Company wont accept credid card!

JulesF_3

We wish to purchase double glazing by credit card (Sainsbury's 12 month 0% applied for and accepted) problem they dont take payment by credit card - personal cheque only) I have asked Sainsbury's to issue one but they have said no. We now have 2 weeks to pay and not sure what to do. I dont want to empty my savings to pay for. I spoke to mint who will give me a cheque at a 2% one off handling fee) is this my only option? and what is the transfer into your account thing they do and does this cost anything?.

any help would be appreciated.

cheers.

Galstonian

If the firm won't take credit cards then you need an alternative and if your only alternative is Sainsbury's CC then I'm afraid you are stuck with whatever they offer, two weeks is too short a time to arrange a different credit card. AFAIK Sainsbury's are not offering 0% on balance transfers so asking them to transfer monies anywhere is not going to solve your problem as it will not be at 0%. A 2% flat fee is not too bad compared to financing from other sources but if you have savings then they are the cheapest option.

You could:
pay for the windows from savings
buy everything you can using your credit card for a year (think about paying bills using the card instead of direct debits)
only make minimum repayments to cc
pay a sum equivalent to the outstanding cc balance into savings each month
pay 1/12 of the window cost (or more) into savings each month

At the end of the 0% period pay off the cc balance from savings (make sure you know exactly when the 0% deal ends, it may not be a statement date)

You should now be back to where you started and have earned interest on all your spending for a year as well as having saved.

If you want to do something like this in future post your plan first, there many people here who can help spot potential problems before they actually happen.


Hope this helps

JulesF_3

yes, I think I will pay for the windows using my savings and save myself a lot of worry and hassle and in future I will log my plans first.

It is a bit daunting all this Money Saving stuff but I am determind to be good at it.

Cheers.

Rafter

Alternatively apply right now for an egg card, transfer the cost of the windows from Sainsburys to Egg, then do a transfer from Egg to your current account.

Might be a bit tricky to achieve within 2 weeks though.

Remember, because you aren't paying by credit card you have no guarantee if something goes wrong or the window company goes bust - make sure you are using a reputable firm!!!

R.

newfoundglory

I'd be quite suspicious of a double glazing firm which does not at least take the DEPOSIT by credit card.

I'd get them to accept the deposit on the credit card (which will be more than £100, or something really is strange!), that way you can pay the remainder by transfering balances around cards and to your current account, or using your savings. Because you will then have paid more than £100 of the double glazing on your credit card, you will get full section 75 protection even though you didnt pay the ENTIRE amount using the card. That way you are protected if they go out of business, or they breach sale of goods act by making a total hash of the work because you can just chase your credit card company if anything goes wrong.

JulesF_3

Interesting.

Thanx.

Xbigman

Most double glazing firms make as much money out of selling credit as they do double glazing. They don't accept credit cards payments because they lose money on the charge they pay for the credit card transfer (2.5% I think) and they lose money by not selling you the credit.
Most of them also operate a discretionary discount system where the price starts out very high and then gets discounted by the salesman by anything up to 90%. If you don't take a loan from the company, you get less discount.

One way or another they usually get their money.
Regards


X

stuwilky

If you know a good friend with a paypal account you could 'pay' them £2000 from your credit card, and then have them pay it into your bank account from there. But it would be regarded as a purchase, so the card would need to be interest free on purchases?

Galstonian

stuwilky wrote:

If you know a good friend with a paypal account you could 'pay' them £2000 from your credit card, and then have them pay it into your bank account from there. But it would be regarded as a purchase, so the card would need to be interest free on purchases?

This is called 'pseudo-cash' by paypal and card issuers have the right to treat it as a cash advance which attracts a percentage fee and a high rate of interest. I would not suggest you try this.

JulesF_3

My husband has a pay pal account so could I ask Sainsbury's how they would treat the transaction and if as a purchase go for it but if not avoid like the plague?, then have my husband pay it into our joint current account. I presume I would need to set up my own pay pal account, he has his via ebay.

I have applied for a mint card but dont think it will be set up on time and, it is for a lower amount than I need but at least I can put some of the funds back in to my ISA when mint in place, but, would I loose interest on last years savings by drawing it 1 week before the current financial years ends. Why is nothing ever straight forward?

Cheers again.

Galstonian

From paypal:

When I use my credit card or debit card to send money, will I be charged a cash advance fee?

Using your credit or debit card to send money, you will not be charged a cash advance fee to send money for eBay items, Services, Auction Goods (non-eBay), or other Goods.

For these types of transactions, PayPal charges your credit or debit card only for the transaction amount. If you send money for a "Quasi-Cash" transaction and pay with a credit card or debit card, the card issuer may treat the transaction as a cash advance and charge a cash advance fee. PayPal has no control over third party fees. To send money as a "Quasi-Cash" transaction, you may want to use a different payment method (e.g., your bank account or a money order) to avoid incurring fees.



I personally wouldn't do this. You risk a 2%(+) fee and interest in excess of 20%. Perhaps it won't be spotted and you may get it interest free but who knows. I suspect Sainsburys will be unable to answer your question over the phone.


Really, if you have sufficient savings there are few reasons for not using them especially if you have enough left over for an emergency fund. If after you get all that sorted out you might look at stoozing to help boost your savings, it all works out the same in the end if you get some 0% cash after the windows.