Credit card

mklowden

Hi I have a Halifax credit card normally I would pay off in full by direct debit . But I'm not able to this due to not enough work , the payment is due on 18 July for £697
What is the best solution ?

System

Pay as much as you possibly can. At least minimum.

Moving forwards, don't put on your CC what you *might* not be able to pay back in full. i.e. Use it less. And build an emergency fund so that this doesn't happen again.

Dobbibill

Pay off as much as possible and as soon as possible - interest is calculated daily so as you know you are not going to be able to clear it the more you pay off sooner, the lesser the interest charges.

Is there a reason you always pay in full but are not able to this month? Has anything changed? Life has a habit of throwing in curve balls - sometimes we have to look at the bigger picture to see if it can be avoided in the future. As beany_bot says an emergency fund is a good starting point.

Ebe_Scrooge

Beany_bot is spot on.

Worth just adding - if you ever find yourself in a position where you're unable to make at least the minimum payment, phone them up straight away. Don't just bury your head in the sand, you'll end up paying loads of charges, as well as having negative marks on your credit history. Most lenders (at least, the respectable ones like Halifax, as opposed to The Kneecap Brother Ltd !) are very helpful, especially if it's a one-off glitch in an otherwise good history. You will probably still end up with a late payment marker on your file - there's little they can do about that, it's factually correct, and again, one bad mark in an otherwise clean file is of little concern. But they're usually very helpful in sorting out the best way to minimise charges etc.

YorkshireBoy

Well at the risk of stating the obvious you need to either cancel the DD or switch it to minimum payment. Then just pay what you can by other means.

mklowden

I'm self employed painter and decorator contracted to a company .because of the bad weather we have had it has set me back financially. Other wise I would not have a problem paying it.

Willing2Learn

mklowden wrote: »

I'm self employed painter and decorator contracted to a company .because of the bad weather we have had it has set me back financially. Other wise I would not have a problem paying it.

All the more reason to build yourself a 3-6 month emergency fund during the good times, so that you've covered your behind against the seasonal swings of contracted work

18cc

Can you get a temporary overdraft on your current account simply because I think the interest you pay on that will be less than on the credit card

System

How short are you? if its a couple of hundred quid can you ask a family member to spot you?

mklowden

I changed my bank to Barclays so won't offer me a overdraft at the moment.

mklowden

Normally ask my parents but already borrowed 2grand of them during winter . I'm hearing alot of people saying put some away but that is easier said then done because I'm the only one that works at the moment and don't get help from benefits e t c