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A credit card can be a great tool for covering your daily expenses, earning rewards, and handling unexpected costs. If you use it the wrong way, your credit history can suffer. A late credit card payment can negatively affect your payment history and credit rating, especially if it becomes a pattern. You’ll also start to accrue credit card interest which can make any existing financial struggle even more difficult.
Here are 4 tips to help you avoid missing credit card payments:
Set up scheduled payments
One of the best ways to make sure your credit card payments are always on time is by setting up scheduled monthly payments — what you owe every month will be automatically deducted from your bank account. You can schedule your monthly credit card payment for the full balance due, the minimum payment or another amount. Make sure you have enough funds in your account on every due date to cover your credit card bill.
You can schedule recurring or future-dated payments through CIBC Online Banking®. When you sign on to your account, go to the navigation panel under "Transfers” and follow the steps.
Create reminders to make manual payments
If you prefer to make manual credit card payments because your spending or income isn’t predictable enough for automatic payments, follow these steps:
- Set an alarm in your phone at the same time every month to remind you of your credit card payment.
- Take advantage of CIBC alerts. With CIBC alerts, you’ll receive reminders by email, text message or through your Message Centre. These reminders can help you stay on top of your credit card payments.
- Make sure you sign up for paper or paperless statements, whichever works for you, so your credit card payment is always top of mind.
Pay more than the minimum balance
If you pay less than the statement amount in a month, take cash advances, make balance transfers or write cheques on your credit card account, you’ll incur interest charges. This is calculated based on the credit card’s annual interest rate. If you pay less than the full balance, this interest rate will be charged on the balance, from the transaction date.
Review interest charges and fees in the fine print
All credit cards come with detailed rate and fee disclosures so you can be a knowledgeable cardholder. To learn more about CIBC’s credit card rates and fees, review the CIBC Credit Card Summary of Annual Interest Rates and Fees (PDF, 35 KB) Opens in a new window.. Understanding the fine print means you won’t be surprised when your statement comes in. Plus, it may be a good idea to calculate your credit card bill before it’s posted so you can plan your monthly budget. If you have more questions about paying your credit card bill, you can contact a CIBC customer service representative at 1-800-465-4653 Opens your phone app..
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Call us: 1-800-465-4653 to apply for a C I B C credit card
