The Kansas City Star reports the amount of time people have to pay their credit card bills keeps getting smaller, increasing the likelihood of incurring late fees, late fees which have been rising in cost over the years. Consumers used to have 30 days. Then it was 25. Now companies are moving towards 20. Furthermore, the date starts when they issue the bill, and it can then take 2-4 days to reach you. Cattle prods towards customers using online bill pay, death by a thousand fees. Keep an eye on those due dates, you never know when they’ll magically shrink again.

A falling grace period can leads to a fall from grace [Kansas City Star via Consumer World Blog]
(Photo: Getty)

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.