new balance transfer card not enough - what to do

markmh

hi

i have a tesco credit card. the interest free period has run out. my credit limit is £9400 i owe £5220.

i applied to m&s for a balance transfer card and was given £4000

this wont cover the balance i wish to transfer.

so should i ask m and s if they will increase the £4000 or apply for a new card with another provider?

thanks

mark

[Deleted User]

Transfer what you can and apply for a second card to try to cover the rest.

Anthorn

Pretty much a typical problem and the advice usually given is to use the credit limit you have to pay down the other card with a balance transfer. That will at least reduce the interest so you can pay more off the remaining balance.

Before you apply for another card you should check your credit history to see how many credit searches you have. If it's more than 3 - 5 hold off. Personally I'm in favour of cheating by applying for an extra card before the search and the account is recorded on the credit history which means do it now rather than later.

M & S could increase the credit limit but unlikely I think.

markmh

hi

thank you for the replies, experian say ive got 979 for my score and noddle say 611 clearscore is 511. i dont know if any of thats good. the experian seems a bit high.

clear score say -

Upcoming Updates

A new credit card/store card will be added to your January report.
Organisation Name: Marks & Spencer
Company Type: financial services

noddle has a money supermarket quotation search today and october

so theres not alot of searches

im concerned about being turned down and having that on the credit record

mark

[Deleted User]

The scores are made up and can all be ignored equally.

Declines aren't shown on your credit files - just searches and accounts.

markmh

if a eligibility search on moneysupermarket says virgin money would accept me can this be taken as a definite acceptance?

mark

[Deleted User]

No. But it's a good sign.

markmh

ok thank you for your help

Weybridge78

Virgin Money have their own eligibility calculator you can use to see your chance of acceptance.

rhysadams

I spoke to an insider at Experian the other week, again saying without prejudice and all that marlarky. But apparently firms have to pay to update personal credit files with Experian, Equifax and CallCredit. Experian is the most expensive, so the credit companies tend to leave Experian alone.



Not sure how true this is, but as it came from the horses mouth I can see some truth in it

[Deleted User]

More credit companies report to Experian than any others.

So that makes no sense what you were told