Vanquis Nightmare !

mrclear

Hi i was declared bankrupt 4 years ago and never even bothered trying to get a credit card. Then around 6 months ago Vanquis offered me a card - albeit high interest rates- but it gave me the hope of rebuilding my credit history. I was determined to not default on payments etc.
Well here goes
1/ i made sure i paid the minimum payment by 7th of June BUT unlike my other cards in the past - on the 8th of June they issue a statement that includes interest accrued and due for payment. SO me paying the specified minimum amount to reach my account by 7th june was not enough . So the day after on the 8th i got charged fees for going over my limit ( its a small limit but manageable for me) . I called and ok they refunded the fees. JUly comes - i made sure i paid to cover minimum and estimated interest so wouldn't get caught out. So clearly it showed online nothing to pay . I called to double check those now no more nasty surprises. I was told the DD though setup would not be taken because no payment is now due as i had just paid more than needed by debit card and in plenty of time( 2 weeks before ). Well you guessed it they tried to take out around 40 by dd that as not enough funds was rejected by bank that cost me #10 with lloydstsb AND they charged me #20 as well ! SO again rang up and yes again i will say they refunded me . As i write i am still waiting for a response from them about how all this could happen. Boy what a nightmare ! I wanted to build up my credit history !! I find it very underhand ( and one of their own workers agreed ) that a day after paying your minimum payment you get clobbered. Thanks for allowing me to rant and please be warned ...:(

Tixy

If you just wanted the card to start rebuilding your credit history then its best just to put a couple of transactions on a month and pay in full after the statement is generated (and well before the due date).

Spending right up to your limit (even if you don't go over/incur penalties) does not look good to other potential lenders.
Only paying the minimum payment also doesn't look great on your credit file.

All cards will charge interest on the next statement if you only pay the minimum payment.

If you can afford to then I would pay a large chunk off the card to get it well away from the card limit, and not put anymore spending on until you have cleared the whole of the balance that is there at the moment.

bengal-stripe

mrclear wrote: »

......it gave me the hope of rebuilding my credit history. I was determined to not default on payments etc.

Running a Credit Card and having the balance to be within a whisker of the limit (be it high or low) and then only paying the minimum, will not be advantageous at all. It will not help you to rebuilt your credit history.

All it will signal is that you are still in a "Spend.....spend.....spend!" modus.

Utseya123

Hi mrclear, really feel bad about what has happened with you. Hope you quickly get out of it. But as a friend I would like to suggest you to give up the idea of getting into the habit of using credit cards, it always carries with it lots of complex issues and many people get trapped in it. You know what I prefer pay day loans instead of these credit cards, they are easily issued and does not involve any complexities. I would suggest you to try it once as per your needs.

mrclear

I thank you all for your kind responses and solid advice. Yes thankfully with my work i will be able to pay off the whole amount ( (480) and cloase the card. I do have a paypal pre pay card which is great - i sell process cars through papal and it goes straight onto the card- and i can't spend what isn't there like a bank with no od. So my lesson has been well and truly learned ( always was a slow learner !) ...no more credit cards and hey how about trusting more in the One who can help us out in so many ways :j:A

mrclear

i sell process cars should read cards !Not in the motor trade..I have an online cart that generates my work. I actually used most of the card fro my work but still i realise that the card game has got even nastier that 4-5 years ago. I mean when you paid the minumu that was it -ok you got landed 4 weeks later for more interest charges but you didn't get 'tricked' the day after paying your minimum. There is no amount showing online to warn you what needs to reach your account. And infact the only time they showed the full amount including interest that had to reach my account was when they flagged up i might default. So they then decided to show their hand. So it shows they can show this information but have decided to let many people trip over. It should not be allowed thanks

Tixy

mrclear wrote: »

I thank you all for your kind responses and solid advice. Yes thankfully with my work i will be able to pay off the whole amount ( (480) and cloase the card. I do have a paypal pre pay card which is great - i sell process cars through papal and it goes straight onto the card- and i can't spend what isn't there like a bank with no od. So my lesson has been well and truly learned ( always was a slow learner !) ...no more credit cards and hey how about trusting more in the One who can help us out in so many ways :j:A

Why close the card? why not keep it and just use for an odd transaction and repay in full each month?

I mean when you paid the minumu that was it -ok you got landed 4 weeks later for more interest charges but you didn't get 'tricked' the day after paying your minimum.

Why are you paying the minimum payment only 1 day before the next statement is generated? Ideally aim to pay just after the statement is generated and long before the next statement is produced.

And obviously ignore post #4 about payday loans, they won't improve your ability to get credit and will cost you unnecessarily in interest.

mrclear

Hello Tixy
Thank you fro your reply.
Well the online statement etc says minimum payment due by and they give a date. So as in the past i assumed this meant that as long as i paid that minimum payment as requested and before the requested due date i would be ok . But that's not true. You have to work out or search wherever for the amount of interest they are going to calculate and expect you to have paid just one day after that date that was given. So they say minimum due 25 by 6 June so i pay it - great phew ok until next time but no the very next day wham.It is a deception because as i say they CAN give what you need to pay as i mentioned above . SO for me the minimum payment should obviously include interest required for that month end as well. I just can't believe that this con is allowed to go on

mrclear

JUst to reiterate Tixy
YOu asked Why are you paying the minimum payment only 1 day before the next statement is generated? I pay this because that is the date they give to pay by which is engineered to be one day before the interest is calculated . Now i know i have been out of touch with cards for ages but this really strikes me as unbelievably dishonest and designed to rake in lots of extra charges

Tixy

mrclear wrote: »

JUst to reiterate Tixy
YOu asked Why are you paying the minimum payment only 1 day before the next statement is generated? I pay this because that is the date they give to pay by which is engineered to be one day before the interest is calculated . Now i know i have been out of touch with cards for ages but this really strikes me as unbelievably dishonest and designed to rake in lots of extra charges

I don't believe it is dishonest or significantly different to how other cards work. It may be that their due date is closer to the date the next statement is generated that some cards but in some alternative circumstances people would argue thats a good thing.

The borrower knows the APR on the account and knows that if they do not pay in full that interest will be added to the account and will show on the next statement. It is the borrower responsibility to keep the balance on the account below the limit, the same as with all cards.

Just because the lender give a date the payment is due before doesn't mean the account holder has to wait to pay on that date. As with all cards where the borower is not paying in full, the sooner they pay the less interest will be added to the account.

mrclear

but why then do they bother giving a minimum amount that has to be paid and a date to pay by when the very next day the real minimum payment amount kicks in? They know the amount really needed the real minimum payment but instead they i believe trick some of us into thinking the minimum payment by say 6th june is just that! But the REAL minimum payment is the day after with the accrued interest. It is misleading and i really am going to send my complaints to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
If there was no deception they could at the very least state next to the minimum amount required

Please note : when paying your minimum payment on the 6th June please remember the accrued interest that is due because if the not the next day after the minimum due date the accrued interest will be charged to your card. So remember the minimum payment + any accrued interest is what you must pay by that minimum due date or make sure that the accrued interest does not take you over your credit limits or charges will be incurred.

There you are – no big deal . So why not ?