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There’s no question that automatic bill pay is convenient.

But is it for everyone?

I don’t think so.

Personally, I’m not a big fan of automatic bill pay myself — because it’s too easy for your bank account to get messed up.

Since you have to monitor your bank account closely when you use automatic bill pay, for me it’s just easier to mail a check, or pay online when I know the money is there.

And, I’m not the only one who feels that way. These hidden dangers of automatic bill pay may be enough to change your mind too!

Consider this:

• Companies change the dates that bills are due. When they do, if you aren’t paying attention, your bank could send out the payment using the old due date and you could be charged fees for paying late.
• Some bills don’t lend themselves to easy automatic bill pay — like credit card bills. If you charge more one month than you’ve got set up to pay at your bank, then you could end up with overdrafts on your account when the bank pays your bill.
• It’s easy to miss mistakes on a bill when you aren’t regularly checking it — because you’ve got it set up at your bank to pay the bill automatically.

While there’s no question that paying bills on time is important, automatic bill pay has some serious disadvantages that could cost you more money in the long run.