Vanquis...good or bad for someone on limited income

CorBlimeyHowMuch

My work colleague was happy last week as she was passed for a Vanquis card, was happy for her as she was BR few years back and has worked hard to get her credit record straight...she knows to pay this off fully every month etc.

Today over a coffee break I asked her about the application procedure to apply for one so she told me.:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:

They phoned her up 2 weeks ago today and told her she had been accepted for a card, gave her a £100 cash advance, flogged her card protection stuff at £6.99 a month and a acces to her credit record thingey for another few pounds a month she couldnt be specific how much till the paperwork comes, her card has turned up with a £150 credit limit..:o:mad::mad::mad::eek::eek::eek: so in my rough estimation she has only about £30 left on her credit limit when they send her the first statement.

I lent her my phone so she could get some figures confirmed and they were giving her the hard sell for a shopping club thingey for £6.00 a month she declined and said she would call them back...

Now I know she could have refused the card and the cash advance but she told them that her main income is DLA and Income Support plus her small wage from her job so why did she need employment protection insurance, and access to her credit record would only cost a couple of pounds via a postal request etc.

I was going to apply for a Vanquis card to help rebuild my credit record but think Im going to give it a miss, do they always do this hard sell stuff???

So does she have the right to cancel this card protection stuff and other things, keep the card and clear her account off fully when first statement comes and keep the card clear and have the £150 balance for emergencies, maybe using a small purchase each month, clearing it to show shes using it, I personally feel bad about what she told me...
Yes I know she should have thought about this more, and in a good credit record world she would have cheaper options but do they always try to flog these extras??
?

glawster_2

The cash advance probably wasn't a good idea and she is likely paying 30-40% APR on it. Spending on the card will put her in danger of going overlimit and having her credit rating hit. Here's why

The first statement will have
£100 Cash Advance
£3 approx interest on the cash advance (assuming interest around 35%pa)
£3 cash advance fee
£6.99 missold PPI (more in a bit)
£5.99 a month (estimate - may be more or less you don't say)
Totalling approximately £120

So you're absolutely right in that she's probably got around £30 to spend. Spending more than this will take her over limit and she will get over limit fees and a hit on her credit rating. Best NOT to use the card at all until the statement comes through and you see exactly what is on there. Pretty outrageous really. Despite the hard sell she is gonna have to pay back the cash advance.

First of all cancel the shopping club and PPI. Then make a claim for PPI already paid. As she was not employed when she took the insurance she has been missold PPI (are companies STILL doing this!?). A template letter is below, keep the reasons that apply and fill in the appropriate details. You only need one reason, but if others apply keep them in. Send recorded delivery so you can prove it arrived.

Once the balance is paid off use the card for essentials only, repay in full and build her credit rating. As soon as you can get off Vanquis and get Capital One who are much better. PPI template follows

[FONT=&quot][Your name and address][/FONT]

[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot][Date][/FONT]

[FONT=&quot][Name and [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]address of company [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]providing payment protection insurance][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Dear Sir or Madam,[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Re: Account number: [/FONT][FONT=&quot][Your account number][/FONT][FONT=&quot][/FONT]

