Bank Of Scotland experience.

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Thought, I'd give my experience for anyone looking at the Bank Of Scotland, balance transfer card with 0.7% fee.

During the application process I was asked for details of the card I wished to transfers from, providing I was accepted for the card.

Well I got accepted and it said about now processing the balance transfer.

I was also able to sign up to online banking.

Few days later got an email to say balance transfer failed, hmm, it appears that they won't process the transfer without the card being issued, which surely makes it pointless to try.

Anyway, card arrives, great, type in web address on card to activate.

This leads, to a screen to say, have you already signed up for online banking. As I had, I just signed in and card showing. Nothing I could see, about activating card, but card showing, so thought, that must be done then, by logging in to online banking.

So try to process the transfer again. Type in all details, says we will ring on immediately (it's an automated call) and you are asked to type in the digits showing on your computer screen.

Fine, keyed in. Arghhhhhhhhh can't process transfer for security you need to ring number.

Ring number, told they have had fruadulant balance transfers, so transfers at the moment, must be processed on phone. Fine but why then give option for online and then go through whole phone call process, when never a chance of it working.

So have to go through several security questions, not the usual, but about items on my credit file. Some of the questions are ridiculous, like asking about start dates of credit agreements, in some cases agreements started 2 or 3 years ago.

Then put through to another department about getting the transfer done. Asked more questions, but thankfully just standard ones this time, like address, post code and security question, such as mothers maiden name.

Finally, she says, oh your card isn't activated, would you like me to do that. Then starts to say about what the best rate she can offer me, like they are perhaps doing me a special deal, even though I already have been accepted at 0.7%. If she had said, anything other than 0.7%, I was ready to just say forget it and cancel the card.

Finally the balance transfer at 0.7%, went through, but the whole process was so long winded, as soon as the card is paid off, I'm definitely closing the card down.