Stuck on a 22.5% loan. Advice.

Tony_Danger

Hey folks. After being a bit of an idiot when I was younger I racked up a lot of debt. I'm able to slowly pay things off, but it's costing me about 30% of my salary. The main thing, I don't want to do anything that will destroy my credit rating etc. (Plus I believe I should pay off the debts that I caused)

Anyway. I got a £7500 loan with Bank of Scotland in 2013. Paying £210 a month, I have only just hit the £5100 remaining mark. It's a nasty 22.5% apr. (About £100 a month is added in interest).

I also have a CC with about 4k on, although in the last week I've been able to switch it to a 0%. I have a direct debit setup that will wipe that out before the 0% rate is over.

What's the best thing to do for the loan?

DCFC79

Get a loan with a cheaper Apr but it depends on various factors eg what your history and NOT your score is like.

Tony_Danger

I've never missed a payment on anything. But I know with the credit card I only got accepted recently. Last time I tried (last summer) I was rejected (Even though my circumstances were the same as they are now)

glentoran99

try zopa they seem pretty good

Tony_Danger

Using the soft checker on the site here, anything less than 10% APR is a 50% chance or less.

glentoran99

have you tried on zopa itself? its a soft search as well

Mirno

How long is the 0% on the credit card for?
What interest rate does it revert to after the 0% finishes?

It may well be better to pay the minimum on the credit card, and then overpay the loan (depending on penalties). Once the loan is gone, you'll have an extra £210 to put to the credit card.

Alternatively, put the money into a savings account and clear the credit card as late as you're comfortable with - assuming you're the sort of person that can have savings and not spend the lot on something else!