MBNA is killing me @ 29.9% pa

gt94sss2

GSDMum wrote: »

Leah again was extremely helpful, and also sympathetic to our cause. She suggested we should apply for a new MBNA account with an introductory zero % charge, then swap the debt over to the new card.

I would be cautious following this advice and suggest that if you wanted to apply for a new 0% card it should not be an MBNA one.

I'm not an MBNA customer but all credit card firms have terms and conditions preventing you from moving a balance on one of their cards to another of their own cards - so the other card would need to be from a different institution - and I'm sure MBNA are no different.

chattychappy

gt94sss2 wrote: »

I'm not an MBNA customer but all credit card firms have terms and conditions preventing you from moving a balance on one of their cards to another of their own cards - so the other card would need to be from a different institution - and I'm sure MBNA are no different.

That always used to be the case, but isn't always true now. I had a Natwest offer which specifically allowed transfers from other RBS group cards.

Don't know about MBNA.

pjcox2005

I’d suggest it’s worth speaking again with mbna. I don’t know but as an existing customer and given its recommended by one of their team, then the no fixed address element could be easier to sort.

Secondly for those saying stop use it as you’re paying more interest, then this may be wrong. If you’re paying of all you can on the first day you receive your income, and then credit carding expenses to last the month, then your overall balance will stay lower than not making that first payment and keeping it in the bank to buying things on debit.

Finally, you need to speak to NatWest, both on whether they can give a loan but if not what your overdraft terms are if you’ve got a £7k facility (think I read that but seems very high) as that may be cheaper than the current interest (be careful though as overdraft fees can be higher).

Are there any narrow boat associations that may have knowledge on friendly debt providers for your circumstances?

planteria

shortcrust wrote: »

It doesn't sound like a losing battle to me.

agreed. and important to keep things in that context. just get really focused on paying down the debt by whatever means possible.

GSDMum

pjcox2005 wrote: »

I’d suggest it’s worth speaking again with mbna. I don’t know but as an existing customer and given its recommended by one of their team, then the no fixed address element could be easier to sort.

Secondly for those saying stop use it as you’re paying more interest, then this may be wrong. If you’re paying of all you can on the first day you receive your income, and then credit carding expenses to last the month, then your overall balance will stay lower than not making that first payment and keeping it in the bank to buying things on debit.

Finally, you need to speak to NatWest, both on whether they can give a loan but if not what your overdraft terms are if you’ve got a £7k facility (think I read that but seems very high) as that may be cheaper than the current interest (be careful though as overdraft fees can be higher).

Are there any narrow boat associations that may have knowledge on friendly debt providers for your circumstances?

Don't think there would be much point in phoning MBNA again, they are following their rules.

I've wondered about the right time and wrong time to use the card and to pay Thank you very much for your advice.

The card's been used as a debit card (we're going to change that), with money sitting in the current account until the day credit card payment is due. Meaning there's been money in the bank gaining nothing, while interest is being accrued on the card.

As for speaking to boat associations, I don't know of any, and to be honest I'd be rather embarrassed to ask. At my age I should know better :cool::eek:

GSDMum

Terry_Towelling wrote: »

Sorry, BT stands for Balance Transfer.

Were NatWest aware the loan was to refinance that debt, not to add to it? If you've been with NatWest for a long time then they should know what sort of customer you are and might be more prepared to accommodate you. You'd probably need to go in person to your branch. Could you get a NatWest credit card with a BT offer?

Using an overdraft to clear finances could be fraught because overdrafts can be called in at any time and the charges might be just as bad. Sometimes, though, banks have been known to offer customers loans to pay off their overdrafts, so that could be a back-door route to getting the cheaper loan - but I'm not recommending you try that tactic.

If you are not truly struggling financially then trying to get an IVA sounds like a poor idea because of what it might do to your credit history. Negotiating in person, in branch, face-to-face for that loan is what I'd try. Perhaps the debt advisor you intend to contact can point you in a suitable direction.

Please don't give up the idea of refinancing simply because you think you won't qualify.

BT = Balance Transfer, I'm learning the terminology: T

We'll be ignoring the overdraft, I've no idea why it's attached to the account.

The proposed loan to pay off MBNA. We've got another card, RBS, where the interest is a lot less and doesn't grate so much. We've decided to pay down our exposure to the MBNA debt we have, and in a few months revisit NatWest.

There was another problem with NatWest, for some reason they still had my postal adress as being where I last lived. When we moved, we wrote to NatWest with our new postal address. My husband's details on the joint account were changed, but mine wasn't for some reason. I've written a letter correcting their details, but at the time of enquiring, we didn't tick all their 'boxes' correctly. This means next time we apply in say 6 months my pension can be taken into account because my details will be correct.

I'm now fired up to pay off as much as I can with MBNA, and I might start a diary on the 'Wannabe' forum. There are lots of ways, ideas, where we can economise.

Thanks again for your help.