A: You've certainly got the right approach to paying your credit cards. Unfortunately, it sounds as if the U.S. Postal Service might have gotten in the way of a good plan.
Today's credit-card rules are so tweaky, especially when it comes to the proper crediting of payments, that it doesn't take much for an issuer to close its eyes and slam you with a late-payment fee — many as high as $40.
The folks at Barclays tell me that it's enough to send a payment five to seven days ahead of the due date to ensure it's credited on time.
Nevertheless, your payment took nearly a month to arrive to Barclay's payment-processing center in Pennsylvania. One possibility is the start of the Christmas holiday rush at Thanksgiving, when mailings pick up precipitously.
The fact is that consumers do take their credit into their own hands when paying by check.
Additionally card issuers have different due-date deadlines, some at noon, some later in the day. If your payment isn't posted by that time, you incur the late fee.
New federal rules that kick in Feb. 22 eliminate that problem, ensuring all payments posted by 5 p.m. are credited that day. No more holding onto a payment for an extra hour. And all payments received in a center are processed that day.
The best method to battle the unwarranted fee is to take it up with the issuer. Barclays tells me that after our inquiry, the bank credited you the late fee and finance charge because of your good history.
Consumers should always point this out — calmly — to the telephone representative. Most have the authority to waive an unreasonable fee once in a while, especially if you ask.
Do point out your credit and good-payment histories. Consumers probably shouldn't ask when they have spotty payment histories, but you never know.
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