Do you need a little wriggle room to pay your bills late?

September 5, 2026 — 5:00am

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It’s not ideal but financial survival right now might look a little more like money hacking rather than maxxing.

More than four in 10 Australians say they have less than $1000 in savings, says Finder’s latest Consumer Sentiment Tracker. Extrapolated, that’s 9.2 million people with almost no reserves or recourse in an emergency. But I’ll get to that.

First, let’s acknowledge that sailing that close to the default wind puts your credit report and vital credit score in peril. But second, know that there is little-known “wriggle room” if your income and expenses aren’t quite adding up right now.

Even though we have had a comprehensive credit reporting regime since 2018, you can get away with paying late without it affecting your credit score. A smidge, that is.

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A dozen days is how much leeway you have to make repayments on any of your credit bills. More precisely, under 12 days.

So long as you make your required repayments within this time, it will not be recorded on your credit report and will therefore not be reflected in your credit score.

All that is noted is a “rubber stamp” if you are less than 12 days late with each one. And that’s for the past 24 months of repayments.

Which, don’t miss, gives you another opportunity. This data is only held for 24 months, so if your finances today are a bit dire, the........

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