Understanding a late fee
Where the charge comes from, and what to do if you think it's wrong.
Where the fee comes from
When a pickup is late, a staff member records it: the time your child was due to be collected and the time you arrived. The fee is worked out from those two times and your center's policy at the moment it's recorded, and it only reaches your bill when your center adds it.
That's useful if you disagree: your center can see exactly what was recorded, when, and by whom.
The amount
The rate is your center's policy, not a RoundUp setting, and it should match what you signed at enrollment. If you can't find it, ask for the policy — a reasonable request, and centers expect it.
If it looks wrong
Talk to your center first. Common and genuinely resolvable causes:
- The time was noted late — you left at 5:58 but it was written down at 6:10 while the room was being settled.
- You were there on time but waiting for a teacher to bring your child out.
- The center closed early or opened late for a reason that wasn't your doing.
Your center can review what was recorded and cancel or waive the charge. Raise it the same week while everyone still remembers the evening.
Please don't dispute a late fee with your card issuer before speaking to your center. It freezes the payment, creates work for both of you, and is much slower than a two-minute conversation at drop-off.
Avoiding them
Phone if you know you'll be late. It rarely removes the fee, but it lets the center plan staffing, and a teacher waiting with a child who knows a parent is eight minutes away has a very different evening than one who doesn't.
If the fees are mounting up
Talk to your director. Repeated late pickups usually mean a schedule that doesn't fit rather than carelessness, and many centers can offer a later collection option or a different arrangement. They'd generally much rather solve it than keep charging you.
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