Some banks are cheating their credit card customers out of billions of dollars annually, say top consumer experts. The card issuers are adding on unauthorized charges that only a sharp-eyed consumer would notice. The situation is far more serious than anyone realizes. The typical consumer is furious.
Late fees are a scam.
There are even instances when a customer's statement has clearly shown a payment was received on time, but the consumer was slapped with a late fee anyway. When consumers call to complain, they get the runaround. Card issuers count on customers to give-up and forget about extra charges. But consumers are fighting back. California attorney Phillip Schuman filed a class action suit on behalf of one million customers of Providian Financial, the nation's ninth largest credit card issuer, which announced recently it would refund 20 million dollars in late fees to 700,000 customers.