[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]I am writing in relation to the above payment protection (PPI) policy which I believe was mis-sold to me.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I believe you have not treated me fairly for the following reasons;[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][Delete the reasons that do not apply to you][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
· [FONT=&quot]The PPI was added without my knowledge.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
· [FONT=&quot]The salesperson selling the insurance was pushy and strongly advised me to take the insurance.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
· [FONT=&quot]I was [/FONT][FONT=&quot][select from –[/FONT][FONT=&quot] told I had to take the insurance/told I could not get my [loan/credit card/credit card etc] without the PPI/only provided with a quote for the cost of the [loan/ credit card etc] with PPI attached[/FONT][FONT=&quot]][/FONT][FONT=&quot].[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
· [FONT=&quot]I [/FONT][FONT=&quot][select from -[/FONT][FONT=&quot] was/knew I was soon to be[/FONT][FONT=&quot]] [select from -[/FONT][FONT=&quot] unemployed/self-employed/retired/over the age limit[/FONT][FONT=&quot]][/FONT][FONT=&quot] when I took out the policy and [/FONT][FONT=&quot][select from –[/FONT][FONT=&quot] made your staff aware of this/was not asked about this[/FONT][FONT=&quot]][/FONT][FONT=&quot].[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
· [FONT=&quot]I was not [/FONT][FONT=&quot][select from -[/FONT][FONT=&quot] asked about any pre-existing medical conditions I suffered from/warned that pre-existing medical conditions could affect my insurance[/FONT][FONT=&quot]][/FONT][FONT=&quot].[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
· [FONT=&quot]I [/FONT][FONT=&quot][select from -[/FONT][FONT=&quot] was not informed that stress and back problems were excluded from the insurance/informed staff about (your medical condition) but was not warned that this would affect the insurance[/FONT][FONT=&quot]][/FONT][FONT=&quot]. [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
· [FONT=&quot]I was not asked whether I already had any existing insurance or employer benefits that would cover my repayments.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
· [FONT=&quot]You have been punished by the Financial Services Authority for failing to treat customers fairly and I do not believe that the PPI I bought was sold in my best interest.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
· [FONT=&quot]I was sold a single premium policy that was not fully explained to me as [/FONT][FONT=&quot][select one or more from –[/FONT][FONT=&quot] the whole cost of the insurance was not made clear to me/it was not explained what would be refunded if I cancelled the insurance or if I repaid the loan early[/FONT][FONT=&quot]][/FONT][FONT=&quot].[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
· [FONT=&quot]It was not explained that the PPI would not run for the full term of my loan.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
· [FONT=&quot]When I tried to cancel my insurance [/FONT][FONT=&quot][select from -[/FONT][FONT=&quot] the refund I was offered did not represent a fair refund as is required under FSA guidelines for PPI providers /I was told I could not cancel the PPI without taking out a new credit agreement[/FONT][FONT=&quot]][/FONT][FONT=&quot].[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Unless you can prove that the policy was fair and reasonable and that I was treated fairly when I was sold the insurance, I demand a full refund of all premiums, and subsequent interest on these payments, that I have paid in relation to this policy. I also expect 8% interest to be added to each payment I have made as this is the statutory amount a court would pay.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I look forward to your full and prompt response to this letter. If this matter is not settled within eight weeks of this letter I shall be contacting the Financial Ombudsman to investigate my complaint.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Yours faithfully,[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][Your signature][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]

chanz4

are you sure its payment protection, vanquis use a different type for payment holidays similar but not the same so I would check the wording

Simon7685

It will be their Repayment Option Plan as they call it, PPI in all but name. Vanquis are good in so far as they will give people a chance when other companies won't. They will help you rebuild your credit rating but only if you use the card responsibly and meet all your payments on time.

They offered me this shopping thing for free on a one month trial, I personally decided it wasn't worth it and called up and cancelled it with the company on the day I received the info through the post, it was going to cost me £5 a month. It was easy enough to cancel one phone call and no pressure from the company.

My overall advice as a Vanquis customer..........
1. Ring Vanquis and cancel the Repayment Option Plan. Just be firm say you don't want it, if they try to persuade you to keep it. Also cancel the credit report access, you don't need it and can get it for free anyway.

2. As soon as the card arrives, set up online access and repay the £100 advance. There might be a hit to take with the fees but pay it back immediately to minimise any interest and charges. You do not need to wait for a statement to make a payment, as interest on an advance is from day one, the sooner it's repaid the better.

3. As soon as the shopping discount stuff arrives in the post, ring the company and cancel it, it is simple and no pressure from them.

4. When the first statement arrives pay anything outstanding straight away, don't wait for the payment date, do it straight away.

After all that things should be back on a level footing. Use the card each month and always pay in full to avoid any interest. It is likely there will be a hefty APR on the card but tthe way I look at it is, if you pay in full every month it's 0% APR. If you do this every month the green ticks will start growing and her credit rating with it.

Tell her to apply to Noddle - https://www.noddle.co.uk it is run by Callcredit one of the Credit Reference Agencies. It is free and you get a new free report every month.

I am sure there are few things I have missed out but this is my advice, some people will probably add to it but hopefully I've covered most of it.

