Ask for Credit Card Fees to be Reversed

Comments (scroll down to add your own):

1. Recently happened to us too. Dh had bought some things that his work was supposed to pay for. He gave them the bill to pay and they got it there a day late. Dh called and they reversed the $39 fee. There was no interest b/c it was interest free for 3 months or something like that.

   Plus he gave the ladies in the office a talking too and told them not to let that happen again!

   Comment by Karen — Apr 4th 2007 @ 10:34 am

2. I recently had a refused payment (they tried to pull it from a bank account that we closed) and since I don’t always read my wife’s mail and she doesn’t go through it more than once every month or two I didn’t see the notice until the next statement arrived. I called them up, had them remove the old checking account, reactivate my ability to pay online, and asked if they would waive the fee for having a payment attempt refused. It was a $10 charge we had been trying to pay, so we wound up paying a few cents in interest fees, but we got out of the $30 or $40 charge they had stuck us with. This month it got paid off completely and the card is now locked in our safe.

   Comment by Blaine Moore — Apr 4th 2007 @ 10:57 am

3. I’ve had a similar experience, though I don’t remember the details. I guess not all credit card companies are the evil, twisted, devils some people would like you to believe, eh? Some of them are staffed by reasonable, understanding human beings. Go figure.

   Comment by Tinyhands — Apr 4th 2007 @ 11:23 am

4. I’ve done this a few times. The last time though, I made the call, got the charge taken off, then I had another ID 10-T error and was late on the next payment! I just payed the late fee on that one.

   One caveat: note that for a new credit card with low introductory rates, missing a payment can automatically kick you out of the low rates and into a “normal” rate (i.e. 20%-plus) structure. That may not automatically be reversed if even if the late charge is recinded. You may have to ask about it specifically.

   Comment by geo — Apr 4th 2007 @ 1:07 pm

5. This just happened to me. I had transferred a balance to my wife’s Chase Visa and was paying $50 more than the minimum payment while enjoying 3.9% for the life of the loan. I missed the payment date by 12 hours during the last cycle. The latest bill shows a minimum payment of $70 more than what is was as well as a finance rate of 18.75%.

   She called Chase (as I am not on the account) on my behalf and she explained the situation. The CSR kept saying “sorry ma’am” as he claimed there was nothing he could do for her.

   I’m now shopping around to transfer the balance to my Citi card and receive 6.9% for 6 months. In the meantime, I’ll also look for another offer for low interest on the life of the loan.

   I’m bummed

   Comment by Adam — Apr 4th 2007 @ 3:40 pm

6. Obviously it’s better not to miss a payment, but we’re not perfect. Like you say, it can’t hurt to call and see if they’ll help you out. Don’t be shy, it may or may not work out, but in the end you haven’t lost anything.

   -limeade
   http://fiscalmusings.blogspot.com

   Comment by limeade — Apr 4th 2007 @ 10:31 pm

7. We missed a payment in January (my wife and I both cannot for the life of us remember getting the bill…it’s on a card we don’t use much because our main card denied us as a “fraud protection courtesy” because we spent a lot in December…who knew ppl spent more in December? but I digress). Long story short, they wouldn’t waive the $35. They did give us enough points for a $15 gift card, so as soon as we get that, we’ll be canceling that card. If they want to lose us over $20 I’m more than happy to oblige.

   Comment by Norm — Apr 5th 2007 @ 2:11 pm

8. When it comes down to it the person at the other end of the phone at the credit card company is just like everyone else and will usually understand.

   It certainly doesn’t cost anything to call and ask for a refund on the late payment charges

   Comment by Crediteria.com — Apr 5th 2007 @ 11:52 pm

9. Hey, it doesn’t hurt to try! I’ve done it before and it worked for me. I say go for it!

   Comment by Ben — Apr 6th 2007 @ 2:40 am

10. If you call Citi because you were late on a payment their policy is to “forgive” you twice - this was told to me by a rep. However, if you make a late payment after those 2 times they will increase your interest rate probably to 32.24% and they will not even think about lowering your APR for 6 months even if the balance on the card is 0. Also, they will not allow you to transfer any balances to your citibank card. So, don’t think they are being nice to you and that this will not potentially come back to bite you in the butt later on.

    Comment by Kellie — Apr 6th 2007 @ 4:47 pm

11. Norm,

    I understand you are upset that the card company wouldn’t waive the fee. However, canceling your card may hurt your credit rating. I would just keep the card open with a balance of zero.

