What should I do? Advice please!

matthewking26

Hi, I have a credit card with an outstanding balance of £6240, a limit of £8800 and an interest rate of 27.8%
In a week or so I will be in a position to clear the balance. Once the balance is cleared which of these options would be best?:

1 Keep the card with the limit where it is and hope I'm disciplined enough to not use it except in dire emergencies - not sure I have the discipline but is a credit limit that high a good or bad thing (my income is 17k pa)

2 Keep the card but lower the limit to say £250 or £500 so I can't put anymore than that on it but again have something for emergencies

3 Cancel the card completely and apply for a different card with a lower interest rate in a few months once my credit record shows this card as completely cleared.

4 Cancel the card completely and not have any credit cards at all to remove the temptation to spend what I don't have.

Or is there a better option I haven't thought of?

I last applied for a credit card 2 months ago and was rejected, possibly because I was working part time and the balance remaining was around £8000 at the time.

Any advice appreciated!

P_Jazzy

Personally I would go for option 2.

I sometimes use my CC for payments because of the extra protection the CC gives but pay the amount I spend when I get home via internet banking.

sicker

I would go for option 3 , try for an Egg Money cash back card and make it work for you. But use it only for the cash you would have to spend anyway and clear it each month. You could then look for a nice bonus each March (that's when cash back is credited to your card).

John

matthewking26

Thanks for the suggestions. A first post and a thousandth post. What are the odds?
Do you think the cashback card will be around in a few months time to apply for? I was thinking, perhaps after Christmas.

Little_John

Defiantly option 3, a CC is great for the added protection you get but there is always the time where you can't quite pay it off or you forget to so the huge rate you are getting hit for if that should occur isnt somthing you want. get a new card with a reasonable limit on it £1000-£1500, if you ever need it upping most companies can do it quickly with just a phone call.

We would all like not to have a CC but they have powers that a debit card just doesnt have especially when buying online.