MSE News: Virgin Money launches 0% all-rounder credit card

gll5dm

I am looking for a 0% purchase credit card to buy a 400 pounds laptop.

I would easily pay it off within a year.

Is this the best card for me?

I've never had a CC before.. so when I pay with the card how do you then go about 'paying it off'? I'd pay a tenner a week off it and be done in 40 weeks.

CannyJock

gll5dm wrote: »

I am looking for a 0% purchase credit card to buy a 400 pounds laptop.

I would easily pay it off within a year.

Is this the best card for me?

I've never had a CC before.. so when I pay with the card how do you then go about 'paying it off'? I'd pay a tenner a week off it and be done in 40 weeks.

Any 0% purchase card where the 0% period is 10 months or more will do. The longer the 0% period, the better just incase you're talking into buying anything else along with the laptop

Yes, on £400 exactly, a standing order for £10 per week for 40 weeks will clear the card in full and mean you don't need to pay a penny in interest.

iambigred

Is there anything stopping you from paying monthly bills (BT, Sky, gas/water, etc) using a card like this, or do they apply credit-card surcharges?

Any

iambigred wrote: »

Is there anything stopping you from paying monthly bills (BT, Sky, gas/water, etc) using a card like this, or do they apply credit-card surcharges?

That only depends on the retailer...

andrewrimmer

I saw a 3% handling for fee transferring money. Not so good for transferring it to a savings account.

CannyJock

andrewrimmer wrote: »

I saw a 3% handling for fee transferring money. Not so good for transferring it to a savings account.

Isn't it a 4% fee? If it's a 16 month 0% offer, works out around 3% APR, so still a good way to save money for most people and make money for others.

patrick0

oakhouse13 wrote: »

What I wanted to know was if Moneysupermarket only had 2,000 cards then the money in promoting this deal was not in the card since a big company is not going to promote something if there is only £20,000 commission on offer.

Money Supermarket make money on referrals to Virgin.

And Money Saving Expert also make a commission on referrals to Money Supermarket. You can see the "*" beside the MSE link and the destination page on MS contains "?Source=mse" at the end of it.

MSE say they don't give prominence to deals that bring in referral fees, but that is of course debatable. Referral fees are how both MSE and MS are funded, so you can't really complain about it.

MSE_Martin

The argument over 0% for purchases cards - is difficult - Im always careful that we use the phrase "need to" borrow when talking about them - and in the 0% purchases card guide has the following prominent section which tries to help peopel through the decision. Yet overall the fact is some people are getting them and getting them for valid reasons therefore we should try and indicate what the top deals are.


"Is it worth getting a card?

Debt is like fire, used well it’s a great tool, used badly you’ll get burned. Unless you’re financially disciplined and doing it tactically for stoozing its always worth borrowing as little as you need, and where possible using savings instead of borrowing.

The worst thing to do with a credit card is to use it to fill the gaps your income doesn’t meet each month, that will see borrowings constantly grow and can leave you in a debt spiral (see the stop spending guide for more).
Ensure your borrowing stays free

However if you need to borrow for a defined purchase, credit cards used correctly are cheaper than loans

This may be for a football season ticket, as buying it is cheaper than getting each one individually; you may need a new sofa as the old one's kaput; or it might be to pay for a year’s car insurance as the insurer’s interest rate for paying by the month is huge.



Done right it is possible to borrow at no cost.

• Work out how much you need. Don’t borrow more than you need, do a Budget Planner to ensure you can meet the repayments, use the card as a bespoke tool to do a specific job and stay disciplined.
  
• Make at LEAST the minimum repayments Ensure you set up a direct debit for at least the minimum repayments as soon as you are accepted, even though you are paying 0% you still need to make repayments. If you miss one you will lose your 0% deal, so the rate will jump and you'll get a £12 charge.
  
• Clear the card within the 0% period. Go even one month beyond the promotional period and the rate rockets, so calculate the amount needed to clear the balance by then. E.g. To borrow £600 on a year’s 0% card, divide the spend by the number of months (£600 / 12) to get the monthly repayment, in this case £50 and set up a direct debit to do that.
  
• Diarise the end dates Even if you've planned the repayment, it's vital that you diarise the 0% end dates (or use the Tart Alert) to ensure you pay off the debts in time, or be ready to switch to a new balance transfer deal (read the tarting explanation and the Best Balance transfers guide). If you forget to switch when the deal ends, the interest cost will swiftly outweigh the card's benefit.

To do this properly isn't just a question of getting the right card, it's about understanding how it works and how to avoid the massive pitfalls, and that's the point of this guide."