A. You can schedule an automatic payment.B. Trying to get out of the late fee sometimes.C. You'd better plan to pay ahead.D. Change your payment due date in order to avoid late fee.E. You could also set for yourself a reminder to pay in time. Some Tips to Avoid a Credit Card Late Fee If you're even a minute late with a payment, your credit card company can hit you hard in the wallet—as much as $39 each time, according to a July 2008 survey. However, some simple steps can help keep your exposure to these extra costs to a minimum. 【R1】______ A few card issuers, including Chase and HSBC, charge extra fees for online payments that you need to post the same day, so even if you pay electronically, do it three to four days ahead so your credit card company will process the payment by the due date. If you're snail-mailing checks, allow even more time—about 10 days—to allow for mail snafus. And unless you're desperate, forget about phone payments—a number of banks charge a fee for them, no matter when you call. 【R2】______ A few card issuers allow you to choose a due date to coincide with your payday schedule, so a cash shortfall won't make you late. You can even choose a due date that's easier to remember. Your birthday's on Feb. 17? Make your credit card payment due on the 17th of each month. 【R3】______ Some banks offer an autopay program that links your credit card to a checking or saving account; you decide whether to automatically pay the new balance, the current minimum payment or a fixed dollar amount. If you bank online, you can also arrange a do-it-yourself autopay. Just estimate your usual monthly minimum, schedule a monthly payment date and have the amount deducted from your account automatically. Just make sure you have enough in checking to cover it or the overdraft fees will eat up your saving on late fees. 【R4】______ Some credit card companies, including Chase, will alert you of upcoming due dates by e-mail or voice mail. You can also schedule a monthly e-mail reminder through a Web site, such as MemoToMe. com or RememberthMilk. com. 【R5】______ Even conscientious consumers will probably get hit with a late fee at some point. However, if you have a good record of on-time payments, call and politely ask a customer service representative to waive the charge. No dice? Ask to talk to a supervisor, or try again on a different day. You might even threaten to close your accounts with the company—a tactic that worked for Jeff Roth of Molalla, Ore, after his wife's Chase credit card was hit with a $ 39 late fee when the Fourth of July delayed processing of a payment. "My advice to those who feel they have unjustly been assessed late fees is to be assertive about getting the charges removed." Says Roth, who posted about his plight at GetRichSlowly. org. "It won't always work, but most credit card companies will least give you one freebie." Next time, though, you may be on your own.
单选题 【R1】
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】解析:本段文字中提到如果要求当天付款到账的话,一些银行会加收费用(charge extra fees)。即使选择电子付款(pay electronically)也要提前三四天,以便于你的信用卡银行在到期之前处理好你的还款。用普通邮递(snail—mailing checks)就需要提前10天左右。最后本段还提到如果你不是特别紧急,不要使用电话付款(forget about phone payments),因为很多银行都会为此收费的,所以综合来看,本段内容主要讲的是要提前付款,避免因为中间传送或银行业务处理带来的时间拖延使得付款不能及时到达。故选C。
单选题 【R2】
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】解析:本段内容是讲有一些发卡银行允许持卡者自由选择还款日期,这样一来持卡者可以在工资日还款(coincide with your payday schedule),不会因资金短缺导致还款推迟(a cash shortfall won’t make you late)。还可以选择一个容易记的日期(choose a due date that's easier to remember)比如自己的生日作为还款日期。所以本段主要内容是说可以改变还款日期以避免还款推迟,故答案选D。
单选题 【R3】
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】解析:本段刚开始就提到一些银行提供自动付款服务(autopay program),将持卡者的其他账户和信用卡绑定;或者如果开通了网上银行的话,还可以使用“自定义自动付款”功能(arrange a do-it-yourself autopay),只要账户里的资金足以支付信用卡的支出,这些都可以使持卡者免受因延迟付款而不得不付的late fee。所以本段内容是建议使用autopay服务故答案选A。
单选题 【R4】
【正确答案】 E
【答案解析】解析:本段内容比较少,意思也很清楚,文中用到了reminder(提醒)以及alert(使警觉)这样的词,意思都是在说持卡者要提醒自己还款日期以免延误而被罚款。意思很明了,所以答案选E。
单选题 【R5】
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】解析:本段内容比较有意思,主要讲信誉度一直比较高的持卡人(you have a good record of on-time payments),偶尔没有及时还款的话可以尝试“赖账”,同银行工作人员协商去掉这部分费用(waive the charge),一次不行可以改天再试,甚至可以以注销该银行的账号为威胁(You might even threaten to close your accounts with the company)。虽然不会每次都奏效,但可以一试,尤其是对那些被错误地认为延迟还款的人,更要非常坚定地要求抹去这笔费用。所以本段内容就是在讲可以尝试不付这笔费用。故本题选B。