My bills

It’s my habit as an accountant—or a woman. I check my bill very carefully.

I record all the spending, keep all the receipts, and check with credit card bill once I received it in the mail. I found that lots of people don’t do it because it’s such a hassle. However, from time to time, I catch mischarges.

Recently, I have a receipt for $46.80 but I was charged $76.80 on my credit card bill. I called my credit card company immediately and wanted to know what I can do to fix the problem. The person on the phone was very helpful. It was fixed right away, although I needed to send in my receipt. I’m pretty happy about the service and feel good about using my credit card.

About four months ago, I found out that my local gas station overcharged me two dollars on my credit card bill. I went in to the store with my receipt. Of course the person in the store denied the mistake. He said the number on the receipt is not my credit card number. I told him that this is just a random number. He was arguing with me. Luckily, it just happened that I refilled my gas tank before I walked in to the store. I showed him the receipt. It’s crazy to waste my time to argue for 2 dollars. So, I requested to talk to his manager. Finally he refunded me the 2 dollars.

My question is I swiped my card through machine, and the charge directly goes to my account. How could this mistake happen? I just couldn’t understand. I wonder if it happens often to other people and the store gets away with it. That’s why I insist on the refund.

The store couldn’t give me the explanation why and how the mischarge happened. Since then, I never go to that gas station. If I was like most people and don’t check my bill, I wouldn’t know.

Checking my bill also is kind of reviewing my spending. Sometime I forgot how the money was expended. When I am reviewing my bills, I can see that we maybe over spend on some items. Anyway, I believe that checking your credit card bill is a good habit and I’ll continue doing it.