's a total pain in the you know what! Also, when you've rented a movie with a FREE rental code then need to pay a late fee on it, well it kind of defeats the purpose!

• If the movie is due back the next day put it on the seat of your car, you won't forget it now. Try to avoid sitting on it though!
   
• Keep a bag on your front door with all things you need to return the next day and just grab it on your way out.
   
• You can do the same with online rentals, the methods above will remind you to mail it back and you'll get a new move all that much sooner!
   
• Like the library books designate one spot for movie rentals to avoid having to search for them!
   
• Put your car keys on top of your movie, you'll be sure to see it that way!

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