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Virgin Mastercard general rip off or just me?
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I have a Virgin Mastercard that for 18 months now has been charging 34.9% interest and if I want to do balance transfers it will cost me 5% transfer fee. Over the past year I've asked them to reduce it twice but they just flatly refuse.
This is completely beyond the interest rates and transfer fees for my other cards. Average Rate for these is 17-18% and the standard transfer fee of 3%.
Is there anyone else out there experiencing this with Virgin cards?
Last edited by loopy.magic; 03-11-2009 at 5:24 PM..
I have a virgin MasterCard been about 2 years I took it out at 0% for 16months , just before my promotional period they sent me 2 letters increasing my APR from 16.9% to 24.9% then to 34.9%.
I opted out of the second hike. ( I was asleep for the 1st hike) there minimum payments was a joke. Last month Interest charged on £6580 was £147 they took a minimum payment from me for £148 so I paid off £1 that month, that was the last straw. I have balance transferred my virgin card to my other cards, and paid off as much as I can now.
I called them yesterday they told me my account would automatically close when the balance reaches Zero, Can't wait.
but if you only pay a pound off the balance each time you'll have that debt for the next 548 years lol!
Its not technically virgins fault aswell its good old MBNA! They are appalling, i got their 9 months no fees 0% bt card and it'll be paid off in full in month 9 lol!
Just because they have a higher rate than another card doesn't make it a 'rip off' - simply that they're not, for you, competitive.
Why should they reduce it just because you ask - they're there to make profit.
To follow on from Andy's post - if your credit rating was A1 then you would be able to get decent rates and balance transfers.
I feel OP has not told us everything about his circumstances here.
What goes around - comes around
give lots and you will always receive lots
Just because they have a higher rate than another card doesn't make it a 'rip off' - simply that they're not, for you, competitive.
Why should they reduce it just because you ask - they're there to make profit.
It's all objective I guess, but in my opinion 34.9% interest for anything is a rip off.
If you don't ask you don't get. I've asked other credit card companies to reduce rates in the past and sometimes they have obliged. I'd rather ask and be refused then not ask.
To follow on from Andy's post - if your credit rating was A1 then you would be able to get decent rates and balance transfers.
I feel OP has not told us everything about his circumstances here.
What about my circumstances do you feel I haven't told you that's relevant? my other credit cards have standard interest rates of 19.9%, 17.9% and 14.9%.
What about my circumstances do you feel I haven't told you that's relevant? my other credit cards have standard interest rates of 19.9%, 17.9% and 14.9%.
My credit cards, have, believe it or not, APR's of: 14.9%, 17.9% and 19.9% (oh and 34.9% on Cap One)
My credit rating sucks. I wouldn't expect anything less than 34.9% from MBNA.
I have a Virgin Mastercard that for 18 months now has been charging 34.9% interest and if I want to do balance transfers it will cost me 5% transfer fee. Over the past year I've asked them to reduce it twice but they just flatly refuse.
This is completely beyond the interest rates and transfer fees for my other cards. Average Rate for these is 17-18% and the standard transfer fee of 3%.
Is there anyone else out there experiencing this with Virgin cards?
Just incase there is any confusion - You don't pay MBNA/Virgin 5% extra to move your balance away from them. You pay (or not pay if you get a good deal) any balance transfer fee to your new provider.
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MBNA have a long history of treating people poorly, doing all they can to keep them in debt forever, hiking APRs and turning extremely nasty if things start to go wrong. They may be the biggest card issuer and have what appears to be the on face of it, some of the best deals on the market. But personally, I wouldn't touch them with a bargepole!
What about my circumstances do you feel I haven't told you that's relevant? my other credit cards have standard interest rates of 19.9%, 17.9% and 14.9%.
Easy then. Use these cards and give up the Virgin one.
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Is it just me that thinks the term "rip off" is a little over used on this forum along with "miss sold"?
Only from people who don't read the T&Cs, or don't shop around, expect the companies to offer the best product withour asking or undertaking research first
A 43,699% APR loan may be high, but it's stated on the Keyfacts doc signed when the debt is taken on....
I did read the t&cs and I do shop around, this is merely a thread to get opinion on Virgin Mastercards. I simply wanted to get peoples views and experiences of Virgin cards and hopefully make other people aware of this, which after all is the point of this forum isn't it?
I'm not stupid or desperate enough to pay 34.9% (I pay the full amount off every month). But for life's little emergencies, where on some months I may not be able to pay the full amount it would be nice to pay a lower rate around 17-19%. As soon as my credit worthiness allows I'll be getting another card and ditching Virgin/MBNA.
Unfortunately my other cards have balances on them at promotional rates which means I can't use them for normal shopping purposes.
MBNA are the worst at catching people out. They dont send you a letter about the increase they just add the figure on your statement, as a customer you only see the new percentage figure by working it out from the amounts in pounds and pence.
They will try if possible to shed a couple of % but this is the biggest trick in the book. Because they have customer saying yes I will accept 22% instead of 29.9% because the customer think they have a bargin. In fact they have just tricked the customer into agreeing to the 22% figure. Then you are stuck. Do not accept 29.9% or any others other than the original 15.9% on your terms & contitions. They are abusing the variable bit in the tems & conditions, with unfair hikes. Get them to justify why they have increased it so much, do it it writing.
If you can switch the balance do so. But its not that easy at the moment because other lenders don't want new debt.
They do, I contacted all of the financial complaint procedures and I ended up getting informed to contact FOS. Although it appears to be lawful to rate jack, it cannot be justified as fair, In my case anyway. So the FOS has the power to get MBNA to act.
My story is very complicated. Put it simply, I was tricked into the web of deceit by MBNA!
They do, I contacted all of the financial complaint procedures and I ended up getting informed to contact FOS. Although it appears to be lawful to rate jack, it cannot be justified as fair, In my case anyway. So the FOS has the power to get MBNA to act.
My story is very complicated. Put it simply, I was tricked into the web of deceit by MBNA!
The Virgin Card originally charged me 17.9%. I think MBNA try to sneak through these horrendous hikes in interest and hope people won't realise how much it will cost them.
Good luck with the FOS complaint, I hope it works out for you, update this thread once you get a reply.
Pls be nice to all MoneySavers. There's no such thing as a stupid question, and even if you disagree courtesy helps. Take care over copyright. Use excerpts and links rather than copying long text. This site asserts copyright on all comments posted on the board.
Pls be nice to all MoneySavers. There's no such thing as a stupid question, and even if you disagree courtesy helps.
Virgin Mastercard general rip off or just me?
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