A&L Premier Direct 0% Overdraft

jimclark1967

Hi all,

Just wondering if anyone has experience of this scenario...

I opened the Premier Direct account in January and got an overdraft limit of £250 at 0% until 31.12.06.

In July I asked for an increase in the limit and was given £900, got sent the confirmation in the post together with advice of their standard overdraft interest rate 7.9%

Does an increase in the limit mean (a) I forefeit the remaining 0% period altogether, (b) is just the first £250 still 0% or (c) is the whole £900 at 0% ??

Thanks
JC

Milarky

As I understood it at the time you got your overdraft with a standard 'AER' but if you funded it to the level you stated on application (eg more than £500 per month) then you would additionally get that overdraft at 0% instead. My reading is that they have extended your overdraft and it is either all at 0% (as part of the same promotion) or at 'standard' (at other times or where you don't fund to the level you stated). In honesty I can't see them splitting the rate and neither can I see them withdrawing the 0% at any time during the promotion. So I'd guess it will all be at 0%

(How do they 'police' this rate anyway? Surely a 0% rate is put on the account for a fixed period after opening and they would only change it after they discovered you had done something wrong. I know that A&L aren't good at passing things on - frequent interest rate tweaks etc - but I have a feeling they that aren't that quick to adjust your account as it invariably involves a person in an office rather than a computer to do these adjustments. Beware also that they didn't not keep up the full 'in-credit' rate after I cleared my O/D with them at 12 months from months 12 to 15 (just the standard rate of 3.5%AER) A slip up no doubt but it makes you ask who's in control?)

pardal51

jimclark1967 wrote:

Hi all,

Just wondering if anyone has experience of this scenario...

I opened the Premier Direct account in January and got an overdraft limit of £250 at 0% until 31.12.06.

In July I asked for an increase in the limit and was given £900, got sent the confirmation in the post together with advice of their standard overdraft interest rate 7.9%

Does an increase in the limit mean (a) I forefeit the remaining 0% period altogether, (b) is just the first £250 still 0% or (c) is the whole £900 at 0% ??

Thanks
JC

Send a secure msg via AL website to confirm your 0% deal. If they say that it is 7.9% you can argue that you understood it'd stand at 0% for a year and so on....

jimclark1967

pardal51 wrote:

Send a secure msg via AL website to confirm your 0% deal. If they say that it is 7.9% you can argue that you understood it'd stand at 0% for a year and so on....

I'll do that and see what they say, the problem with most banks is that you ask 10 staff the same question and get 10 different answers. That's why MSE forums are great as you can see what's actually happened in practice in other people's experience :beer:

Cheers
JC

skybluesaver

No, the 0% for 12 months stands. I have experienced the same scenario & when questioning it was told it was a standard letter which wasn't applicable to the Premier direct account, if that makes any sense :rolleyes: