how long does a late payment affect your credit score
1 A late payment on your credit report could stay on your credit report for seven years. 2  It might decrease your credit score. 3  Payment history information typically accounts for nearly 35% of your credit score, making it one of the single most important factors in calculating your score.f your bills are past due, the sooner you can pay the bill, the better. The damaging effect of a late payment on your credit score can increase the longer the delinquency. If you've made a late payment recently, you could attempt to do the following: 1  Request removal of a late payment fee.