Closing Out CC Accounts

OneLife_OneShot

The end of the road is nigh.

As you can see from my signature I have been paying off my cards. They are split across 3.

The biggest and chunkiest is now a balance of £0.00, last statement on March 15th due April 10th was £215 outstanding and it is now paid off.

My question is that I have seen before that it is better to run 2/3 months of £0 balance statements before closing it out. Is this advisable?

I would like this one closed more than the others as its been the biggest problem with customer service as well before.

Thanks

[Deleted User]

Just ask for it be closed now if it's zero balance and you don't want it

Ebe_Scrooge

OneLife_OneShot wrote: »

My question is that I have seen before that it is better to run 2/3 months of £0 balance statements before closing it out. Is this advisable?

I would like this one closed more than the others as its been the biggest problem with customer service as well before.

Thanks

Yes, it's advisable to keep the card open for 1 month after you've cleared it, just in case there's a bit of trailing interest to be paid the following month.


It's sometimes good to keep cards open anyway. Firstly, it'll show on your credit history as a long-standing credit agreement, which has been managed well - this is a good thing. And there's no guarantee that you'd be accepted for another card in the future, should you wish to apply for further credit. There's no harm in keeping a card there for occasional use - car hire firms will often insist on a card, and using a card for purchases gives you S75 protection. Used sensibly ( i.e. paying off in full each month ), a credit card can be a very useful tool, and won't cost you anything to run.

OneLife_OneShot

I plan to keep one of them open for incase I ever need it but the one in question is going to be closed then. I am keeping the smallest limit one for my booking.com account and like car hire as you said. I've had it the longest and plan to use it and pay off each month, the other 2 have cost me a lot of interest and heartache so need to go.

Thanks guys.

Fireflyaway

I closed my accounts down by paying what was outstanding and closing at same time, that was it. I didn't wait and wasn't advised to and all was fine. I didn't want to have to deal with them anymore so for me it was preferable to get it all done during one phone call.

eskbanker

Fireflyaway wrote: »

I closed my accounts down by paying what was outstanding and closing at same time, that was it. I didn't wait and wasn't advised to and all was fine. I didn't want to have to deal with them anymore so for me it was preferable to get it all done during one phone call.

It's good if you were able to do that but there have been many previous threads where posters thought that by paying a current balance that would suffice, whereas the trailing interest (where applicable) tends to be applied only when the next statement is generated, so, if in doubt, I think most would recommend waiting to see at least one confirmed zero balance statement, rather than relying solely on verbal dialogue where misunderstandings have been known.

Ebe_Scrooge

OneLife_OneShot wrote: »

the other 2 have cost me a lot of interest and heartache so need to go.

No credit card is going to cost you any interest at all if you use it for stuff you'd have to buy anyway ( fuel, groceries etc. ) and pay it off in full every month - preferably by Direct Debit to remove any chance of you forgetting. As I said before, CC's, when used sensibly, are an incredibly useful tool. It's only when people look upon them as "free money that I don't really have" that they become an issue

OneLife_OneShot

That is what happened to me Ebe, they were not used sensibly and that is why I ran up debt and spent it on stuff I didn't need.

But the majority is now paid off and will only be used in the future the way they are meant to, I have a better job and in a better position now than I was when I ran them up.

Alexd52

If you are keeping one open, it can be useful to have another just as a backup in case there is a problem with the other one

OneLife_OneShot

Alexd52 wrote: »

If you are keeping one open, it can be useful to have another just as a backup in case there is a problem with the other one

I see your point but one is enough, it will have a £350 limit, I am planning to have an emergency fund in the next few months so hopefully the need for a CC won't be needed.