I have a great way to avoid late fees and penalties. PAY YOUR CARD ON TIME! I have a Best Buy card that we use for large purchases where we can get no payment/no interest for such & such a time. (say 12 months) Then we divide the cost by that 12 months and make equal monthly payments to cover it. Then we don't get a big bill in a year, and we don't have to pay any interest. Works great!