One of the most commonly cited personal finance strategies is to automate bills through autopay. This “set it and forget it” approach keeps you from missing any payment deadlines and makes it easier to manage your overall expenses.
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While you can automate most bills, it’s not always in your best interest to automate all bills. Here are seven bills you may regret putting on autopay.
Utilities
Though it may seem like a good idea to put utility bills, like water, gas and electric, on autopay, it’s important to remember these are not fixed expenses. A fixed expense, like rent or a mortgage, is the same each month.
Utilities are considered variable expenses because they fluctuate every month depending on your overall use. And if you have a particularly high-use month, you could be at risk of an overdraft and overdraft charges.
The safe approach for paying these bills is to sign into your account each month, review the statement to identify any unusual price increases or errors (and discuss with your utility provider, as needed) and make the payment afterwards.
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Gym Memberships
There are a few reasons why it’s risky to put a gym membership on autopay, regardless whether you go regularly or not.
Gym rates tend to change quickly and without proper notice to customers. Some gyms also make the cancellation process difficult, and may continue to charge you even after receiving a cancellation request.
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Credit Cards
Some may argue it’s a good idea to automate credit card bills, especially if you want to improve your credit score by paying your balance in full.
The savvier approach, however, is to manually pay a credit card. Review your statement carefully to see if there have been any charges you don’t recognize and can dispute with your provider, or to see expenses that hiked up your bill this month that can be cut back or eliminated entirely next month.
Smartphone
Making the decision to put your smartphone on autopay comes down to the type of phone plan you have. An unlimited plan with a set monthly bill would benefit from being on autopay. A non-limited plan that fluctuates depending on data usage is a less than ideal candidate for autopay. It could even trigger an overdraft and bank fees if you owe more than usual and need extra funds taken from your bank account.
It’s important to take your billing date into consideration, too. Some may have a set date they receive their statements every month, while others have a monthly cycle that varies depending on the number of days in the month. Not having a set number of days could mean having a fluctuating bill that is more or less expensive every month.
Internet
At first glance, your internet bill may appear to be a fixed expense that’s worth putting on autopay. However, the internet is actually a variable expense. If you have a promotional rate, it tends to expire quickly and lead to higher charges, and often without any notifications to the customer.
Like utilities, it’s better to review your statements each month and make payments afterwards.
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Streaming Services and Cable TV
Cable TV and streaming services typically increase their rates each year, which they may or may not notify customers about. And if you’re enjoying a free trial from a streaming service, you’ll need to be aware of the date the trial expires to avoid any future charges.
Take a moment to review these statements to see what has increased in price and decide if you want to keep the plan you’re on. Renegotiate with the provider or cancel your subscription, if necessary.
Medical Bills
Medical bills should never be put on autopay due to their complexity.
Many statements contain billing errors such as services that haven’t been covered or duplicate charges. Failing to review these statements before their automated payment is processed could lead to overpaying by hundreds of dollars.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 7 Bills You Will Regret Putting on Autopay
