This scheme is a bit duplicitous, of course, but we feel no compunction passing on ways to game the same system that so often screws us over. Use these tricks at your own risk.

Dan M. writes:

This will explain how I have signed up for credit cards and avoid paying my first bill for at least an extra month(60 days total), after first purchase. In one case four months after first purchase. This has only been used on retailer credit cards mind you. i.e. best buy, American eagle, gap…

Here we go.

Lets say, Santa didn’t drop a 360 down your chimney and “store x” just received 300 units(ya right). Unfortunately, $6.75×10 hours a week doesn’t equal a “360” if you know what I mean, and credit assistance is required from the store. Sign up for their credit card as normal and buy that bad boy.
Of course you’ll receive the card in the mail a couple of days to a couple of weeks later.
DO NOT USE THE CARD. Freeze it, cut it up, anything to stop yourself from using that devil in the store again.

The rest of the scheme after the jump.

If you want to purchase ANYTHING from “store x” on the credit card you signed up with, use the account look up feature that almost all retailer’s offer in-store. It exists for people who forgot their card at home or in our case, “have not yet received card in the mail”.
Bring your drivers licence and social security number, as this is used in the account lookup process. I’ll explain why you don’t use the card later.

Next you’ll receive you first statement. Take note of the payment due date. Here is where all is explained.
So you’ve signed up and made your FIRST PURCHASE on January 14th 2006. And your bill DUE DATE is for February 12th 2006. Call “Store X’s” credit card department a few days before your due date. Talk to an agent and let them know that you never received your billing statement in the mail. They will verify your billing address and ask a few questions I’m sure. Also let them know that you did not receive your credit card at all either.
Make sure to be very concerned that your AWOL statement is the main problem. Something like this..”It’s not a big deal that I have not received the credit card, I just had to use the account lookup account look up in-store, but I REALLY need to make sure that my billing statement gets here ASAP” (this is why you do not use your actual credit card, just the account look up, my guess is that its very easy to call your bluff if you do use the card. You run the risk of letting them know that THE card showed up, but not your statement)
The least amount of time I have been extended is a week, since I did exactly as above. To extend the payment a month,do the same as above BUT, wait until a few days after the bill is due, then state the same case. They will automatically remove the late fee (any anything potentially harming your credit score/record) and make the due date a month later. I have use the late payment option twice (sounding outraged the second time), and after signing up for the credit card in October did not make my first payment until January.

I have used variations of this. Perhaps using the online payment option one month. To keep my “no statement received” case clear. Only to find a month later, once again, that the bill is due tomorrow, not wanting to pay a 15$ processing fee to call it over the phone. I let the payment run a few days late, then call them up again. “Yes Sir, according to my calendar I should have received my billing statement already and I need to make sure you guys are not charging me for anything, I have had issues with your company in the past, and this is starting to become very frustrating”

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