how do they hike cc up?

iceage3

hello

i have three 0% cards and wondering when they finish,will they hike up the interest rate and how do they tell u ie post email phone.

virgin cc has 4 mths left so i would like to know before i finish deal

cifpower

They will send you a letter out or tell you on your statement. I have been told about changes in my APR on both my credit cards by notices on my statement.

iceage3

after u finish 0% deal do they do this straight away or leave it few mths

NickX

iceage3 wrote: »

after u finish 0% deal do they do this straight away or leave it few mths

Well in my experience its not straight away, but really you want to make sure the balance is zero BEFORE the 0% deal ends. Do this by either paying off in full or Balance Transferring to another promotional rate. That way, even if they do hike the rate straight away it won't cost you anything.

LeeSouthEast

They only tend to do this if it becomes evident they won't make money off you. To prevent it, carry a small balance for a few months after the deal ends. It'll cost you a few quid in interest but may prevent a rate hike.

NickX

LeeSouthEast wrote: »

They only tend to do this if it becomes evident they won't make money off you. To prevent it, carry a small balance for a few months after the deal ends. It'll cost you a few quid in interest but may prevent a rate hike.

Nah, I don't agree, why pay them anything ? If you can pay off or transfer elsewhere then it doesn't matter if they hike the rate, and if they do they will have wasted their time because you don't intend to carry an interest bearing balance on the card.

Just my opinion, but why pay them any interest if you don't have to.

Also once you have a zero balance, you are in a much better position to negotiate a decent repeat deal as they will be keen to get your debt back onto that card.

LeeSouthEast

True. Each persons philosophy will differ. That's the great thing about forums. Different perspectives.

NickX

LeeSouthEast wrote: »

True. Each persons philosophy will differ. That's the great thing about forums. Different perspectives.

Very True.

Another option once the 0% promotion is finished is to use the card every month, but pay off in full. That way you are still showing some usage on the card but its not costing any interest. It is possible that as they can see the card is still in use and that they are making profit on the merchant fee, that they will then be less inclined to hike the rate.

They may also offer a nice repeat deal hoping to trap your purchases to force you to earn interest. If this does happen, ofcourse you pay off the purchases in full before taking up any new promotion so that they don't get away with this.

iceage3

would they give me another deal after 16 mths deal finished.

virgin cc,has anyone been offered 0% after this 16 mth deal