MBNA, Barclaycard, RBS increase interest rates

Milarky

I have received a letter informing me than from September MBNA will charge another 2%pa on the standard rates on one of my cards with them. [That's 20.9% up from 18.9%]

Now I never actually pay any standard interest, so the change is pretty academic. But I wondered - is this the start of a trend of rising interest rates on credit cards? Will the 0% offers now start to dry up?

Any comments welcome  :)

johnllew

from September MBNA will charge another 2%pa on the standard rates on one of my cards with them. [That's 20.9% up from 18.9%]

It's neither here nor there for most of us baggers whose main aim is to avoid any kind of interest unless it's the 0% variety. It's the poor sods who are deep in debt and can't pay off the full balance each month who will suffer (and are subsidizing our bagging).

If anything the 0% offers are hotting up with the likes of Barclaycard, MBNA and Sainsbury's.

Milarky

Just spotted on my online Barclaycard statement....

Changes to your Barclaycard Conditions
We are changing the monthly interest rate on your purchase balance from 1.167% to 1.240% (15.9% APR) and on your cash balance from 1.314% to 1.454% (21.3% APR).

The new rates will affect all transactions made from 15th September 2004 and will be charged and shown on your statement from 15th October 2004. For further information please see the enclosed leaflet.

If you have any queries about this statement, please contact us on 0800-9177-277

So that's two big providers in the last week to raise their interest rates.... more to come?

Tim_L

It doesn't really matter if the 0% rates dry up - provided there's a differential between savings rates and introductory rates then it's still worth continuing.

Which is to say that 0% debt rate and 4.5% savings is just as good as 1% debt rate and 5.5% savings.

johnllew

Which is to say that 0% debt rate and 4.5% savings is just as good as 1% debt rate and 5.5% savings.

Not quite. It depends on your tax rate; if you pay no tax, then your statement is correct. But in arriving at the amount of taxable interest, you are not allowed to deduct the interest paid. So:

On a 0% debt and a 4.5% savings rate, a 20% taxpayer would receive a 3.6% net return after tax. On a 1% debt and 5.5% savings rate, he would receive 4.4% after tax less the 1% paid out, which gives a net return of 3.4%.

For a 40% taxpayer, the net returns would be 2.7% and 2.3% respectively.

Milarky

Spotted today... Natwest is putting up standard rates by 1% pa on all cards from 14th September... Ouch!.. the're all at it   now! ::)

Update 18/08/04:

Also MINT have announced an increase on their latest statement w/e/f September 2004 statement. .. It's 1%pa, from what I can see... another RBS card...

mgr1970

None of these beat the barclays monument card i have just closed whose rates are going up from 18.9% to 24.9% in september.