Anyone who buys something with a credit card should understand that there are 13 months in the year. There are 13 months because the billing cycle is shorter than the month. For instance 365 days in a year, divided by a 28 day billing cycle, means there are 13.057 months in a year. IF you set up your bank bill-pay system to make your credit card payment you will be making late payments after 4 or 5 months.
The first warning sign will be that you made 2 payments in one month. HSBC does not want you to know that there are 13 months in a year. What happens if the billing cycle is a 25-day cycle? There are 14 months in a year that way.
For the uninitiated your motorcycle, ATV, or car loan may be calculated with daily interest. That means you are buying on a credit card, even if you do not get a credit card with or for the purchase. Is the dealer going to tell you that up front? Probably not, but it is in the contract fine print.
If your payment is $365 per month and there are 12 months in a year you paid $4380. For a 13-month year you paid $4745. For a 14 month year you paid $5110. It does make a difference.
HSBC does not want you to know. Even with unsecured home equity loans the idea is the same. It is called simple interest. You need to find out what the billing cycle is.
If you make 2 payments in one month and no payment the next month your daily interest, late fees, and crazy HSBC account will put you upside down in a big hole. That is how HSBC makes more money. If you try to mail your payment so it credits at the right time each month see our proposal for mailing payments. Your payment was mailed early wasn’t it? You didn’t really make a late payment, did you? Or did the billing cycle mess you up?
Now you understand why it is critical to monitor your HSBC account. You probably didn’t do anything wrong. The cards were stacked in the deck instead.
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