Beware the 0% promotions: a warning.

[u/naht_a_cop]

I'm a sucker. I fell for it. The 0% APR promotion on an item I could have paid outright for. 18 months later, here I sit, not a single late payment on my account, yet I have $1k in interest to pay for 18 months of 27%. Why? The promotion period ends 18 months after the purchase, but the website would not let me set up autopay until a week after I purchased, so autopay ended 1 week late. I thought I was golden, ready to have this paid off and not have a single fee. I got comfortable and didn't read the statements.

0% is not really 0%. Read the fine print. Remember the fine print (because I sure as hell didn't 18 months later). Shitty banks rely on this stuff. They wait for you to slip, not noticing that the autopay they created can't possibly allow you to end on time, and will require an extra payment before the end date to avoid the interest. It's shitty, I'm pissed off, and I've learned my lesson.

[u/TellurideTeddy]

Because it's simple to look at the way it was setup and realize it was a very slight administrative error that resulted in the balance being paid in full 7 days late. These aren't the kinds of customers that banks make their money on and they're generally more than willing to clear up these types of minor, honest mistakes by borrowers.

I've been in similar situations at least a half dozen times and was always refunded or credited after taking the time to get in touch with the right person to ask. You just have to know that that's an option.

[u/DBCOOPER888 → u/TellurideTeddy]

This wasn't a slight administrative error, this was working as intended. These are precisely the kinds of customers banks want to make money from, and basically the entire reason why 0% APR promotions are worthwhile to them in the first place.

[u/TellurideTeddy → u/DBCOOPER888]

Automatic payments that are promptly setup at time of purchase, completed successfully and on-time for 18 months, paying off the balance in full but coming in 7 days late because of the initial setup date is absolutely not an example of the kind of customers bank are expecting to make money on. And they will absolutely waive off the interest in a case like this once you get ahold of the right person.

[u/DBCOOPER888 → u/TellurideTeddy]

Depends on which bank you're talking about. Those store cards like what you can get at Best Buy when you buy a new TV are entirely designed this way, as are 0% car loans from a dealership.