Old Credit cards - worth keeping them going?

RickMoney

Ok so I have a few cards on the go at the moment. Not because I needed to juggle money around but because each had something I was interested in at the time:

HSBC - My std bank issue one. Had ages.
Barclaycard - when they did price promise. Again had for years.
Halifax 0% interest one - got to spread the payments on a big purchase but ended up not using it.

Now I'm thinking of getting a sky card to gain the benifits of money off my bills as I always clear the money from the card at month end. But with the above, is it worth cancelling them or should I keep them running?

If there are cons to either option I would appreciate hearing them.

regards,

Rick

normanmark

If any of the cards are dormant & they arent planned on being used its probably best to cancel them asap.

PROLIANT

Check your credit files mate and work out your total available credit, then work out your debt to income ratio, if you are in the clear then keep them going for as long as possible as this will boost your credit rating, accounts opened pre-1998 will not show on your files.

ldn-100

Having long term unused credit facilities on your file may be considered a negative factor when making applications for new credit.

You can use your loyalty to your advantage. If you see a credit card on the market with an APR you like, give your existing provider a ring and ask them to match it. I did this with Halifax and got a 20%+ APR down to 9.9%. You must have a specific example of a card with a non-promotional rate to refer to. They may offer half way between the two rates, but stand your ground and say it is not enough.

PROLIANT

However it is not wise to cancle your oldest card as you will stop that array of green [0] on your files...

Moggles_2

Unless a card has a particular benefit, then I would cancel. Firstly, having loads of credit, even if not used, can put off potential lenders and secondly, by cancelling a card you can re-apply to that provider as a 'new' customer and take advantage of any introductory deals on offer.

Another good reason for phoning customer services to cancel an unused card is that occasionally you're offered an incentive to stay

PROLIANT

Moggles wrote: »

Unless a card has a particular benefit, then I would cancel. Firstly, having loads of credit, even if not used, can put off potential lenders and secondly, by cancelling a card you can re-apply to that provider as a 'new' customer and take advantage of any introductory deals on offer.

Another good reason for phoning customer services to cancel an unused card is that occasionally you're offered an incentive to stay

.....If your credit rating is sound.

HamiltonL

...and other factors.

Can be anything from material offers like Air Miles or vouchers, to BT offers like LOB or 0% etc. Best to ring them up, worth asking.

RickMoney

ok thanks ppl, I think ill cancel the reduntant cards this week

thanks for the replies

wednesbury

has anyone been recieving mail from a company called CGS it says if you pay 49.50 they will find you a credit card provider and that they were given my name from a third party. strange has i had just been accepted by virgin and my new credit card landed on the doormat the same time as their letter.

Richard019

wednesbury wrote: »

has anyone been recieving mail from a company called CGS it says if you pay 49.50 they will find you a credit card provider and that they were given my name from a third party. strange has i had just been accepted by virgin and my new credit card landed on the doormat the same time as their letter.

What a scam that sounds. How do they word that claim that if you pay them £50 they'll find you a credit card provider?

Without using genuine websites, here's one:

www.creditcardprovider.co.uk

And here's one that will pretty much definately accept you:

wwww.prepaidcreditcardprovider.co.uk