Should I get a second CC?

ywlgy

I have an Aqua Reward card with 3000+ limit. Although it is a subprime card, it has 0.5% cashback, no foreign transaction fees and I always pay full. 
I can barely use 1/3 of the limit each month so really cannot think of a reason to have another CC, maybe Amex with cashback is an exception. Another concern is having a second card will decrease my utilisation rate which is already low since I do not expect to increase my spend...Should I get one?

alfred64

why not?  And why should you concerned if another card will decrease your utilisation? Surely that would be a good thing .

tacpot12

No, the only time I would recommend a second card if you can only get sub-prime cards is if you are travelling abroad. You really don't want to be relying on one credit card if you are travelling abroad as if there is a problem with it, you could find yourself stranded. For day to day spending in the UK, one card is enough. 

[Deleted User]

Get at least one more card if you can. 

It'll not only improve utilisation (though if you're clearing in full each month utilisation isn't a problem) and build a better credit history, it's also very useful for when your existing card doesn't work, has its limit cut or gets closed.

ywlgy

Thanks all. Any suggestions on which bank to get a decent limit?

I am with Barclays for over 5 years but my acceptance chance with them is only 70%...

jbrassy

ywlgy said:

Thanks all. Any suggestions on which bank to get a decent limit?

I am with Barclays for over 5 years but my acceptance chance with them is only 70%...

As others, there is no harm in getting another card if you're going to pay it off in full every month.

You mentioned Amex cashback cards in the original post. An Amex will probably have a much higher credit limit than an Aqua card. It's worth using Amex's eligibility checker to see which of their cards you could apply for.

I applied for a Barclaycard last year and the limit wasn't that high (£3.5k) compared to my Amex which has a limit of £22.5k.

Alex9384

tacpot12 said:

 For day to day spending in the UK, one card is enough. 

Visa had some serious short term issues I think in 2018, so even if you don't travel, I would recommend to have at least two cards, one Visa and one MC.

If managed properly, 2 or 3 cards will build you a better credit history than just 1 card.
You are demonstrating that you can manage multiple lines of credit and also that multiple lenders trust you enough to issue their cards to you
I have 6 credit cards and 1 charge card at the moment (which may be a bit too many), but 2-3 cards should be OK for anyone.

[Deleted User]

A combination of Amex, Mastercard and Visa should be more than enough for anyone as a basic level. Any more than that will take time to build up your credit history but there is no reason not to have more if you can use them