Santander Zero credit card, key fact query

bargain_hunter25

Hi

Can someone explain the Santander Zero credit card key facts?

It says its interest free on purchases for 6 months from account opening but then under the interest free period it says a maximum of 56 days if you pay your balance in full and on time.

I am planning to purchase some internal flights in South Africa online for a trip in December which are charged in SA Rand. I assume this will be a free transaction using this card? Once the flight transaction clears, i plan to pay the balance off. I will then want to take the card to SA to pay for resturants etc, but not cash withdrawals as I am aware interest is charged from the time the cash is withdrawed. Will the balance racked up in December still be 0%? I assume it will be as 6 months from now is Feb 2012. Its just this mention of 56 days that has me slightly confused.

http://www.santander.co.uk/csgs/Satellite?appID=abbey.internet.Abbeycom&c=Page&canal=CABBEYCOM&cid=1237866878766&empr=Abbeycom&leng=en_GB&pagename=Abbeycom%2FPage%2FWC_ACOM_TemplateW2

Thanks in advance

keith1950

Hi, you are mixing up the 'promotional' rate of 0% for 6 months and the general credit card terms with ref. to the 56 days.

When the promotional rate has finished then , as with all credit cards, you have 56 days during which you will not be charged interest if you pay in full.

For the first 6 months the 0% overrides other terms and conditions.

So theoretically you will have 6 months totally interest free+ 56 days on the 6th months purchases before any interest should be charged.

chattychappy

The way to think of it is this. If you pay the monthly balance in full, no interest will be applied, thus meaning up to 56 days interest free credit.

Else interest will be applied at the prevailing rate. For the first 6 months, the rate is 0%.

Based on what you say, yes. You will pay no interest. Bear in mind that you must pay at least the minimums.

bargain_hunter25

ok, thanks for the help. This makes sense now :-)

YorkshireBoy

keith1950 wrote: »

So theoretically you will have 6 months totally interest free+ 56 days on the 6th months purchases before any interest should be charged.

However, in practice it doesn't work like that.

MBNA, for example, give 0% until a particular statement date. So using your example you'd get a maximum of 6 months at 0%. Any remaining balance on the 6th statement date would start to accrue interest, and you won't be able to avoid it if you didn't pay the previous (ie the 5th) statement in full.

Others (in fact most/all of them) offer 0% for a defined period, be it until the 1st of a particular month (as Egg used to do) or, as is normally the case, 6 months from the date your account is 'set up' (which is the date they receive your signed credit agreement...immediately in the case of electronic signatures at the end of an online application, or the date they receive and process your posted credit agreement).

keith1950

Hi, I don't think I expressed very clearly what I meant.

I meant that at the end of the promotional period you would then start to pay interest on your previous purchases ( from the previous 6 months )and that any further purchases during the 6th-7th month would be effected by the 56 day interest free period.

It wasn't meant to mean that there would be no interest at all for 6 months+56 days !!!

YorkshireBoy

keith1950 wrote: »

I meant that at the end of the promotional period you would then start to pay interest on your previous purchases ( from the previous 6 months )and that any further purchases during the 6th-7th month would be effected by the 56 day interest free period.

That would only be the case if the original promotional rate purchases were fully repaid before the 0% end date and, I believe, in the case of Barclaycard, a zero balance statement had been produced.