    I have done this in the past were I got mad that a card wouldn’t understand so I closed the account - this in turn dinged my credit score on various levels. 1. You are potentially closing established credit history. 2. Your amount of debt in accordance to your available credit may increase (that’s bad) etc etc.

    Comment by Kellie — Apr 6th 2007 @ 4:51 pm

12. I had a bill due on a Saturday and used Bank of America’s transfer program to transfer the funds. BoA charged me a late fee because the transfer didn’t go through till Tuesday - even though the bank’s own website states that transfers from BoA accounts to BoA credit cards are automatic, same-day. The first time I called I got stonewalled. The customer service agent was very unhelpful and said it was their policy to NEVER reverse late fees. I asked to speak to a manager and she refused to transfer me. I hung up on her. I’m rarely rude to CS people, but she was being so unbelievably unhelpful that I couldn’t stop myself.

    I called back a few hours later and explained the situation again, quoting their website, and voila…late fee was gone. I was about 10 minutes away from transferring my balance to one of my other cards and cancelling my BoA account altogether because of the way I was treated the first time around. I wish customer service agents

    Comment by Lyndsey — Apr 7th 2007 @ 8:44 pm

13. Got cut off…would get their stories straight!

    Comment by Lyndsey — Apr 7th 2007 @ 8:45 pm

14. Frustrated over a late fee on a brand new credit card, I did a quick Google search on how to reverse late fees. (I like to know my options!!)

    Armed with some tips, I called customer service, spoke clearly and calmly, and told him I wasn’t getting my statement soon enough to make a timely payment. (They’re required to give you 20 days before the end of the billing cycle).

    The guy didn’t even ask questions. He simply removed the late fee of $25 and the finance charge of $1.50.

    Mom always said, “The worst that can happen is they say ‘no.’”

    Comment by Andrea — Apr 11th 2007 @ 11:25 am

15. Yes you can always call to that good men from bank and try to negotiate better conditions! Particularly, old clients can hope to get new features. The best way is to find other credit card offers (that suits your history) and tell it to bank supervisor, Oh don’t lie, please! Be sure they know their competitor’s offers well.

    Comment by experienced credit cardholder — Apr 17th 2007 @ 7:04 am

16. It does work to call and argue down the payments, but gosh I hate credit card companies and their antics. out of control!

    Comment by Matt — Apr 20th 2007 @ 2:40 pm

17. 1. To avoid credit card late fees and a possible increase in your interest rate, simply send the minimum payment as soon as you receive your credit card statement. Send a second payment near the due date to pay off the balance.

    2. To help avoid paying credit card late fees, keep a calendar with your normal monthly payment dates listed. As your normal payment due date approaches (generally 10 days before), if you haven’t received a statement you should call the credit card company for the payment due and put it in the mail.

    Comment by creditor-recardo — Apr 24th 2007 @ 3:29 am

18. I had set up automatic weekly payments with Bank of America and for the first time they didn’t cover the entire monthly minimum (oops). I got a $35 late fee the next day and was really bummed, as it was my first ever (4 years with them).

    Anyway, I called 7 days after it happened to ask for a reversal, expecting them to say it was too late for such a thing. The CSR was really nice though and claimed that they can only reverse it completely if it is a bank error (as with comment #13 perhaps?), but she agreed to cut it in half to $17.

    I considered threatening to leave but since I called a few days after the fee and she was nice I decided $17 was acceptable. I was, after all, legitimately late on the payment.

    Comment by LD — Apr 25th 2007 @ 8:59 am

19. Well, I just tried this with my Chase credit card. It used to be a FirstUSA AOL card which used to give me points towards free AOL Dial-up service when I initially got the card back in the mid-1990s. Although I’ve been without AOL for almost a decade now, I’ve kept the card out of convenience.

    In the last decade I’ve been late with a payment twice: once in 1998 and once in April 2007. Yes, it was my fault completely — things just got out of hand that month and I missed the payment date. I was slapped with a $39 late fee.

    So I tried doing exactly what was stated above. I spoke to a very nice customer service representative named Ravena. I reiterated that, in my past eleven years with the account I’ve had an excellent payment history, and that I’d like to ask if the fee can be waived.

    Yes, she was very nice. Even when she declined this, stating that Chase’s policy is “no courtesy waives” unless it was a bank error of some sort.

