Halifax Clarity charges almost *twice* the advertised interest rate on cash advances

tobiascurious

Does anyone know if using credit cards for cash withdrawals is bad for your credit rating?

SaveTheEuro

ferf1223 wrote: »

Except it's no longer being offered...so if someone doesn't already have a Zero CC, they can't at this point get one.

There may be confusion here about Santander's Zero debit card and Zero credit card. The Zero debit card is still available but will not be for everyone because a mortgage, savings or investment is required and £1,000 has to be paid into the Zero bank account every month.

Dogz2000

Just my own experience to add to this, I also didn't realise that paying the balance in full by direct debit would not clear cash withdrawals so I've ended up paying £9.13 interest on £537.40 over 3 months.

Not what I was expecting but when I first looked at the best way of using the card page on this site, I didn't fully comprehend the paying it off in full bit, which has now been bolded for emphasis.

Oh well.

ManAtHome

Not to worry Dogz - still a better rate (around 1.7%) than most other cards or changing cash in 'the high street'.

Gloomendoom

We just pay off the balance when we get back for short trips up to two weeks. For longer trips we do pay off online while we are away.

As zagfles says, we have better things to do when on holiday than trying to save a few coppers.

Likewise I can't be ärsed opening another bank account just for holiday spending. However, if we spent a significant amount of time overseas, I would consider it.

Gloomendoom

tobiascurious wrote: »

Does anyone know if using credit cards for cash withdrawals is bad for your credit rating?

Interesting question.

I can't imagine it would be unless you don't pay it back. That said, I'm not an expert on the subject. I have no idea what my credit rating is, was, or likely to be in the future.

naked

Sorry to bump an old thread...

Dogz2000 wrote: »

Just my own experience to add to this, I also didn't realise that paying the balance in full by direct debit would not clear cash withdrawals so I've ended up paying £9.13 interest on £537.40 over 3 months.

I came unstuck using my credit card to buy bets as part of free bet/cashback offers. I didn't realise using your credit card at a bookmakers counts as a cash advance until I rang up and asked why I had been charged interest.

The person I spoke to at Halifax said I had been charged for that month's interest, but they had changed their T&Cs so that when you pay the balance on the statement, it first pays off the highest interest items first which are usually the cash advances. Cash advances don't have an interest free period like purchases do.

I'm not aware that they have changed this, but if anyone knows otherwise I' be interested to know as I'm going abroad next week.