Advice for a Student please.

bucketshop

No, I've never applied for a hardship fund, what circumstances equal hardship? I don't know if student loans being monthly now will affect it since it'll be like a "wage" coming in instead of a lump sum.
I should phone Virgin and ask but sadly I'm a bit scared, I don't know what I'd say and they'd probably laugh at me!
Thank you, I'll try to enjoy it, hopefully I'll stay in and study. Willpower!

mogwai

Im not sure what equals hardship, but anyone can apply. Also, its kind of 'means-tested' so you get the amount that they feel is appropriate for your situation. As I recall there was a section where you could state why you feel you are in hardship and could do with the extra cash... a lot of my friends also applied who were not as 'needy' as me, and still got something, so its worth applying for, for sure!

You could make the case that even though you get monthly student loans, you are short each month because of your debts etc...

And don't be afraid to call up Virgin, you're just calling up to find out if there are any special offers or special rates that you might be eligible for, kind of like when you call your mobile phone company and ask for a better deal...thats what the customer loyalty services are there for - to offer you better rates etc so you stay with them..

bucketshop

Ok, thanks very much for your suggestions. I'll bite the bullet and phone Virgin tomorrow!

bucketshop

Ok, I phoned Egg and asked them to lower my APR which they refused point blank, told them I was going to close the account and they still didn't budge.
I think I phoned Virgin (sorry, been on the phone for too long today!) and they couldn't do anything either.
Phoned the Halifax, told them I would close it if my interest wasn't lowered and was transferred straight away to someone else. He lowered the purchases APR from 24.9% to 20.9 APR which isn't too bad since once I've paid the £100 balance on it I'm not going to spend on it anymore. BUT he upped my limit from £700 to £1400 and offered me 6.95% APR LOB on BTs with 3% charge.

Can anyone give me advice on what I should do?

I think I should transfer the balance on my Egg card (£1038 at 17.9 APR) to the Halifax and transfer some of the Virgin (£1800 at 15.9% APR) on it too, then close the Egg card.

I was accepted for a Mint card the other day £650 limit with 0% on BTs for 15 months I think (will need to phone when I receive stuff in post) so I could then transfer some more from the Virgin card onto the Mint and also ask for a limit increase.

Does this seem feasible? Or does anyone have any other suggestions?

I'm going to play with the snowball calculator now.

P.S I'd like to thank everyone on these boards, for the help I've been given, and the help others have received. I've been reading avidly for a few days now and so many people are inspirational in the way they have handled their debts.