Missing a payment due date for a personal auto loan is a mistake that could be costly—yet a lot of people do it anyway. You wouldn’t want to be in the same situation. But life happens sometimes and for whatever reason, you could fall behind a payment due date. You can check car finance deals before applying loan.
Maybe you forgot about it, faced some financial trouble, or could not make it to the brick-and-mortar branch to make a payment. While it is not unheard of for these things to happen, you have to find a way to never miss an auto loan payment again. Otherwise, you may face hefty late fees, get a ding on your credit score, or worse, have your car repossessed. Luckily, there are many ways to help you make on-time payments such as:
Consolidate Your Debt
Debt consolidation is a process that allows you to combine multiple financial responsibilities into a single loan payment. This eliminates the need to keep track of multiple payment due dates, making it less likely for you to miss a payment. Before you consolidate, it is important to note that falling behind a due date for a debt consolidation loan will still negatively impact your credit score.
Change Your Due Date
Sometimes, payments get missed because the loan payment due date and your payday don’t align. To fix this issue, you can ask your lender to change your due date. Take note that not all lenders offer this option.
Sign Up for an Automatic Payment Schedule
An automatic payment schedule or autopay is an arrangement you and your lender agree upon. This arrangement allows your lender to withdraw the amount due for a loan payment from your credit card, savings account, or checking account at a set time or date. Some lenders may agree to a weekly or monthly autopay schedule.
Through autopay, you can save on postage, spend less time writing checks, and avoid the hassle of paying in person. As long as you maintain enough balance in your account, you don’t have to worry about falling behind on your loan payment or facing hefty late fees.
Set Up Calendar Reminders
There are a lot of reasons why you could miss a due date such as a busy schedule or unorganized finances. You don’t have to feel too bad about it – a lot of people are on the same boat as you. What matters is that you are willing to take action to avoid missing any more payments. Luckily, there are a lot of tools you can use to remind yourself about your due dates including:
Google Calendar
Google Calendar is one of the most accessible apps to both Android and iOS phone users.. You can keep track of your loan payment due dates by adding them to your Google Calendar. The app allows you to set up a recurring pop-up notification on your phone to remind you about making a payment. Additionally, you can customize your bill reminder to include labels, so you can keep track of which bills you are paying for on a particular day.
Manilla
Manilla is a financial management tool that provides users with an organized view of their accounts. It also has an intuitive bill reminder feature that will help you stay on top of your loan payment schedules.
Mint
This budget tracker and planner helps you manage your finances with ease. You can manually set up a bill reminder. Mint can also suggest a reminder based on your transactions.
WhatBills?
WhatBills? is an easy-to-use, web-based service designed to remind you of your bills, keep track of your expenses, and plan your budget. You can get an organized, overall view of your finances all in one place. There is no need to manage multiple spreadsheets and notes about your savings and expenses—WhatBills? does it for you.
Key Takeaways
Given the current state of the economic climate, it’s understandable that payments for auto loans can get missed. This can lead to you facing hefty late payment fees or the repossession of your car. Luckily, there are many ways to prevent this from happening through discipline and the use of various tools that are readily available online.
