How Do You Start A Repayment Plan With a Credit Card Company?
by Mr Credit CardOne of our readers, Gene, had a couple of questions for us:
How do you start a repayment plan with a credit card company? and
I get a paycheck bi-weekly. can i split my credit card bill payment in half and pay them bi-weekly and will this help me pay them off quicker ?
Thank you for your questions Gene!
Let’s start with the first one:
How to start a repayment plan with your credit card company:
Normally, all you have to do is call your credit card company. If you are not currently past due, and you do not plan to be, then you really don’t need to make a payment arrangement.
If you call to make a payment arrangement when you are not past due, your credit card company will probably still tell you that you have to be past due or they can’t set it up.
Credit card repayment plans really only exist to help seriously past due accounts get back on track.
If you are past due with your credit cards, then be sure that you negotiate with the collections department. Collections reps can set up payment arrangements, remove any of the fees on your card, and possibly even reduce your interest rate. All you have to do is ask.
Now, let’s take a look at your other question:
Will paying your credit cards bi-weekly help you to pay them off faster?
There are a couple of issues with this. In theory, yes you will pay them off faster by sending in bi-weekly payments because you will essentially be sending in a couple of extra payments in a years time. (This is assuming that you are splitting the minimum payments up between two payments.)
However, that is not a good way to pay your balance off faster. Also, some credit card companies may not let you make less than the minimum payment – even if you plan to pay the other half later.
There is no hard and fast rule that you can only make a credit card payment once a month. You can make a payment every day if you want to – they’ll accept your money any time. Be sure that you aren’t getting charged “telephone” or “processing” fees though. If that’s the case you may just want to make one payment a month to avoid an additional fee.
So, the best situation would be to call and make a payment plan if necessary. Promise them only one payment a month (in case you find you need your money) and then make an extra payment with your next check.
As long as you are paying more than the minimum payment each month, then you will be getting your balance paid off faster. Just make it a habit to send in as much over the minimum payment amount as you can. Even if it’s only $25. Over time, it will add up.
If you have to make a payment arrangement, whatever you do, stick to the payment arrangement. Make sure you make at least the minimum payment on time as agreed each month, and then send in any extra money you have when you have it. Just don’t miss the payment you agreed to.
Thanks again for your question!
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November 19th, 2008 at 03:33
I have one Credit Card debt with a balance of $15,000 can not pay the Min amount they want like 3,000 they will not work with me to set up a payment plan i tried many times. i can only send them a certain amount each month and yes it is small $125.00 but they still want there 3,000 each month they keep calling asking for this amount i told them if they will not accept the $125 a month i will have to file Bankruptcy which i do not want to do. I thought they woulld rather have some money going to this account as little as it may be at least im trying to pay something on this account then to have to file Bankrupcy and they get no money it’s all i can sent (not only Debt i have) should i keep paying $125 or file Bankrupcy and Pay nothing on this account?
December 17th, 2008 at 03:44
I practice BK law and have to deal with the nitwits at the CC agencies all the time. 95% of them have no clue what they are doing, they just want your money. Don’t do anything until you get something from them in writing. BK is the best law in the world if you qualify for it. Chances are, if you haven’t paid in months, your credit is trashed anyway. And, in this economy, nobody can get credit as it is, even the crooked banks. So, don’t feel bad, most people shouldn’t use credit anyway. If you start making lots of money and the economy ever comes back, they will be falling all over each other to give you credit again. I have been through several cycles. Don’t pay them the $125 if they are not going to set you up in a plan or take you off the non pay list. You did not state what your rate is, your minimum payments or who the card company is so it is hard to tell you what to do. Most companies now are working with people. Don’t cave in, and don’t throw good money after bad money, you may not even be making the interest payments, it isn’t worth it.
December 30th, 2008 at 19:29
I lost my business in April of this year and things are starting to catch up. I spoke to Chase on my business card and they agreed to cut my payments in half as well as my interest rate for a year, which helps a lot.
