Credit Card Balance Transfer Discussion Area 2

biffwilcox

I hope one of you guys can help me.

I have just been sent a letter by Capital One offering me 9 months interest free.... Would you like 10k for nine months and you don't have to pay us anything for it ? .... Errrrr, let me think about that for a moment...

Anyway, what the bumf seems to be saying is that I will get a bigger credit limit if I ask to transfer the balance on the application form. (It says up to 10k if I don't, and up to £25K if I do).

I have only one card in the right state to release cash right now, which is my girl friends egg card. (Our other cards have balances with between 2 and 6 months to run).

So how do I play it ? There is an obvious attraction of filling in the form saying "£25k on my girlfriends egg card please !". But it does make me nervous being that blatant in writing. I am sure it doesn't make any difference, but when you talk to the call centre I always feel like I could at least be able to say "Oh yes silly me, you are right, that card is not in my name and yes it doesn't have any balance on it at all, what a silly mistake, never mind goodbye.".

Anyone got any experience of this situation ? Am I safe to ask to have the balance transferred to an egg card that's not in my name (Though I am a card holder on the account... yes, I know, I was green at the time)) ? Is it Ok to ask to transfer a debt of £25k that does not exist ? Is it OK to do this on the application form, or should I accept that I will get a smaller limit, wait till I get the card, and then do the transfer in their call centre as I have always done in the past ?

While I'm on the subject, does anyone have a view as to when this party will end ? Every time I speak to these people and they say "So this is your card and you have an outstanding balance of £6,800 is that right ?" and I say "errr... yeah, sure... why not ?", I am amazed at the madness of it all. Do you think they don't care because for every one of us there are 10 losers who want a new conservatory and who won't wake up at the end of the period ? I just don't get it, if I was them I'd care, If I was one of their share holders I'd care. What do you all think ?

Robert_Sterling_3

As I write  I think steps are being taken to enable credit Card Companies to "Share" information about us.
It may be that they will be forced to share information and act accordingly.
It may be that they will be told that where a person has been given too much credit those who in chronological order gave credit which took the customer over what would be a reasonable credit limit total would not be able to go to court to enforce their retrieval of money lent.
That should stop the party.

biffwilcox

It's just like illegal raves in the eighties. There's always some miserable old git trying to ruin it for everyone.

Who was it back then ? ..... Oh yes, Thatcher !

Anyway, sounds like you think the party is still in full swing for the time being ? Do you reckon I should go the whole hog on the form, or is that just too much ?

johnllew

Am I safe to ask to have the balance transferred to an egg card that's not in my name?

Yes, Capital One won't care whose card the debt is on, as long as you are prepared to take responsibility for it.

Is it Ok to ask to transfer a debt of £25k that does not exist?

No, that's lying and tantamount to fraud IMO. Create the debt first and then request the transfer.

While I'm on the subject, does anyone have a view as to when this party will end?

Well, I've been BTing for over 10 years and there's no sign of it stopping yet.

biffwilcox

No, that's lying and tantamount to fraud IMO. Create the debt first and then request the transfer.

But If I create the debt, i.e. transfer from egg to my current account, I'll be paying monster interest on it until I get the cash from Capital One... which I won't know for sure is coming anyway.  I am not too concerned about the morals of the situation, if they're stupid enough to give it to me I'm bright enough to take it.  That's enough moral analysis for me on this one.  But when you say fraud, do you mean actually illegal ?  I have done exactly that in the past and stayed out of jail, was I just lucky that time ?

Robert_Sterling_3

Do you also go shop lifting or is that a bit too risky, or heavy,  for you.

biffwilcox

There's a certain lack of romance about shoplifting. And in any case, I already know it to be illegal.

I think you missed my point. You said transfers of non existant balances are tantamount to fraud in your opinion.

My question was is such behaivior actually fraud in the eyes of the law. I which case, of course I won't do it, not because I have been shown the error of my ways, but because I don't want to go to jail.

My personal morals are not perfectly aligned with the law on all issues, if shoplifting were legal, I still would not do it because of an inherent sense of community and fair play.

Here there is no moral case to answer, they want me to get into debt so that they can make money of me. I understand that so I make money out of them instead. It's really that simple. What I am interested in here is what is legal and, to a lesser extent, what I can be reasonably sure of getting away with.

jetboy

When you pay of your credit card account using stoozed money..yes it does increase your credit rating. I can't find my last equifax report but the payment records are coded differently depending on whether you pay off minimum balance, full balance or more than 50% of balance monthly. There are also codes regarding how regular the payments are. There are new rules coming in regarding the number of credit cards any one person can hold..probably to reduce stoozing also..I think the gameplan would be to keep at it but in moderation. If you have 6 cards at it at once, you'll be doing damage to your rating..albeit not permenant

mark101

I have a Barclaycard MasterCard & Visa Card. - Have always paid my balance in full.

Transferred to an Egg Card (newbie) being not confident, paid it off before the end of the special term.

Being more confident and after my marriage (more bills) I got an MBNA Card and transferred from all the above cards but mostly Barclaycard. 9 month term. Transferred to below.

Got Halifax One card with a whopping balance of 15K. I asked for it to be reviewed every now and again to get that limit! I have used the cards as balance & purchases where applicable. Term ends 6th December.

I now want to transfer it again. I have seen a 12 month Lloyds’s TSB card. But I need a high credit limit to transfer most of the above.

I have the money to pay off the debt although it’ll be painful. Banks and Credit Card Company’s have ripped me off in the past and I want to try and claw some, or more of it back and make a bit of cash in the process!

I’m not too worried about my credit score dipping as I don’t foresee obtaining loans etc. Any other card recommendations? At what point should I apply? A month in advance... as paying interest would be a disaster!

Thanks.
Mark

Robert_Sterling_3

We may have to be sharper with our cards in future.