Citi card to Opus: Will existing Life of Balance transfer be honoured?

Thriftydav

I didn't fully appreciate when citi wrote to me and told me my card was changing to Opus it meant that I was heading for high interest rates. The rates quoted on my card are between 46.7 and 48.1% expressed as simple or apr that sounds a lot to me pen1!
I contacted my bank last night to clear the balance they said that I couldn't make a one off payment because Opus had not established the mechanism for doing so - I tried two other cards to do a balance transfer - but couldn't - system not established giving them the sort code and account number wasn't enough. I'll log on to the net and see if I can do that- there is a web address.
I will be quitting OPUS asap.

pen1

Thriftydav wrote: »

I didn't fully appreciate when citi wrote to me and told me my card was changing to Opus it meant that I was heading for high interest rates.

The point, as I understand it, is that Opus didn't hike the rates- they are the rates that Citi were charging, expressed in a different way.

In the case of my relative, Citi expressed it (purchases) as 33.95% (simple interest) whereas Opus express it as 39.8%APR.

If anything, by expressing the APR rather than "simple interest", Opus are giving customers the opportunity to appreciate how high the interest they've been paying Citi are, and if possible, do something about it.

SteveC2007

I too have had the same changing over of accounts from Citi Life of Balance card to Opus. I have never spend on the Citi card as I was just paying off an amount monthly and being charged about £9 a month interest.

Unfortunately a few months back I made an error when paying my monthly amount and underpaid by about £3. After that my monthly interest has increased to around £35 a month and is rising each month. What's going on?

BirthdayGirl

Thriftydav wrote: »

I didn't fully appreciate when citi wrote to me and told me my card was changing to Opus it meant that I was heading for high interest rates. The rates quoted on my card are between 46.7 and 48.1% expressed as simple or apr that sounds a lot to me pen1!
I contacted my bank last night to clear the balance they said that I couldn't make a one off payment because Opus had not established the mechanism for doing so - I tried two other cards to do a balance transfer - but couldn't - system not established giving them the sort code and account number wasn't enough. I'll log on to the net and see if I can do that- there is a web address.
I will be quitting OPUS asap.

I rang Opus direct and cleared my balance over the phone. Just gave them my debit card details and they cleared it there and then. I then rang Customer Services and cancelled the card. All of the above probably took about 10 mins max.

andz111

Ive just recieved my first opus statement today

i had 3 lifetime offers with citi
but the citi statements has never shown then as seperate offers
guess i should have checked this before

anyway the opus statement shows 3 lifetime offers
but my 5.9% has changed to 6.1%
and my two 7.9% have changed to 8.2%

i presume this is due the way it is calculated or have they increased them ?

also the 8.2% offers are showing the full amount + this months interest even though i took them out nearly 3 years ago

looks like opus use all the money to pay off the least interest account first
but surely it should not be showing what i borrowed 3 years ago ?

i presume this means my 8.2% accounts will not decrease untill the 6.1% has been payied off

should citi not have sent a closing account statement and can i get one from them if so how

anyone else noticed this on there statement

thanks
andz

Hax

The interest differences are probably correct. I seem to remember someone saying that Citi used to show the simple interest but Opus show the APR.

AFAIK, from January, all credit cards are changing to paying off the higher interest bearing amounts first.

[Deleted User]

That would be right. Until the positive payment hierarchy comes into place in the new year. If you're making less than full payments, then it won't have touched the higher balances yet.

You wouldn't get a closing account statement as the new Opus ones would just follow on from the last Citi one. In a transfer, your account doesn't actually get closed, just passed on.

andz111

a bit confused why the 8.2% are showing what i borrowed 3 years ago surely i must have payed citi something off of them
or had interest added ?

will try and phone citi and see if they have any details

[Deleted User]

Not if your lower rate balance is still showing. Your 8.2% won't pay off until the 6.1% is gone (under current regs).

Your interest would have been paid as part of the monthly min payment, depending on what the Citi min pay allocation was.

andz111

thanks for the answers

ill keep a closer look at it in future