Last month's decision by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to cap credit card late fees at no more than $8 per month seems destined to earn a spot in the annals of unintended consequences.
On the surface, of course, it sounds great. No one likes getting hit with late fees for missing minimum payments, which previously averaged about $32 per month but vary from credit card to credit card. The CFPB estimates that the change will save American families about $220 per year in lower fees. In his State of the Union address last month, President Joe Biden hailed the change as part of his overall war on "junk fees."
