My MBNA Hell........well, sort of

Jeppo

I'm new to the sport of stoozing & got off to a pretty good start with a £5600 anniversary dollop straight into my online savings account. Heady with success I recently applied for an MBNA Credit Card. Annoyingly it has taken them over three weeks to process my application & I still haven't got my card. Looks like the 0% for 9 months is rapidly turning into 8 months.

When I phoned them up they told me I had been accepted & they had given me a credit limit of £10k. Wow! Despite not having received the card they said they could process any transfer requests there & then, but there would be a 2% handling fee for Balance Transfers.

Hold on a moment. In the Terms & Conditions it says that a handling fee would be charged on 'some' Balance Transfers, surely you could waive the 2% fee just this once? "Computer says no" I politely tell them I'll go away & think about it.

Having put the phone down I decide to persevere. Surely I'll get someone on the end of the phone who will waive the fee? Five separate phone calls later trying all sorts of smooth & persuasive tactics, NONE of the operators would budge on the 2% handling fee. Not even to another credit card. Not even after 'discussions' with their supervisor. I couldn't believe this.

In the end I said to them "Well, if you are going to charge 2% on all balance transfers then why don't you state that clearly in your terms & conditions?" They couldn't tell me why they waive the fee for some people & not for others, but one operator told me I'd been 'assessed' as needing to pay a fee! Another one told that if I'd requested a transfer on my application form (to another credit card) then the fee would have been waived.

Looks like I kinda shot myself in the foot by waiting to do an SBT. In the end I cancelled my card. Not even the threat of losing my business would make them change their mind.

I'm now planning to re-apply in a few months time & request a balance transfer at the time of application as this seems to be the only way to get the 2% fee waived. Is this sensible? Have I done anything wrong by getting a card then cancelling it without using it? Will that hurt my credit rating? I'm not sure if I thought this one through well enough.

Anybody else gone through this aggro? 2% might not seem a great deal but I resent paying any money to these extortion artists.

Rafter

Next time try a Virgin Card (also from MBNA). That has the most relaxed rules about BT fees.

You already seem to have another good balance card (Egg) but probably worth giving Halifax a try - they also have a reputation for being fairly generous.

R.

Jeppo

Thanks for your response Rafter. What exactly do you mean by 'relaxed'? I hope it doesn't involve trying to get the 'right' person on the end of the phone, I've had enough of that with MBNA!

Reaper

All the MBNA cards charge the 2% fee if you don't request it on application, or when you return the credit agreement.

Virgin is the only exception - the BTs are free throughout the 0% period.

Martinslovechild

Jeppo wrote:

Thanks for your response Rafter. What exactly do you mean by 'relaxed'? I hope it doesn't involve trying to get the 'right' person on the end of the phone, I've had enough of that with MBNA!

Jeppo,

Halifax One are pretty good. Good limits and no hassle. No BT charges. BUT - they don't do SBT's, so you'll need to use your Egg Card as a mule which may mean waiting until your anniversary period's finished and the Egg Card's clear.

fatboyonadiet

I had a letter quoting a change in T&C from you may be charged a fee for BT to you WILL be charged a fee

Tr@cker

They know your a stoozer mate, simple as that.

Woby_Tide

Jeppo wrote:

I resent paying any money to these extortion artists.

LOL so they won't lend someone money who has no intention of ever paying them any interest/charges whilst borrowing it and yet they are 'the bad guys' hmmmm.....:rolleyes:

Jeppo

Come on Woby, don't be a wet blanket! Do you feel sympathetic to these companies like MBNA? These companies are out to shaft as many people as they can. They hide behind misleading advertising & crappy small print. I watched some of the parliamentary committees investigating these guys - they are a right bunch of slippery characters.

Get real & give some support to one of your fellow revolutionaries trying to get their own back!

captainsensible_3

I've just been stuffed by a 2% handling fee on my MBNA card. When I pointed out the 'MAY be charged' line on the terms and conditions and asked under what circumstances I would NOT be charged, I was told 'the handling charge would not apply if the balance transfer was made in error to the wrong card if it was the fault of MBNA' - and that is it, the ONLY way a charge MAY NOT occur. Is this legal? It is certainly not ethical, I feel there is a deliberate mis-selling going on here. I spoke to 3 advisors from MBNA before opening this account, nobody mentioned any charge, my balance transfer was included in my application and not after, and they even phoned me to ask if I wanted to transfer another balance. The guy I complained to said it was my fault because I did not ask if there was a charge!