    I then paid off my account in full and requested to close the account. Which she did with a “Yes sir. I understand. I’m sorry that you’re doing so because of this policy.” Again, very nice. I was surprised that they didn’t even attempt to keep me.

    Oh well… This was a credit card solely for gasoline purchases and several online transactions. I’ll be shopping around for another card that will do better in valuing me as a customer for the long haul.

    Comment by Shiny — Jun 1st 2007 @ 11:19 am

20. Shiny: That’s too bad. The only thing I would’ve done different would have been to ask to speak to her supervisor when she couldn’t help. While that may be their policy, there is almost certainly someone there that has the ability to override it if they wish.

    Comment by nickel — Jun 1st 2007 @ 11:30 am

21. I recently had a late payment on a Chase card. I have two of them. One I just paid off in full at $1629 that I had transferred a balance to with 0% APR and then the card I use for day to day purchases. Well I misplaced the bill and got hit with the $39 late fee. I called and talked to a CSR and she refused to remove the fee. I called back and talked to a second one who looked into it but still refused to do it. So I said calmly, I would like to close both of my accounts out. She transferred me to an account mgr and he looked at what I spend on their cards, saw I wasn’t late but still refused to remove the charge. I told him to close them and that I hope the $39 is worth losing the $8-10k of business from me. He close the one cause it was $0 balance and I would never be using it anyway but right at the end he said as a courtesy I will remove the $39. Even though they removed it, I feel that Chase didn’t value me as a customer after 5 years. I pay my bill off in full each month and have excellent credit. I make them too much money per year for them to give me a hard time so I am going to go with another company. I have had other companies take a late fee off without any hassle.

    Comment by Seth — Jun 15th 2007 @ 3:18 pm

22. I just had the same problem with Chase. I have 3 cards with them and have been a very good customer for a long time. I was told by the first customer service lady that removing the fee was not an option on my account. When I asked what that meant, and why it was not an option on my account, she had no answer. I asked to speak to a supervisor so she transfered me back to the main number! The second woman told me it is not their policy to refund the money unless it was their error. I am incredibly frustrated and am considering cancelling the cards. I think Chase is making a big mistake by not providing good customer service. I don’t just mean the refusal to remove the fee, but also, the people themselves were not quite clear on what I was asking and I felt like I was passed off.

    Comment by Carrie G. — Aug 7th 2007 @ 5:51 pm

23. I have held a Chase Amazon Visa for 2 years. It has a $500 limit and I only use it for online purchases with Amazon. I pay the balance at the end of each month and have never been late. Last month I went over the limit by $40 and was charged a $39 fee. One two separate attempts talking to a “mangaer” I was denied my request to remove the fee. I conveyed my dissatisfaction and payed the balance of my card and canceled it on the spot. I agree that Chase is making a big mistake with their policy in this area and I will never bank with them again.

    Josh

    Comment by josh — Aug 26th 2007 @ 7:30 pm

24. F B of A I am so mad!!! I have a 10k credit card with them paid 1500.00 in the last few weeks and they charged me a late fee of 39.00 and 41.00 finance charges.

    My credit is impeccable 800!!!

    They are not worthy of my business. I am glad I have the movey to pay this oof First thing Tuesday. Rubbish!!

    Comment by Gee — Sep 2nd 2007 @ 2:33 am

25. Having been in the banking industry for many years, I can offer an explanation as to why some or I should say most banks will not waive fees unless it’s due to banking error. Some will waive it as a one time courtesy if you are worthy of keeping. If you are a high risk customer, don’t bother wasting your time waiting to get through and then requesting for a manager and then threatning to close the account because it is highly likely that they will be more than happy to close it for you. It doesn’t matter if you have been with the bank for 5, 10 or 20 years. It doesn’t matter if you pay in full every month. There is a system behind the scene that will allow or not allow the customer service agent to waive the fees. You are just a number and how much of a risk you are to them. It’s sad in a way that banking is not what it used to be anymore.

