Can I transfer a balance to an existing card without a credit check?

avocadopro

I'm considering transferring a balance from my main credit card (A) to an old, unused card (B) because the old card lender has recently offered me a good 0% offer on transfers. I have a couple of questions:

1) When I transfer the balance from card A to B, will card B lenders do a hard credit check? I'm not applying for any new credit, or a higher limit, just adding a balance to an existing account. The amount being transferred is only about 5% of the limit on that card.

2) Once I've transferred the balance, I would like to close down card A, leaving me with the one credit card. If I need to use card B for spending for some reason, will that end the 0% interest on balance transfers? Or are purchases and transfer balances treated as separate?

Thanks!

Ben8282

1. No. There will be no credit search.
2. Why exactly do you want to close down card A? Leaving yourself with only one credit card is not really a good idea besides which you will have no credit card to use for purchases without paying interest. If you spend on card B, the 0% interest on the balance transfer will continue. You will however be charged interest on purchases and will have to ensure that your payments are timed correctly to avoid accidentally paying off the balance transfer instead of the purchases.
Keep card A. Do not use card B for purchases; use card A. And use it. Don't be afraid. Spend on it, keep the money in your bank account taking advantage of the interest free period. Set up a direct debit to repay in full each month. You will pay no interest but, depending on what sort of current account you have, you may well earn yourself some interest.

avocadopro

Thanks for your reply - I want to transfer and close card A because my 0% offer on this card ends next month.

The long story, I'm returning to the UK after a few years overseas and I'm going to need to do some serious credit bashing in the coming months (new phone contract, new utilities contracts, new credit card etc). My main concern is getting a mid to long term 0% on purchases card with a decent limit (£3k+) to furnish my new place, so I'm trying to set myself up in the best possible position to be eligible for this.

So... I figured I should eliminate excess credit I'm not using - sounds like lenders don't like lots of dormant credit? Card A has a £6k limit, Card B has £7k. The idea was to transfer balance A (£600) to the 0% interest on card B... and close card A. The outcome is that I will have reduced my available credit and also kept my oldest 'legacy' credit account active which is considered favourable? While also taking advantage of the 0% offer on transfers. Also just to note, I'm not paying off the £600 in full because the repayments are my only form of credit history in the UK currently.

jonesMUFCforever

We can't say on here what searches are done internally on any card/bank/lender - each will have its own policy.