MBNA new transfer charge

TOPSAVER_5

This new charge is no new news to me, I opened a MBNA card account and they failed to tell me until I got the card in my hot little hand and rang to make 2 transfers, they charged me for each one and told me very rudely it was because of people like me trying to get 0% for their cards everywhere and constantly transfering, I had no choice my other 0% card had run out and I needed to transfer it to them , I opened the account in January this year, I notice on Martins new e mail update it says from May 05 but they are already charging it and have been for a while and they said most cards were following suit , however I applied for a Virgin card to cover a small amount for a transfer and they did not charge me a fee, eventhough they are all the same company.

Reaper

Hi Topsaver. The rules used to be that the transfer was free if you requested it with your application, but 2% if you waited until you had the card and then asked for it. That is why you were charged.

Now the rule is you will be charged for the MBNA card even if you ask for the BT with your application.

Virgin is an exception and the best of the bunch. All BTs are free throughout the 9 month introductory period, they only start charging after that.

Jeppo

MBNA are a waste of time. Their terms & conditions are not clear on the issue of transfer fees.

When I phoned up to make a transfer I got the usual stuff about 2% 'handling fee'. None of the operators I spoke to would budge on this. In the end I did not make any transfers and I immediately cancelled the card.

Bit of a wasted effort really, but there are cards out there (like Virgin) that don't charge for Balance Transfers. IMO it's misleading to advertise 0% for Balance transfers then whack on a 2% 'handling fee'. It's just another way of shafting those who are less savvy than us about what is going on.

Former_MSE_Dan

There are notes about this in all the relevant articles now, such as Best Balance Transfers

captainsensible_3

After reading the above mentioned article, (http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?newsid1107182516,76509),I applied for a MBNA card and included 2 balance transfers during the application, only to be find I have been charged 2 handling fees, despite 3 phonecalls to different members of customer services I have been told they only waive these charges if the transfer goes to a different account than is requested (i.e. in error). Can you correct this article as MBNA are not changing their policy in May, only the WORDING of the terms and conditions.

smartsaver

There is a slip attached to an envelope enclosed to return your credit agreement. On the back of this slip it may say if you request a balance transfer at this stage no charge will be made. If you are lucky enough to have one of these you won't be charged. If you are they will refund the money.

savercorin

I have had the same problems as detailed above. Applied on-line in January, but I didn't hear anything for several weeks, not even a confirmation email. So I rang them up. They say they didn't have my application, so I applied again over the phone. When I came to be approved they said they had two applications pending. So much for their computer systems. They cancelled the application that I did over the phone, and used the one I completed online.

When I got my first statement I was very surprised to see that I had been charged a fee. I rang them up, and they were quite rude, insisting that I hadn't read the terms and conditions.

Just to be sure I re-read them and as it turns out it does say I may be charged a fee. Now I take "may" to mean they would inform you if there was a charge, which they didn't.

I am sure that when I applied it said that if I requested a balance transfer when I applied I would not be charged, but since I didn't get an email I have no confirmation of this.

I wish I had the money to just pay of the balance now, as I certainly won't be using the card again after they shoddy and dishonest service.

Jeppo

savercorin, sounds like you have some grounds for making a complaint! It certainly is dishonest not to notify you about taking a fee. The simple fact is when you apply for a CC with MBNA & make a transfer on application you don't know if they will charge a fee or not. The t&c state they 'may' charge a fee on 'some' balance transfers.

This was one reason why I did not request a transfer on application. I waited until I got accepted before phoning up. According to one operator I spoke to they pre-select those who must pay a fee. From what smartsaver has said this would appear to be the case. You either get charged or you don't. You need to be one of the chosen few with a lucky slip!

Oh, well.....

HLK

Vigin are also charging for SBT's !!! I just spoke to someone at Virgin who said if I wished to transfer a balance into my bank account there would definately be a charge of 2%, as this could only be done via a credir card cheque. This contradicts Martin's advice on Super Balance Transfers which was uopdated justa couple of days ago. Is this a change ?


Actually this now seems to apply to all MNBA cards.. Abbey et al!

ANB_2

Dear All,

There is a similar thread to this one called: "MBNA 3% BT Fee 1\05\05 " which was started by HOBO.

There you will find more up-to-date information re MBNA fees