Personal Business Journal

A cash advance is commonly known as a ‘payday loan’ because it often secures a person’s finances while they’re in between paychecks. It is a short-term loan, frequently an advance on a paycheck, that does not require a credit check and rarely succeeds $500. A cash advance is a very convenient loan for people who need money, typically cash, instantly and perhaps have bad credit or no credit. Usually the borrower will immediately write a post-dated check for the amount of the loan and accrued interest, to be held by a cash advance service until the date of maturity (the borrower’s next payday). When the loan matures, the cash advance service then processes the check ordinarily or withdraws the payment directly from the borrower’s checking account.

A cash advance service operates much like a credit card service in that if the borrower cannot afford the loan amount and interest at the time of maturity, they have the option of paying a fee to extend the loan (or ‘refinance’ it). The fee grows exponentially every time the loan is refinanced.

Payday lenders, as well as larger, more conventional banks, offer various cash advance services. However, much controversy surrounds these services, which critics say exploit the poor, needy, and young, enticing them with loans that merely imprison them in debt via high interest rates and refinancing fees. Although a cash advance may benefit someone who is temporarily unable to pay their bills or buy groceries and would not be able to obtain the necessary funds otherwise, such loans may not be in everyone’s best interest. The controversy over cash advance services is so great that payday lending is illegal in twenty-five states in the United States. Thus, many payday lenders must coordinate with banks outside their state to provide cash advances to customers.

There are three reasons that you might have missed a payment on your credit card: either you can’t afford to pay, the payment didn’t get there in time or you just plain forgot. For whatever reason, there’s one thing you need to do, and quickly – get on the phone.

Then, apologise like you’ve never apologised before. Don’t panic, stay calm, but make it clear to the customer service representative that you’re very sorry. Say that things like this never happen to you. If you just forgot, then tell the truth about what happened. But if you can’t afford to pay, then you should say so too.

You will be surprised at how sympathetic credit card companies can be if you phone and apologise. After all, the sensible ones want to keep you paying interest to them for a long time to come, so it’s not really in their interest to punish you.

Remember to show your appreciation if they let you off. Promise that it won’t happen again. Whatever you do, don’t get angry or frustrated. You need their goodwill and to be in their good books.

However, if deemed necessary, you may also want to show that you are willing to transfer your balance elsewhere if they won’t let you off this one mistake. Credit card companies will usually be more accommodating to your request once you make this known.

You need to do everything you can to persuade them not to add your late payment to your credit report. Any negativity in your credit report may adversely affect your applications for any credit. Remember that any late payment can be a black mark against your name for as long as ten years.

On the other hand, if the worst happens and it does get onto your credit report, don’t worry excessively. As long as there’s only one late payment in a year or so, it doesn’t matter too much. It’s the people who consistently pay late who get the truly terrible credit ratings.

In the future, remember to make payments early. This goes especially for the people whose payments didn’t make it in time. It is just not prudent to wait until the day before the deadline to make your credit card payment. Many things can go wrong at the last minute.

In a nutshell, it’s generally a bad idea to let bills of any kind stack up until you get around to them. Review your bills regularly, pay on time and you’ll live a much less stressful life.