While the thought of paying a credit card bill isn’t thrilling for anyone, it’s an unavoidable truth of being a cardholder. What’s also true is that being late on payments can cost you even more than you bargained for.

Missing a credit card payment can mean getting hit with late fees, penalty APRs and dings to your credit score. However, there are ways to get ahead of your bills and even recover from missed payments with little harm done.

Ways you can avoid late fees

Late credit card payments can lead to costly fees and damage your credit score, but they’re easy to avoid with a few proactive steps. Here are some effective ways to stay on top of your due dates and keep late fees at bay.

• Set up automatic payments
  

  One of the easiest ways to ensure on-time credit card bill payments every month is by setting up automatic payments. This means that your credit card payment will be withdrawn from your bank account automatically every month. You can elect to pay the minimum amount, the amount on your statement balance or a fixed amount of your choice.

  Keep in mind that this method still calls for some attention to detail. For instance, if you don’t have enough money in your account to cover the automatic withdrawal, you could rack up overdraft charges.

• Set up calendar reminders
  

  If you don’t like the idea of automatic payments, try setting up calendar reminders for yourself instead. You can schedule reminders as far or as close to your payment due date as you choose — even getting notifications sent directly to your email or phone. Scheduling your own payment reminders is a great way to keep things from sneaking up on you.

• Change your payment date
  

  If you’re having trouble making on-time credit card payments because they fall at an inconvenient time of the month (right before payday instead of right after, for example), try changing your credit card payment date. You can do this online, or you can call the number on the back of your credit card.

  If you have multiple credit cards, determine whether it would be more helpful to make each payment due on the same date or on different dates.

Locate the late fee warnings in the fine print

If you want to know how much your credit card charges in late fees, check the fine print. Your credit card statement, whether you get it in the mail or retrieve it online, should have information about late fees. This information is usually on the first page of your statement, under the heading “Late Payment Warning.”

The fine print might also warn you that late payments will result in a penalty APR — meaning your credit card interest rate will go up. If you don’t pay off your credit card in full every month, having a penalty APR applied to your balance could end up costing you a lot of money. If you do get stuck with a penalty APR, it should return to your regular APR after six months of on-time payments.

How much late fees can cost you

Previously, the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) had set limits on how much credit card companies can charge in late fees. However, the CFPB no longer enforces any federal fee caps specifically on late credit card fees. Instead, card issuers continue to abide by the broader requirements of the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act (CARD Act), which mandates that penalty fees be “reasonable and proportional” to the violation.

Typically, late fees can be as high as $41 for repeat violations, with around $30 to $32 being common for first-time misses. However, these numbers come from individual issuer policies, not federal regulation.

Keep in mind that the late fee can never be higher than the minimum payment due on the credit card. In other words, if your minimum payment is $25, your late fee can be no higher than $25.

How to appeal a late fee

If you miss a payment, don’t panic — as many credit card issuers are willing to waive a late fee, especially if it’s your first time. Here are a few ways you can try to appeal a late fee:

• Make the payment immediately. Pay the overdue amount as soon as possible to minimize further consequences.
• Call your card issuer. Contact customer service and explain that the missed payment was accidental.
• Request a fee waiver. Politely ask if they can remove the late fee, particularly if you have a history of on-time payments.
• Ask about penalty APR removal. If your interest rate increased due to the missed payment, request a review or reversal of the penalty APR.
• Prevent future issues. Set up payment reminders, enroll in autopay, or adjust your due date to avoid missing payments again.

The bottom line

While it’s never advisable to form a habit of making late payments, accidental cases are not the end of the world. Be honest with yourself about any disorganization or lapses in memory when it comes to managing due dates, and take some practical steps to protect yourself moving forward.