Exposed! Mbna (virgin) rate jacker experts!

petera74

MBNA (VIRGIN) RATE JACKER EXPERTS!

The problem the average consumer for credit cards is having is simple!
The minimum payment mainly is made up of interest due to the Credit card.So no debt on the card ever gets paid!
For me. I have 3500 pounds of debt on a Virgin MBNA card. In Jan 2008 they changed my interest rate from 15.9% to 29.9%.
So I work out I can only pay about 100 pounds each month. Of which at 29.9% APR. 86 pounds is interest and 14 pounds is off the debt. So in a year of paying 100 a month, 1200 for the year. 1032 pounds is interest and 168 pounds is off the debt.
So in a year at 29.9% APR I would get the debt down to 3332 pounds.
If they left me at 15.9% which I signed up for and spent at that rate.
At paying 100 pounds a month for a year 1200 for the year. I would have paid 528 pounds in interest and 672 pounds of the debt.
So in a year I would at 15.9% APR I would get the debt down to 2828 pounds.
To me at a rate of 15.9% APR I have a chance at clearing the debt.
At 29.9% it is a lot harder to do.
This is were the credit card companys are clever, they know that if they leave the rate at 15.9% then the debt will be cleared at some point. At 29.9% they know that an average consumer will not be able to keep up at 29.9%. Therefore they are keeping money flowing in.
They need to be stopped ASAP with interest rate hikes.
If you go to MBNA credit cards and request all consumers with a debt higher that 3000 pounds, ask them what rate the consumers are on. You will be surpised at how many people are at 20% and over!
I would say 95% of consumers are in the same boat as me.

This is my story!

Ask The credit card companys what fixed rate cards they have?
Answer – None!
We all know why! So they can exploit the term Variable.

petera74

How do MBNA and others get away with it?

Nikkei

Have you always paid the minimum payment or have you always paid above the minimum payment? How long has the balance been outstanding? The company are not really keeping money flowing in if your balance has not been paid back. If your balance has been pretty much the same for a number of years then it is likely that any credit card would put the interest rate up as you are a huge risk for them as you have not paid your balance back and could turn into a bad debt that has to be written off, especially in the current climate.

Birkonian

I have several credit cards unfortunately, and only about £5.00 out of the minimum payment actually goes to pay off the debt. The only advantage of a credit card versus a loan is, you can pay it off in a lump sum without being charged extra interest.

Credit cards are designed to make money for the provider. On your statement you will see the amount "available to spend" when it should read "available to borrow".

As for Payment Protection Insurance, that's something they like you to think is compulsary.

Does anybody have any details about the new rules the Government are bring in about credit card charges? I haven't heard much about this in the media.

petera74

Always paid above the minimum payment. Have a very good credit limit!
I was paying it off quite quickly until they hit me with a 29.9% APR!

Never got offered to close account and freeze the original APR of 15.9% they just changed it without warning.

Nikkei

Try giving them a call then, as they'd like to keep you as a customer and would most likely offer you a lower rate but you have to ask and be direct. ave a look at other 0% transfer cards, if your rating is good then you can transfer money and save on the interest, if your credit rating isn't so good and you can't apply elsewhere, that is probably another reason for the increase in interest as you could still be considered as a risk and therfore potentially a bad debt.

petera74

Called on many occassions and they will not change or give me an explanation as to why I have moved from 15.9 to 29.9%.
I have a very good credit rating and explained that to them, but they do not listen.

Although I have a very good credit rating I still can't get a big enough balance transfer from anyone else to clear the 3500.



Thanks for your help Nikkei!

Typhoon2000

I had MBNA raise my rates on all 3 of my MBNA cards from around 15.9% to 34.9%. I frooze the rate on one closed it when its was paid off. Paid off the other 2 befor the 0% deal I was on for both ran out. I have a perfect credit file, no missed payment, been with MBNA for nearly 15 years. On my remaining 2 cards I have limits of £15500 and £12400 (nearlyu as mch as my annual take home pay). They haven't reduced my limits; clearly they dont think I am too much of a credit risk - still they bumped me on this 'sub prime' rate. They haven't made a penny out of me since then. Before I used to pay a bit of interest, now I pay it off each month at the last minute to maximise my 56days interest free period. Their loss.

Nikkei

no problems hun! There's got to be something thats flagging you as a risk in some way. I'm thinking of everything I can here and don't feel you have to answer all my questions i'm just trying to figure out why!!!

How many Credit Cards do you have?
Is the total credit you have available higher or lower than your salary and if so by how much?
How long has the balance been on the Virgin Card?
Are you linked to anyone else financially?
You said that you can't get another CC with enough to transfer your debt, that suggests that although you have good credit, that further lending to you may be a risk. If you can get a smaller limit on your card with a promo rate it would still be worth considering to transfer some of the balance!