cancel your cards??

warnski

Hi everybody, a quick q:

When a card that you've used for stoozing is paid off and no longer much use to you, is it best to cancel the card completely?

Does it look better to future providers if you've got lots of credit available on cards without any outstanding debt, or does it look better if you have less cards on the go??

Thanks in advance

lisyloo

Does it look better to future providers if you've got lots of credit available on cards without any outstanding debt, or does it look better if you have less cards on the go??

The former is bad because it will reduce further credit.
The history will stay there for 6 years, so less credit is better IMO as the history still remains to show you can manage debt.

Each card is a fraud risk, so get rid of them IMO.
It can also stop you getting "new" customer deals.

There is some argument on this topic but on balance I'd definitely say cancel.

warnski

thanks for the advice

CannyJock

Normally best to close the card - but try for a repeat deal first. Best repeat I've had recently was 0% for 9 months with 0% fee from Natwest.

If it's an MBNA backed card, you can transfer the credit limit to a new card to boost the total amount of credit for a new offer. I've also done the credit limit transfer trick with RBS backed cards but you need to insist on this with the CS people who'll tell you it's not possible