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You need to pay your bill? It'll cost you...

November 3rd, 2007 at 02:52 pm

Like a lot of people I pay all of my bills with credit cards, not only to get the cashback but because it is great for recordkeeping. It also cuts down on the number of bills I have to manage with online bill pay. Therefore I always look for an opportunity to use a credit card to pay my bills when possible.

So when I received my bill for my car tag I pored over it very carefully to see what my options would be for paying it, not only in terms of cash back but for convenience. According to the bill, there is a charge for using MC or VISA but not for Discover card which you can use in person. Imagine how angry I was when I went to pay my bill this morning and was told that there would be a $3.00 surcharge! I absolutely do not believe in paying a surcharge to use my credit card and I would have never walked in there with only a credit card had I known. (I don't bother carrying checks as it is just one more thing to clutter up my purse). The clerk was under the impression that this surcharge was required by my CC company. I didn't bother to correct her and explain that this charge was made to the county but that the county was passing it on to me. That's their prerogative I suppose but they should have at least made it clear on the bill that there was a charge, then I could have . So now I'm writing a little letter to the Dekalb county Commissioner. I hope they don't try to tell me that the CC payments are solely for my convenience; they probably saving thousands in bounced check fees from those who are unable to pay their fees in full at the time they are due. The idea of paying somebody for the privilege of paying your bills is just insane.

5 Responses to “You need to pay your bill? It'll cost you...”

  1. Amber Says:
    1194106564

    I always pay by check for that very same reason the "surcharge"

  2. Stein Says:
    1194113582

    If I pay $100 with a check, they get $100. If you pay $100 with a credit card, they get $97. I don't see why they wouldn't add $3 onto the bill so they get the full amount needed to provide you the service.

    If you used $100 and they only received $97 in payment, who should pay the other $3?

  3. asmom Says:
    1194129436

    Who they should pay the other $3? They should, absolutely! I believe that's what's known as the cost of doing business. And there's not a doubt in my mind that they benefit by having people pay with credit cards in the form of less paperwork, quicker payment, fewer bounced checks and fees, etc.

    But at any rate, I'm angry because they didn't make it clear on the paperwork that there would be a fee or I would have made other payment arrangements in advance. But once I got there, it was too late. That's what really ticked me off.

  4. Stein Says:
    1194297661

    If you are talking about a city utility, there is no profit and nowhere to take the extra money from other than your neighbors.

    Credit card fees can be an enormous burden to businesses and with utilities, it increases the overall cost of the service.

    We live in a small community of about 10,000 homes. If they all paid their bill with a credit card, it would cost the city over $30,000 a month in added bank fees. Any bounced check fees are paid by the bouncer.

    The myth that credit cards don't cost money if you pay them off is just that. Even if everyone pays their bill on time, it would cost the community $30,000 a month in higher utility rates just for the one utility. With most companies, the charge is hidden in the price and 99% of the people don't notice, but when it is added on it brings the subject to light.

  5. wander saavedra Says:
    1238281511

    pleace i need pay my home

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