Hope this helps her out.

glawster_2

chanz4 wrote: »

are you sure its payment protection, vanquis use a different type for payment holidays similar but not the same so I would check the wording

Do you have the wording? Maybe it's something that could be challenged as being missold if someone has been pressurized into taking it or it would not be possible to claim it given the circumstances.

Road_Hog

Simon & Chantz have pretty much covered it. It isn't PPI, but similar, but different enough not to be able to do anything about it.

As has been mentioned, Vanquis seem to be good at giving people a chance to, A, get their credit rating repaired and B, let people have a low limit credit card for emergencies.

You just have to cancel all the extras and just have it as a credit card and nothing else. I know some people may take the extras, because they think that they may get turned down if they don't. Maybe there is an element of truth in it, but once you've got the card, you can always cancel.

If it were me, I'd use the card to make a few purchases a month, fuel, supermarket etc., that you would normally make and can pay for. And only in emergencies buy anything you can't afford to pay off immediately, like a car repair (exhaust falls off etc.) that can't wait.

imasmartie22_2

i agree with whats been i have there protection thing on mine i dont remeber asking but im going to cancel it.
i have had a few probs with with it that were brought on by my self doing a stupid thing, someone gave me some sound advise on here, as i never seemed to get to pay it off on time the statment would arrive and ask for payment the same or within a couple of days of it arriving, i set up a standing order,i allowed the dd to go through [whoops need to check card balance]
for the amount they wanted to take i have now canceled the dd and will be registering my debit card and paying off the 60/70 pound a month at least 10 days before i know its due.
i think it stops them charging late payment fees because they should have money 5 days before its due.date.
other than that. i found them ok when the balance is cleared in two months time, i will use it for emerginces only and just a couple of minor things i know i can pay off.

Maestro.

you have to be very careful of companies like vanquis... loan sharks basically, but sometimes its the only option to get your credit rating going.

nearly every time i phoned up they tried to sell me stuff, half the time their phone system wasn't working, or apparently I came through to "the wrong people" and needed to phone an 0871 number (yeah right).

then when i tried to pay the card off (in full) the site rejected me and I had to phone them (again) and they said they'd put it through but it may take up to 10 days! it was clear they were trying to shaft me and make me go over my statement date... phoned back the next day and magically my payment went through. I then set up a DD for the full amount straight away and hopefully will never have to phone them again.

Like I said... be weary, they're sneaky sods and will try to catch you out.

Simon7685

I haven't had any problems with them not accepting any payments and always pay in full but I have noticed that they take faster payments to the wire before they credit my account. I always pay that way direct from online banking, usually I pay at 8 am and it is never credited before close of play the following working day. Every other company I pay by that means it is credited to the account within 2 hours, sometimes sooner. Having said that Vanquis is the only one that comes up after making the payment and says, your payment has been received but they haven't told us when it will be credited. All the others say it will be done within 2 hours.

I always try to pay within a few days of the statement being generated. That way you don't need to worry about payment dates or missing them. I personally think it is a good habit to get into, instead of leaving it until the day before, which I confess I used to in a past life. Which is what helped contribute to screwing up my rating, that and ill health. It is too easy to forget or leave it to late and gives you no lee way for banks etc dragging their heels or cheques clearing.

I also set up a min payment on DD with Vanquis, just in case. If you pay in full before the payment date they don't take anything but it gives me a safeguard.

reall

Dear corblimeyhowmuch

Vanquis is a card with very high interest rates and as your friend has done so well .Why would she need 100.00 ADVANCE OR 150 CREDIT LIMIT. She can get a prepaid card and put money onto it gradually so she has enough for emergencies or join a credit union to save.Much cheaper and you can not spend what you do not have.It is far better to get used to having your own money not being in debt or giving plenty of interest to companies.One card can lead to other forms of debt accumulation.Both of you want to lead savy lifes without the hurt,pain of debt so please is it worth it if you can find more fulfilling ways such as saving.
I had a vanquis card and am getting rid of the debt.believe me it is not worth it .

From Reall

Road_Hog

reall wrote: »

Dear corblimeyhowmuch

Vanquis is a card with very high interest rates and as your friend has done so well .Why would she need 100.00 ADVANCE OR 150 CREDIT LIMIT.

Because your method does not repair a credit rating and secondly, if you did have an emergency and found yourself stuck, then the Vanquis credit card might just be a lifesaver.