Yesterday, I shared with you some tips on avoiding late fees so I thought today I would share tips on getting out of the occasional late fee. Occasionally, something will happen and a late fee will be inevitable. But on these rare occasions, it may be possible to get out of the late fee!
This tip comes from my friend Tabitha at Saving Towards a Better Life:
If you’ve been a customer of the phone company for 5 years and in those five years you’ve never been late and just this once, you forgot to mail the bill and it didn’t get there on time, don’t hesitate to call and point out that you’ve been a customer for five years and this is the first late payment and could they please forgive it just this once? Generally, they will!
Obviously, you could not call the same company every month asking then to waive the fee month after month, but for the occasional slip up, don’t feel like you have to just suck it up and deal with it1
Learn how to save even more money with these Money Saving Tips.
Never let banks fool you either, I have had my cable company pull money out more than one early and been charged a NSF ( a fee for not having funds) the bank will try and tell you they can only reverse 3 (chase banks) a year but that is a lie. This year alone I have had 8 reversed (4 from my cable issue) 2 because they didn’t count my deposit on the day of when they should have and 2 because of bank error. If it is your fault they will only do so many but these weren’t mine! Just a tip :) also chase has changed the atm deposit thing, it has to be in the atm before 11pm eastern time to count for “same day” deposits.
I once was charged a late fee on a phone bill I paid on the day it was due. They printed the statements early and charged me a fee even though I paid it on time. I called to complain and they told me they would take off the charge “this one time.” I don’t know why they thought they were doing me a favor when I didn’t do anything wrong, and I told them that. I ended up getting rid of my land line later on, so I don’t have to deal with them anymore. :)
Wow, you would think they would know they were the ones in the wrong there. :( At least they took off the charge.
My comment isn’t so much about late fees as it is about saving money on fixed bills, saving in various ways people may not think.
My wireless Verizon bill came a couple of years ago and my lovely teenager went over our text limit to the tune of $300+. I called them, upgraded my plan and they cut more than 50% of the bill.
Currently, my cable,home phone and internet are all in an :”all in one” type of plan. (Time Warner Cable). When I 1st signed up, you got a “special” rate for a year. Well, as soon as the year is up,my bill goes up $50+. As soon as I get the new higher bill I call them up and ask for a special rate because I’ve been a customer for so long. For the past 3 years, they’ve given me the current promotion for another year. Currently $59 less than the regular fee.
I also negotiate medical bills not covered by insurance. Whether it be denied to a deductible or copay. Most providers will take a % off your balance. The amount varies. Also, some offer discounts for prompt pay.
My gyn dr. office is not a participating provider with my insurance company and I refuse to switch dr;s. So when I go for my annual I tell them they’re not in my insurance network, I tell them I’m self pay (ie no insurance) I am charged $125 instead of the $250 they would bill insurance.
You can get discounts in stores, markets, etc. I love spiral ham. I always check the expiration dates on them at my local market (I know that’s weird). If I find one w/in a day or two of expiration, I take it to my favorite butcher at the meat counter to see if he’ll mark it down for a quick sale. He reweighs it for me and marks it down to .99/lb. I just pop it in the freezer.
Also, don’t forget to see if your employer offers any discounts. We get 15% off our wireless bill thru an employer.
AAA also offers many discounts for local and national retailers, services, etc. If you have the card, be sure to check it.
Sorry this is so long.
All awesome ideas!
One time, I paid a credit card bill online an hour late and was charged a $35 late fee. I emailed them explaining that I’d never paid late before and I’d been a customer for a few years. They waived the fee :)
Wow, that’s great!
When we moved a few years ago I recieved a bill saying it was passed due. I called the company and explain that I never got the first bill. I told them I had moved and wrote the change of address on the last bill I mailed them. They were very nice and entered my new address in the computer and took of the late charge.