Paying off my Vanquis card

AgentSpike

Hello, I'm looking for some advice.


I am now in a position where I can my off my Vanquis card in full.


After speaking to an advisor at Vanquis, I can pay in full or they are offering me a discount of around £500, however apparently this will show as partially settled on my Credit report.


I have always managed my account correctly, have never missed a payment or been in arrears.


Of course it is very tempting to pay £500 less but I want to know what impact this will have on my credit report.


I hope you can help / advise?

[Deleted User]

I'm amazed they are a settlement if you have not already defaulted.

However, a partial settlement is something to avoided if your account is otherwise pristine.

AgentSpike

Thank you ZX81, Yes I too was pretty surprised. I have a couple of credit cards that I can now pay off and researched before calling... Advice was that you can negotiate lower APR's as an example.


In fact B /card were really good. They gave me a lower APR and a deal on cash back, "should" I continue to use the card.


My response from Vanquis was quite a surprise, considering my history with them, hence the thread. As I said - £500 off my total balance which is circa £3500 is very appealing. I just want to know what impact this will have on my credit report.


Thanks for your help and advice

A4445

£3500 on vanquis card! Ouch.....the interest must be crippling

AgentSpike

Yep A4445,


Around £160 per month!! Hence my keenness to pay off in full while I can. What do you think to my original question. Should I accept the £500 discount offer?

A4445

I think it would depend on how it will effect your credit report....if they are going to mark your credit file as default or partially settled it wouldn't be a good idea. Although if you've already got defaults or anything else negative then you have nothing to loose.

AgentSpike

Thanks A4445,


When I asked how this would impact, they said it would just be marked as "partial settlement." My credit report is ok at the moment. I've had a default in the past and know how this can have a massive impact on credit scores / applications etc... (Hence why I had a Vanquis card)




As I said I've always managed my Vanquis account in the correct way, hence my surprise on their offer...


Maybe I should go directly to Experian and ask them before I do anything.....

A4445

I think tbh paying it off in full would be the best option...you don't want to risk that partially settled status on your credit file. Get the account closed then Vanquis card is great to help rebuild credit but holding large balances at that rate isn't good.

boo_star

AgentSpike wrote: »

Thanks A4445,


When I asked how this would impact, they said it would just be marked as "partial settlement." My credit report is ok at the moment. I've had a default in the past and know how this can have a massive impact on credit scores / applications etc... (Hence why I had a Vanquis card)




As I said I've always managed my Vanquis account in the correct way, hence my surprise on their offer...


Maybe I should go directly to Experian and ask them before I do anything.....

Pay it off in full.

A "partial settlement" is a bad thing if you want to maintain an impeccable report.

AgentSpike

Hi all,


Thanks for your advice...
I have decided to pay off the balance in full.
I am a believer in "If it seems to good to be true, it probably is!"


So I bit the bullet, paid off the £3491 I owed on my Vanquis.


I have also significantly reduced the balance on my Barclaycard and renegotiated an APR with them of 6.9%, with a new cash back card, should I choose to use it!!


I'm not knocking Vanquis, they have helped me out over the years, when many other companies would not. However they have certainly had their "ten pence (and the rest!)" from me. It is time for that relationship to be put to bed!


Thanks again..

A4445

I think you made the right choice....there isn't any point messing up for credit file for a few hundred pounds!