Bank of America however will not do anything. I called and asked to negotiate a payment plan but they said they would refer us to a non-profit for credit counseling. This is after they did a pull on my credit which i did not authorize. I do not want to go to a non-profit credit counseling. If Chase can help me with payments why can’t BofA help me out too? Should I keep calling or requesting to talk to someone else there? Any advice on how to approach the difficult nature of BofA. Who should I ask for? What else should I say? Should I wait for it to go to collections to negotiate with them? or at least threaten them with, “Im paying Chase first before I pay you, since they are helping me”? Please help…
Details:
Payment is about 450 and was requesting half. I am one month late now. I told them next month will be hard as well and that I lost my business in April this year. Interest rate is 30% with a balance a little over 12k.
Thanks
Andrew
July 11th, 2009 at 18:16
i called wells fargo to try to make a payment plan the lady that helped me was so rude and refused to let me speak to a manager about my concerns…ihave been a loyal credit card customer for over ten years and due to dire circumstances in my finances i am unable to make the min payment on my 5500.00 bill i want to keep paying but they refuse to work with me what can i do…i have no job and my husband just got a job we have to pay the mortgage first and utlities etc…please give me advice i would like to pay them back but money is real tight for me right now…e*
August 10th, 2009 at 23:07
I too called Citi about this and they are willing to help me. Across two of their credit cards I owe about $30k. I then have a Chase card that has an additional $22k. I’m glad to hear they will help me too. The question I have is if you have them help you with a plan, does that hurt your credit rating at the end because most of them as you to close your account with them after such a plan. I guess in my debt that should be the least of my worries. Bill, you said you are in BK law. I have had a few people suggest that to me but not sure if that is the best path. Any good BK lawyers in Boston that I can trust to discuss my options? I am married with two kids and a house and this debt is all mine. Has nothing to do with my husband so I am afraid of BK. Thanks for any insights.
November 27th, 2009 at 20:32
I was able to negotiate to settle my debt with Discover Card over the phone. They agreed to settle for 66% of the amount owe. I told them that I will send them a cashier’s check of the full amount within a week after I received an acceptance of agreement letter from Discover Card. However, they refuse to send/fax me the letter of acceptance unless I give them my bank account number over the phone as a good faith. They said that it’s their policy, and they wouldn’t budge. Is this true? Should I trust them?
December 15th, 2009 at 09:26
Do not trust them. Do not give ANYONE your bank account number; by giving them your bank account, you are authorizing them to withdraw the entirety of your account and you will have no legal recourse since you gave them permission by giving your number. This is not good faith; this is hoping you are stupid enough to give them access to your bank account which allows them to legally wipe out your funds.
Do not pay or agree to a single thing without receiving it in writing.
January 13th, 2010 at 00:22
I got payment arrangement from citi, discover and FIA (I think it’s BOA card services for a credit union). But Wells fargo just declines to accept anything less than their due pay and won’t reduce interest rate. I’ve been a loyal customer to them for over 11 years and they made so much money off of me and now they refuse to help. They lie, the agents didn’t even tell me about the opt out plan and close the card on higher rate. Although they send some letters with some fine prints. I’m planning to move all my accounts to chase and never go back to wells fargo. I had so much trust in them — but all failed!.
February 2nd, 2010 at 22:31
I lost my job a year ago and had great credit. I tried to get
the interest rate down on my card but that did not happen.
I struggled to meet the monthly payments and then just couldn’t meet
them. Not enough money coming in and had to keep up with mortgage and food. I began sending $10.00 a month with a note to the credit card company stating my situation. The credit card company cashed the checks each month. Now, I am receiving calls every day. I explain my situation and have told them over and over I cannot do any better at the moment than $10.00 a month. This evening I received a call from the credit card company from an over-bearing woman whom refused to listen. I am at wits-end and getting physically sick over this. What can I do to stop these phone attacks?
February 4th, 2010 at 15:19
I have a credit card with Bank of America. I have been out of work since May 2009, I had called in the past to arrange a payoff program when I was still living of some savings. They didn’t want to work with me. Now I am gone through my savings and was hoping to have them suspend payments for a while as their press releases said they were. I have talked to two people and they were of no help. I want to repay the debt, but at this point making even the minimum monthly payment is almost impossibe. I do not know if credit counseling would work or should I file bankruptcy. Any suggestions?