By Mike Barclay of 10CentsWorth.com

Sean Oliver/flickr

If there’s one phrase in the English language that brings more pain than others, it’s “late fees.” Nobody likes to hear the words, “I’m sorry, but we’re going to have to add a fee for your late payment” or see a late fee tacked onto their credit card statement.

It’s tempting to be apathetic and think, “Eh, it’s only another $15 I have to pay.”

Not a smart idea. Here are four late fees that add up quick:

Library Fees

With late fees racking up at around fifty cents per book per day, avid readers like myself can end up with a hefty bill for forgetting to return books. I have about ten books out currently (not past due, go me!) but if I were to bring them back a week late, that’s an extra $5 out of pocket though they started out free!

One week of late fees for 10 books = $5

Redbox Movies

Movies for a dollar? Or nothing if you have a Redbox coupon code? Fantastic! The kicker comes when we end up with no time to return the movie, which is a plague amongst many. Technically, you are not paying a late fee but re-renting the movie for a dollar per day each movie is past due. Soon you are close to paying theater prices.

Week of extra rental fees for one movie = $7

Credit Cards

I have a Best Buy credit card for my laptop that I’m still paying off. If I miss the payment date, they tack on $25, which is less than the average credit card late fee of $35. Not to mention the interest that adds up the longer I take to pay off the laptop. A year of late fees alone adds up to $300! That’s almost a quarter of what I paid for the laptop itself.

One year of credit card late fees = $300

Apartment Rent

First day late is usually around $15, and then another $5 per day after that. At least that is how it is for my apartment. I hope that all of us are timely enough to avoid late fees.  I don’t know about you, but an extra $20 in late fees digs into my wallet.

Two days late on rent = $20

Now that I’ve sufficiently depressed you with how quickly late fees accrue, how do we stop it? I set alarms and reminders for myself. If I get a movie from Redbox, I’ll post a sticky note somewhere I will see frequently to remind myself to return it. I’ll even schedule due dates into my calendar so a reminder of the due date pops up on my phone. Same thing with library books, credit cards, and other bills.

Being late is not worth the extra cash. Trust me, from my own personal experience, it adds up.

Tagged: credit card late fees, late fees, late penalty, library late fees, movie rental late fees, redbox late fees on Tuesday, April 13, 2010 · 6 Comments »