Credit Cards And Credit Scores

Posted by Nick Niesen on October 29th, 2010

Did you know that your credit cards and your credit scores are often tied together? It is true, and there are several ways that this happens.

The manner in which you pay?or do not pay?the monthly payments for your credit cards will certainly have a bearing on your credit score. If you pay on time, you will earn a better score as time goes by. On the other hand, if you are late on your payments, your score will go down. Two interesting facets of this, however, are time and?for lack of a better word?mercy.

Time and mercy come into play when you know that you cannot make the payments on your credit cards. If you know that you do not have the funds to make your payments, it is far better to contact the company and explain your situation than it is to simply ignore the payment. When you fail to make a payment and fail to contact the company, they simply have no idea what is going on with you. You may have a legitimate reason for not being able to make the payment, but they do not know that. When you miss a payment and have not contacted the company, you can all but expect to have that missed payment reported to the credit bureaus at about the 30 day mark. If you miss two payments and have not contacted the company, it is all but guaranteed that it will be reported.

There is a better way to handle these issues. Companies that issue credit cards almost always have the authority to grant you extra time if you need it. They can only do this, however, if you contact them before the payment is overdue or very soon thereafter. If you have a good reason for not being able to make the payment they can offer different plans to help get you through the short-term. In many cases, if you can get the payment into them within a reasonable amount of time, they will not report the missed payment to the credit reporting agencies.

Consumers should understand that once any type of negative information is reported and attached to the credit report that information can stay on the report for up to seven years. During that time, lenders will see this negative information and it can have an effect on your financial future. Consumers should also understand that their credit score is determined by the information that is recorded on the credit reports that are maintained by the three credit reporting agencies.

The math is simple on this. If you miss payments on your credit cards and do not contact the companies to make arrangements the missed payment will go on your credit report. That same credit report will then be used to determine your overall credit score. In most cases, negative information, such as missed payments, will result in lowered credit scores. With a lower credit score, you may find it hard to get future credit cards or credit in general. You may also be subject to higher interest rates on those loans that you are able to get. To avoid all of this, contact the companies that are carrying your credit cards when you need help with payments. It is well worth the time and effort it takes.