Discover It Late Payment

[LittleMsLaur]

So just thought I'd post this in case this helps even one of you out there. I JUST received my DiscoverIt last month and immediately signed up for the Automatic Payment option upon activation (linked to my bank account.) I read through the info on the page to make sure it didn't take a couple of months to set up (I'm used to this because of Uverse and their two month delay) and I didn't see anything so I assumed it was good to go. Come to find out I missed my first payment (It was due January 2nd) because THEIR autopay system failed and didn't make the payment. Needless to say I used their chat function to discuss this with a rep before the statement cut and they assured me it was fine. Unfortuntely that wasn't the case and even though I'd made a payment that day it didn't post so I technically had my first late payment...right out of the gate. So of course I called in and spoke with a rep who apologized profusely for the misinformation and said she'd note the account so I could call in if it ever happened again and they'd waive the fees and everything. But I'm sure this will really help my chances with CLI's, etc, in the future with them considering their own system won't know the difference.

Blah. And here I was thinking I'd be using Discover over Chase because of the stingy credit limit. Just another reason why my love affair with my Amex BCE will continue.

So bottom line...always make your first payment manually just in case.

On a side note...this doesn't get reported to the credit bureau, correct? Everything I've read makes it seem like I won't since it's my first one with them, but if I need to call in to verify it I will. 

[Themanwhocan]

It doesn't get reported unless its at least 30 days late.

And the Discover IT waives the late payment fee the very first time.

[myjourney]

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@Themanwhocan wrote:

It doesn't get reported unless its at least 30 days late.

And the Discover IT waives the late payment fee the very first time.

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+1 correct 

[phonic]

That sucks. Personally, I never trust auto-pay. I have it turned on on most of my accounts as a fail-safe, but always pay manually.

Regarding your questions, it certainly might impact your chances for a CLI with Discover, or any other internal promotion. But a recon should help if that turns out to be a sole reason for a decline. 

However, you don't need to worry about your CR unless you are 30-days or more late. That's the first level of derogatory on trade lines. Being a day or so late will only result in possible fees or other issues with that creditor alone. 

[LittleMsLaur]

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@Themanwhocan wrote:

It doesn't get reported unless its at least 30 days late.

And the Discover IT waives the late payment fee the very first time.

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Okay, good to hear. And yes...I'm thankful they waive the first one. When she offered to note the account in case I have a future one that needs to be waived you bet your rear I accepted. I told her I'd never had a late payment before and don't anticipate having another again, but I want it in my file for possible recon purposes if I need a future CLI and get denied based on that. 

I have to say...their customer service has been fantastic so far but their actual product hasn't made the best first impression on me. The only pro to this card is the credit limit...though my Amex still has it beat.

[LittleMsLaur]

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@phonic wrote:

That sucks. Personally, I never trust auto-pay. I have it turned on on most of my accounts as a fail-safe, but always pay manually.

Regarding your questions, it certainly might impact your chances for a CLI with Discover, or any other internal promotion. But a recon should help if that turns out to be a sole reason for a decline. 

However, you don't need to worry about your CR unless you are 30-days or more late. That's the first level of derogatory on trade lines. Being a day or so late will only result in possible fees or other issues with that creditor alone. 

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See normally it isn't an issue because I make several payments a month. But I was trying to pay off my Chase and Amex this month and then do a small payment on my Discover so it posted a balance, and then I was going to pay the full amount. Then I was going to rotate and have a balance post on my Chase next month so they all see I can utilize a larger credit line but also pay it off quickly. I'm hoping to get the APR down on both Chase and Discover to match my Amex (especially Discover since I opted for the signup bonus instead of the extended APR period.)  And then of course there's always the wish for a future CLI.

Oh well...lesson learned. I'll probably use this one less and less now that I've received the signup bonus. With such a high APR there's really no use for it, except for cashback categories. And even then my Chase will often match it. So I'll probably stick with Chase's 5% until the intro APR is up on that one in 15 mos. 

[indiolatino61]

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@LittleMsLaur wrote:

So just thought I'd post this in case this helps even one of you out there. I JUST received my DiscoverIt last month and immediately signed up for the Automatic Payment option upon activation (linked to my bank account.) I read through the info on the page to make sure it didn't take a couple of months to set up (I'm used to this because of Uverse and their two month delay) and I didn't see anything so I assumed it was good to go. Come to find out I missed my first payment (It was due January 2nd) because THEIR autopay system failed and didn't make the payment. Needless to say I used their chat function to discuss this with a rep before the statement cut and they assured me it was fine. Unfortuntely that wasn't the case and even though I'd made a payment that day it didn't post so I technically had my first late payment...right out of the gate. So of course I called in and spoke with a rep who apologized profusely for the misinformation and said she'd note the account so I could call in if it ever happened again and they'd waive the fees and everything. But I'm sure this will really help my chances with CLI's, etc, in the future with them considering their own system won't know the difference.

Blah. And here I was thinking I'd be using Discover over Chase because of the stingy credit limit. Just another reason why my love affair with my Amex BCE will continue.

So bottom line...always make your first payment manually just in case.

On a side note...this doesn't get reported to the credit bureau, correct? Everything I've read makes it seem like I won't since it's my first one with them, but if I need to call in to verify it I will. 

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Good advice...there are people who do not regularly verify if payments have gone through on their auto-pays. Thanks for the post.

[Fico2Go]

OP thanks for the reminder.  I am always skeptical of anything that is on auto.  Server update and other admin issues can create errors and delays. 

I would agree with the poster who uses auto payment as a fail-safe. 

For me I will use auto payment to make only the minimum payments due typically a week after statement cut.  This will allow enough time for payments to post and any issue to resolve. 

I will always make a manual payment near the actual due date.  . 

[LittleMsLaur]

I'm just surprised it didn't have a notice on there that there would be a delayed start date for the autopayment. Like I said, I've had other bills that took several billing cycles before autopay came into effect. Perhaps I missed it but I did actively search for it when I signed up for autopay...hence the frustration. Just wanted people to know...especially if they're newbies to credit. It's so easy to rely on all of these "easypay" methods these days...but there are quirks in the systems. Sometimes I think that's how they get you...

[FinStar]

Your advice will definitely help newbies for sure.  While the system can experience issues at any point (server down, inoperable features) I always perform several tests for all accounts to make sure everything works ahead of time, especially from a remittance perspective.  I've never set any autopay on any of my ~60 CCs and never missed any payments for as long as I've had accounts.  Then again, I tend to micromanage my accounts so this avoids the issue.