The Anonymous Widower

Do Banks Design Systems To Trap Us Into Extra Payments?

Twice now in the last three months, I’ve been late with credit card payments.  Nothing serious, but I got an extra charge of £12.00. I think it happened, as did the other one, because I tend to pay my credit cards all at the same time at the end of the month, when my American Express Card comes in and I’ve just had my pension payment.

So as I was flush at that time, I paid off most of the debt on the card. But apparently, I paid too early in the last accounting period or something.

The last time, it happened on another card, they phoned me to say why hadn’t I paid.  When I said what about the extra payment they gave it back.

But how many of us, get caught out by rules, that need to be read by a lawyer with a fine tooth comb?

What would help, would be the ability to define your payment date on your credit card. I seem to remember doing this many years in the past. Zopa incidentally, allows this when you borrow and even allows you to change the date, due to a change of circumstances.

In some ways I’m getting my own back.  For travel, hotels and large purchases, I now use my American Express card and for small ones, I now use cash. The problem is Waitrose, where their self-service tills don’t take cash. Marks and Spencer and Sainsbury, who both have better tills, do.

May 14, 2013 - Posted by AnonW | Business, Finance | Banks, Crap Design, Credit Cards, Marks and Spencer, Waitrose