Use a credit card to pay in monthly instalments

20aday

Am I right in thinking if you hold an American Express card in another country it's possible to transfer said product over here to the UK (and vice versa)?

But companies such as Bright House (and Buy as You View) charge obscene amounts of interest on products!

Whilst I appreciate it's for amounts over £495 (with a one off fee) Barclaycard now offer something called "Purchase Plan": http://www.barclaycard.co.uk/personal/customer/purchase-plan

grumbler

20aday wrote: »

...Whilst I appreciate it's for amounts over £495 (with a one off fee) Barclaycard now offer something called "Purchase Plan": http://www.barclaycard.co.uk/personal/customer/purchase-plan

However, it's not "with no interest" like the OP wanted (or dreamed off?). How can it be a "norm" for CC companies to offer a long 0% credit?

john_st

grumbler wrote: »

However, it's not "with no interest" like the OP wanted (or dreamed off?). How can it be a "norm" for CC companies to offer a long 0% credit?

Strangely enough, it's true. You "pull it through" (as we say in Croatia) in as many instalments as you card allows it. As long as you pay each monthly instalment before the deadline, no interest will be charged.

I dare say that 99% of people having these types of cards wouldn't own 90% of their kitchens, sofas, fridges, flatscreen TVs... without the cards.

bearcat16 wrote: »

I think the OP is referring to a situation where the retailer is the one who collects payments monthly. Not very common here.

Better to save up, or could you apply for a 0% credit card from a Croatian bank?

In all fairness since I never used a CC I may be in the dark, but I don't think it has anything to do with the retailer, I'd say the instalments are a benefit given to the buyer by the CC company, not the retailer.

My aunt has a Diners CC and I know that she helped us buy our fridge. She'd actually buy it in 12 instalments, and my mum would give her the monthly amount in cash each month.

Back to the topic at hand, I guess I'll just save up and try to build my credit rating. I don't need the laptop urgently, the old one will do for at least 4-5 months.

On a side note, do you think I will have problems getting a SIM Pay-Monthly plan with Three? I find them to be the best for my needs (All you can eat data, All you can eat text, 200 mins for £18 per month) and I read that getting a monthly (or should I say yearly?) plan would be looked upon favourably when applying for a CC later on.

chattychappy

OP it's probably best to forget how you do things in Croatia and start from scratch, understanding how CCs work here. Then you can find how they can meet your financial needs or whether other products are better (eg loans, overdrafts, deals offered by retailers directly).

The usual CC scheme is:
1) interested calculated daily from purchase to your payment
2) statement generated monthly showing previous 30 days transactions and carried forward balance
3) you get two to four weeks to pay at least the "minimum". This is usually a fraction of the outstanding amount. (Formulae vary and take into account fees and interest, but typically it could be 5% of the outstanding balance or less.)
4) If you pay the whole balance, no interest is applied. Anything short of the whole balance, and interest is applied as per (1).

So it doesn't really make sense to think of "installments" - that's not how the CCs see it. Standard interest rates can be anything between 6.9% APR and 35% APR or worse. (The APR is an annual rate calculated according to a common method.)

Points to note:
1) Cash and cash like transactions (inc gambling): interest is always applied.
2) Some CCs have opening offers where the interest rate is 0% for the first X months. They generally hope that after the promo period ends, you will not have the money to pay back the entire balance so will start paying full rate interest.
3) There is some useful consumer protection through "S75" and chargeback which can mean it's worthwhile using CCs rather than other methods.

Without any credit history, it's difficult to get a CC at all. With some history, you will likely only get "starter" or "sub-prime" cards. These typically lack promo deals, have low credit limits and high interest rates (so you must clear the balance each month to avoid being well out of pocket).

As a foreigner arriving in the UK, consider if you have credit in Croatia with a company that has a product here. I know non-EU people (so unlike you couldn't even get on the basic electoral roll) who got HSBC and Amex products based on their home histories. Another got a Barclaycard about 3 months after arriving here on the strength of an intervention by her employer (she was highly paid, but that was a while ago).

john_st

Understood

Would it help my credit rating if (after some history) I took out a "starter" or "sub-prime" card and spent on it (paying each month in full of course) for a while? Invested in my credit rating if you will...

chattychappy

Yes. That's what many young people do once they reach 18. Being on the electoral roll is pretty important. Then anything helps - eg mobile phone contracts are relatively easy to get and improve your rating.

john_st

Would the fact that I would be employed on a permanent basis with a yearly salary of £30k+ play any part?

boo_star

john_st wrote: »

Would the fact that I would be employed on a permanent basis with a yearly salary of £30k+ play any part?

In getting a prime card?

Probably not. Lacking a credit history at all will almost certainly make prime cards unavailable.

It probably won't make much difference for a subprime card either, your lack of a credit history may cause problems, particularly not being resident for a few years.

chattychappy

john_st wrote: »

Would the fact that I would be employed on a permanent basis with a yearly salary of £30k+ play any part?

It might enable you to get a CC via your own bank before another lender would consider you. Your own bank would see your income going in and would have some familiarity with you. For the most part, other lenders have no access to your income details - they only know what you write on the form. Whilst they might ask for employer details on the form, it seems to me that CCs rarely check.

guesswho2000

20aday wrote: »

Am I right in thinking if you hold an American Express card in another country it's possible to transfer said product over here to the UK (and vice versa)?

Yes, Amex global transfer https://www.americanexpress.com/global-card-transfers/