The Best Balance Transfers Article Discussion Area

mrbigd

Yeah I agree, had no use for the card as have B'card, RBS and Virgin with very good limits.

But now there will hopefully be a 0% offer on the way I shall keep hold incase its a viable case for a bit of stoozing!

M_Thomson

Moggles wrote:

Hi Padster

In 10 years of credit card shuffling with more than 30 cards (not all at once of course), I've managed to avoid the wretched balance transfer sees so far. Tarting certainly can be lucrative, thanks to the magic of compound interest!

In July, I signed up with Bank of Ireland. The bank's Post Office card still offers 0% balance transfers with no handling charges for 6 months. You get 0% on retail purchases for 6 months as well. If you haven't already applied, this is a straightforward, no-tricks deal, that's hard to beat IMO.

You may have to get a move on though. This deal has been on offer since the card launched last January. PO staff have warned that the terms & conditions will be rejigged next month. A capped 2.5% balance transfer fee is anticipated from 2 October 2006.

Moggles,
Do you work for the Bank Of Ireland?

Moggles_2

Hi MT

Fortunately, we have a mole

Brum_Man

YorkshireBoy wrote:

Pay at bankUse the Bank Giro Credit slip on the statement. Banks other than Co-op may charge for this service, although your own bank generally doesn't.

I also have an account with Natwest a so hopefully they won't charge me?

Moggles_2

Originally posted by Brum Man
I also have an account with Natwest so hopefully they won't charge me?

If this is your preferred payment method, I would check before you apply. The HSBC branch you mentioned in an earlier post would certainly charge you unless you have an account there.

The Co-op Bank holds the card issuer's home account and handles payment of Virgin and all other MBNA cards free of charge.

NewToThis_3

On the latest update for best 0% fee-free BT cards, it states that to qualify for the 18 month 0% interest on balance transfers, you must spend £100 in the first three months.

I have just checked this with Capital One and it isn't necessarily the case.

Apparently, they have different Platinum cards according to the type of application. For instance, I applied online. The card offers 0% until 1st January 2008. However, I was declined because my credit score was down due to some restructuring of finances (thanks to MSE), resulting in a high number of searches. I appealed and have been granted a card - but it has now magically changed to a card that offers 0% on BT's until 31st January 2008 - an extra month! Also, I don't have to spend £100 to get this offer. Go figure! I think my application changed to a telephone application type because Capital One rang me, following my appeal.

Moggles_2

Congratulations, NewToThis & thanks for your feedback.

Capital One launched this new deal on 7 September 2006. It seemed C1 had dispensed with the £100 minimum spend qualification, but only on some applications.

Other terms: 3% minimum payment, 2% uncapped balance transfer fees and 0% on purchases for the first 3 months, remained unchanged.

As you say, the 0% introductory rate on balance transfers lasts until January 2008 - effectively something like 15 months by the time you're up and running - though your appeal has resulted in an extra month.

Not for the first time, a telephone application may be best!

micktsb

Hi there,i am a virgin at this card tarting m,larky, i have just got a mastercard from asda and asked for the credit limit to be lifted from 1k to 4k and been aproved,happy days!!! Can anyone tell me, can i now go into lloyds bank and pay off either my overdraft or a loan that i have with them?and then transfer that balance onto another new card giving me o% for however long, or is there another way to sort this?

Moggles_2

Hi micktsb

Welcome to MSE & the credit card board! Congratulations on negotiating a higher credit limit on your new Asda card.

You can shift a credit card balance to another credit card. Transferring a loan or overdraft to a credit card is not so straightforward. The Asda card does not provide this facility. In fact, only a few rather special credit cards have the capability.

For an explanation, please click on *Super BTs* in the black box at the top of this board. This credit card board is then a great place to post any specific questions you may have.

Cheers
M
:beer:

misterE_3

Lloyds TSB current account customers may be able to get a 9month 0% balance transfer with NO fee. I came across this today. Please be sure to read the whole of this post before applying to understand there may be some risk involved.

To find the offer and apply, do the following:
- Log on to your personal account online
- In the left hand menu, click Applications > Credit Cards
- You'll be presented with a list of offers. For me the top offer was this no BT fee card, here is the text copied:


Special offer for Internet banking customers applying online

Our Platinum card gives you 0% interest on balance transfers for 9 months with, for a limited period, a special offer of no balance transfer fee on transfers made within 6 weeks of account opening, after which there is a 2.5% fee (minimum £2.50) on each individual transfer. This special offer is only available if you apply online via Internet banking. Typical 15.9% APR variable.

There was an "apply now" button and a "find out more" link. The "find out more" link leads to this page: http://www.lloydstsb.com/credit_card_app/platinum.asp

I called the number presented on that page (0845 603 1096) to ask how long this offer would last.

Turns out they had never heard of the offer, apart from another customer who had called about the same thing...so the team member I spoke to asked around and still the whole team and their leader knew nothing about it...

Anyway, he advised before I apply for it, to take a dated print out of all the web pages that state there is no balance transfer fee, in case there is a problem later with a fee being charged. I advise taking screenshots too. There is a risk you will have to challenge Lloyds over a BT fee if you go through with this. If you can't be bothered with that, then don't risk it.

I'm not going for it because I've got a barclaycard offer that lasts another 3 months and my experience with Lloyds TSB has been not good so far, but I hope this helps someone - if you do apply, please post to advise of how you get on.