short-term loan/credit needed

okc1878

First post, I'll try to explain my situation as clearly as possible. Basically I have been living abroad for a few years, paying income tax abroad and all my day to day banking done through a foreign bank. Stupidly I pretty much just ignored my UK account for the past 12 months (before that I would intermittently top it up to cover a couple of small Direct Debits still linked to it, online transactions on my debit card etc), so it has sat overdrawn for the last few months. I am now back in the UK with a full-time job that pays fairly well (40k, no major outgoings other than rent, never had a loan other than Student loan, never had a credit or store card etc), and I have about 8k in savings in the bank abroad that I can access in full from July onwards, so long-term I should be fine; in the short term however I could really do with 2-3k to make the move back home smoother- just stuff for the new(rented) house etc. A credit card with an interest free period would be ideal, but I'm guessing that through my own stupidity and the lack of recent address history etc in Britain I will have an atrocious credit rating despite the fact that in a few months time I will comfortably be in a position to pay everything back in a lump sum. Is it worth me even trying to get credit in this way or through 'buy now, pay later' type deals, and if not what are the alternatives in my situation? Thanks.

Paul_the_Painter

Why not get a credit card from your bank abroad?

okc1878

Because unfortunately despite having my salary paid into the bank every month for nearly 4 years, staying well in credit and paying all relevant taxes, NI etc there, you are still treated as a 'foreigner,' viewed with suspicion and offered the worst of everything- I got a Visa from them about 18 months ago for the use of online purchases (their usual debit card only good for cash withdrawals in that country) and as it had a whopping €250 limit I had to give them a €500 cash reserve, which sums up my chances of getting any significant credit with them. Also, every time I've had to deal with them they've been fairly incompetent and things have dragged on for weeks, and this is when I lived 2 minutes from the branch- if I deal with them from abroad I imagine I'll have the money just in time for Christmas...