    Comment by KRISTINE — Sep 2nd 2007 @ 8:51 pm

26. i’ve been turned so many times all the credit cards that i have they say i am behind in all my payments i give up on them i trying to fix my credit as we speak but any way is ther an credit card out for someone like me with bad credit and is trying to build her credit back up they also go by your scores why do we hav ecredit scores to beagin with please help me and i donot want an debit card no i donot thank annamrie high77@comcast.net

    Comment by annmarie — Oct 8th 2007 @ 4:55 pm

27. i give up on trying for an credit with bad credit i have stoped for good

    Comment by annmarie — Oct 8th 2007 @ 5:05 pm

28. I recently was charged a late fee on my Chase Visa because my online payment didn’t get there in time (missed by a day).

    I’ve paid on time for all of my previous statements (a little over a year of history).

    I barely had to ask for them to remove it. I said is there anything that can be done about the fee and about 3 seconds later, It’ll be removed in the next 36 hours.

    The CSR removed the fee immediately, and wanted to make sure that I knew if I had any problems with transferring on a weekend I can always call and pay over the phone.

    I was very surprised. 39 dollars credited back for sitting on hold for 10 minutes.

    Had it gone the other way, I would have cashed in my rewards, and let the account have a zero balance until I die with “paper statements” turned on (I don’t think they charge for that yet).

    Comment by Andrew — Nov 16th 2007 @ 11:10 am

29. Got the Advanta credit card bill 2 days after the due date. We’ve had some crazy mail delivery problem in this city. Immediately went online and made payment, then called their rep and explained that mail just arrived. She said she would take care of it, unfortunately, I will have to wait and call back during next billing cycle. When I received next bill, with huge late fee and finance charge, I was reminded to call again. And with another rep, he refused to remove the late/finance charges.

    Do you think Advanta is scamming? Providing promotional rate, then send out late statement to collect on fees? I’ve had bills arrive late before and others were nice enough to forgive, but not Advanta. 3.9% promo rate was great deal for consolidating, but it turned out to over $500 in late/finance charge due to late mail arrival.

    The Advanta rep also lied to me that they had automatic payment system. I always paid their bills online, and I know for fact they didn’t have automatic payment feature. If they did, I would of used it.

    Comment by Felix — Feb 26th 2008 @ 9:23 am

30. i had scheduled a payment on my chase credit card to be delivered by feb 17 and the transaction didnt take place until the 19th since 17th was a sunday and 18th was presidents day. and they are refusing to reverse the fee. this is something that is not my fault and i am seriously questioning cancling all of my chase cards. but we will see if they will actually give in and realize im right.

    Comment by kris — Mar 12th 2008 @ 12:19 am

31. I had a late fee of $39 from a Bank of America credit card. I forgot about the bill and was late on payment by 2 days. I called customer service, mentioned I had just paid off the full balance online and was wondering if they could take off the fee. She checked my payment history, saw that this was my first late payment and took care of the fee. She also reinstated my promotional rate. If you have a good payment history with your card, I’d suggest to anyone in a similar situation to take the time to challenge the fee.

    Comment by Justin — Mar 27th 2008 @ 2:04 am

32. This post really helped. BOA was kind enough to reverse my $35 late fee, and said it will be credited to my next month’s statement.
    I need to remember the different dates on my other cards.

    Comment by Satish — May 25th 2008 @ 1:09 pm

33. I think what Kristine said in her comments is true, “There is a system behind the scene that will allow or not allow the customer service agent to waive the fees. You are just a number and how much of a risk you are to them.”

    Iwas accidently late on my Bank of America acct. by 9 hrs. I called to dispute the charge–not because I wasn’t guilty–but based on I had a good record (Never been late) and I was a good customer. I actually had a couple reasons for my tardiness, but the customer service rep didn’t even allow me to get through my “story” before she said it was being reversed…

    Comment by Lori — Jul 10th 2008 @ 2:04 pm

34. I was recently late w/ my Chase card pymt. I have excellent credit history, but had major foot surgery and overlooked the pymt. Upon noticing a few days later I made a pymt online. I expected to get a late fee anyway, but could call cust. service and state my case. They WOULD NOT waive $39 fee as a courtesy! I have 3 cards and never been late! I asked for supervisor and she said they don’t do courtesy waives anymore, and she was sorry. A bank error would be the only exception. I said it is unfortunate, and we would both lose because I will transfer my balance and not use any of my Chase cards! She said she understood. WHAT’S WRONG W/ THESE GREEDY A-HOLES, DON’T THEY VALUE THEIR CUSTOMERS?? I won’t close them out because it can have adverse credit score consequences.

    Comment by Walt Berman — Aug 31st 2008 @ 7:51 am

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