Corbin had a very confusing experience with his Chase credit card. Because of a unexplained returned payment by his bank, his $30 automatic minimum payment led to $156 in late fees, overlimit fees, returned payment fees, and a fee charged, as far as I can tell, for being charged fees.

He wrote to us:

Here’s the situation, last month, my payment was returned because Bank Of America decided it didn’t want to give Chase the money. I received a phone call from Chase saying it was returned and that I would be charged a returned payment fee of 39.00 and a late fee of $39.00. But, if i scheduled a new payment, the late fee would be returned. That’s fair I thought. Until this month. I check my online account and instead of my usual $28 minimum payment, it’s over $200! I check my activity from last month and I am shocked.

First, Chase charged me $39.00 for being late. Then charged me $39.00 for going over my limit (caused by their late and returned payment fees). Then they charged me $39.00 for a late fee adjustment and another $39.00 for an overlimit fee adjustment (the “refunds”). So instead of crediting my account, they charged me. They even adjusted my finance charge 5 CENTS to be more reflective of my new balance caused by all their fees!

I just got off the phone with customer care and I am so grateful. My rep was very nice and helped sort out the situation, which has been resolved. And it only took 15 minutes! I want people to be aware of this potential problem and be on the lookout for it. It can be easily missed if you’re used to large payments. My case might be unique but there’s always that chance.

If you’re having trouble following this, he provided the relevant section of his online statement as a visual aid:

This is an extreme case, but watch your banking and credit card statements carefully for mysterious fees.

(Photo: melancon)

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