Multiple 0% credit cards

easylife_2

Apologies if this has been discussed many times before.

But was thinking it might be worthwhile taking out as many 0% credit cards as i can and deposit up to the credit limits in a high interest savings account and then pay the min payments by direct debit. I assume you could also set it up so that it pays the balance off in full a couple of weeks before the 0% interest window ends.

What i would like advice on is firstly is this worth doing (i am thinking it would only be worthwhile if you could do it with quite a few cards); secondly what cards would be the best to do and anyone know roughly how many 0% cards there are out there or how many you realistically have open at anyone time and use for this kind of thing; thirdly would it screw up my credit rating; and fourth is there a good way to approach doing this. I was considering applying for all the cards on the same day as i doubt credit card companies would accept me if i already had twenty or so open!?

Anyone done this / doing this? Grateful for any advice / tips / ideas.

Thanks.

Milarky

"easylife"

If Gal was here I'm sure he would firmly advise "Don't do it.." Your plan is almost calculated to cause difficulties for your credit rating. You might get accepted for one or two cards at the same time, but not more I would guess.

Why rush? Thinking that 0% deals are about to disappear? Better to approach the whole thing incrementally... Get ONE 0% card... Apply for a second DURING the promotional period [have an overlap, in other words]... If you get rejected, stop applying for a WHILE... Meanwhile repay the original amounts in good order [paying no interest] and then apply AGAIN. Over time, you will find that you sometimes have more and sometime fewer cards on promotional rates- which will run out every 3 months or so. Follow up offers are not uncommon either.

I suspect [and please don't take this personally] you are approaching this activity 'lazily' by wanting to apply for many cards in a short space of time, whereas in reality this game works more slowly than that... It becomes 'free money' but after a while it becomes apparant that a certain amount of 'effort' and patience is what makes it possible.

Get an Egg card to start with.. 0% till 1 May 05 [eight months] and use it for putting through any 0% cards that you then succeed in applying for. Some say cancel cards when the promotion ends.. I'm not sure about that.. Possbily that should be a thread discussion all by itself.

Like I say take the time you select ONE card (and possibly a second you feel likely to be approved for)

There are many, many 0% cards....

Look at

MBNA
Marbles [part of HSBC]
Goldfish [Lloyds TSB]
Mint [RBS]

for starters...

Turbo_4

"easylife"

If Gal was here I'm sure he would firmly advise "Don't do it.." Your plan is almost calculated to cause difficulties for your credit rating. You might get accepted for one or two cards at the same time, but not more I would guess.

Well I've just started the 0% game, and I applied for 13 cards over the space of 8 days and only got refused by 2 of them (MBNA and Virgin) and credit limits totaling apx £40K in total (giving £133 pcm in interest at 4% net), so I would say if you are going to apply for a few cards, make sure your credit ratings are good then go for as many 0% BT cards as you can get in a short time period, having something like an Egg card or Mint as a route for SBT.

DanMan_3

How many of the remaining 11 allow 0% transfers to current accounts? Also, how many MBNA-based credit cards were accepted?

Turbo_4

How many of the remaining 11 allow 0% transfers to current accounts?  Also, how many MBNA-based credit cards were accepted?

I only have Mint and Egg that allow BT to current a/c, but as long as you have one SBT card you can use that as a path to get the money from any card through it and into a current a/c.
I only applied for two MBNA based cards and both were refused.

Reaper

Well I've just started the 0% game, and I applied for 13 cards over the space of 8 days and only got refused by 2 of them

I have to say I think that was a mistake. You have managed to get a lot of credit for the short term but when the offers start running out and you are looking for more cards to keep it going those 2 rejections are going to look bad on your credit rating as will your existing access to a lot of credit.

If your persoanl circumstances are such that you need lots of credit for a short period then by all means go ahead, personally I am in this for the long term and am planning to apply for one new card every month to keep a rolling balance going.

mrtickle

But they aren't rejections on the credit file. They are just searches. The acceptance or rejection is not recorded.

Galstonian

But if you have a whole series of credit searches in a short period yet only a smaller number of accounts appearing from the organisations doing the search it is not outwith the realms of possibility that this will count against you. It doesn't really need to specifically say "rejection" if rejections leave a classic footprint on your file does it?

I don't know if this is how things operate but it could easily be.

Smitty

yes and ultimately it will come down to how individual companies use the information supplied by the CRAs. I guess some will not check the number of applications vs new accounts, but Gal's money lending company and others probably will

Joe_Bloggs

I don't think Gal has a money lending company .
He is a full spectum Money Saver . So don't impune his integrity as he is as mean as a snake, as canny as a nice person, and an all round good guy.
From time to time he may offer you his own personal philosophy, but it is for your own good !
J_B (In defence of Galstonian)

@Gal
I ran out or words somewhere. You or I can or sort them if anything better comes to mind.

Galstonian

???