Are MBNA balance transfer rates personalised?

BDeluxe

I've got an MBNA card that was originally 0% which I have transferred other balances to over the years on very low rates (2-4%) through the offers I kept receiving.

A few months back I did a switcheroo on my Halifax card when the original low rate came to an end by transferring the balance to my high interest NatWest card and then taking advantage of the Halifax transfer offer and switching back again which effectively restarted the low rate again. 

I was hoping to do the same with MBNA (balance to NatWest and back again) but the current MBNA offer is an eye watering 24.66% which is what my balance is going to revert to if I don't move it.

I really don't want to be paying over £100 on interest alone (£5.5k) and I've just been turned down by M&S for a 0% card so my options are closing in on me.

Is the high rate what they're offering to everyone or have they just decided to screw me over? I'm really hoping this changes come October when the 0% deal ends.

Martico

They're offering me 4.5% at the moment for a balance transfer, so I guess they see you as a risk. Which is understandable if you've been persistently carrying a high level of debt across your cards, without (I'm guessing here) making significant inroads into the balance

Brie

My OH & I each have an MBNA card and the offers differ quite frequently.  Sometimes the fee is higher on mine and other times on his.  And the length of the offer varies as well. 

His card is being cleared in full this month so I expect they will try to lure him (well actually me as I run his card) with something good.  I shall be trying to resist as I'm hoping to clear all the deals as they come due and not take out any further ones.  

BDeluxe

Martico said:

They're offering me 4.5% at the moment for a balance transfer, so I guess they see you as a risk. Which is understandable if you've been persistently carrying a high level of debt across your cards, without (I'm guessing here) making significant inroads into the balance

Well I have had a rough time of it but I've recently had a pay rise and finally able to just afford payments without getting into further debt. I just don't want to be paying 'dead money' in interest that could be going towards reducing my balance.

I really do see why it's called a debt trap now, I feel like they've backed me into a corner and now they're gonna pull my pants down and rinse me for every penny. If I can't find a solution I'll default, go on an IVA and not feel guilty because 24.66% is taking the p if you ask me.

Martico

IVAs are often a poor solution if you want to go down that kind of route and are often missold. Check threads in the Debt-free Wannabe part of the site (I'll draw your attention first to this one). Folks on the main Debt free Wannabe subforum should provide great advice if you are able to lay out your position

MorningcoffeeIV

BDeluxe said:

I really do see why it's called a debt trap now, I feel like they've backed me into a corner and now they're gonna pull my pants down and rinse me for every penny. If I can't find a solution I'll default, go on an IVA and not feel guilty because 24.66% is taking the p if you ask me.

It's clearly not taking the p if you're so close to defaulting.

Put your pants back on and go the DFW boards for advice on getting rid of your debt. Borrowing your way out of debt, as well as being an oxymoron, is rarely the answer.

CliveOfIndia

BDeluxe said:

Martico said:

They're offering me 4.5% at the moment for a balance transfer, so I guess they see you as a risk. Which is understandable if you've been persistently carrying a high level of debt across your cards, without (I'm guessing here) making significant inroads into the balance

I feel like they've backed me into a corner

With respect, you've backed yourself into a corner.  Playing the switching game is great when the offers are available, but it's foolhardy in the extreme to bank on the offers always being available.  Whenever one switches a debt from one vehicle to another, the advice has always been to have plans in place to repay it in full at the end of the promotional period.

BDeluxe said:

Martico said:

They're offering me 4.5% at the moment for a balance transfer, so I guess they see you as a risk. Which is understandable if you've been persistently carrying a high level of debt across your cards, without (I'm guessing here) making significant inroads into the balance

If I can't find a solution I'll default, go on an IVA and not feel guilty because 24.66% is taking the p if you ask me.

They're not taking the wotsit, they've just assessed you circumstances against their criteria and decided that you fall into a higher risk category - it's nothing personal.

BDeluxe said:

Is the high rate what they're offering to everyone

Lenders in general have become more stringent in their criteria of late, due to the current financial climate, but each applicant is assessed according to their individual circumstances.  So yes, to a large extent, balance transfer rates are personalised - this is true of all lenders, not just MBNA.

Chrysalis

They will have different tiers of packages offered to customers, this of course includes offers, but also the rates when there is no existing offer.  They are likely to be factored on a combination of risk and profitability of each customer as determined by their algorithms.

Halifax and MBNA both have the same parent company so dont be surprised if they match up.  Both cards for me have same standard interest rate, same 0% offer, although the MBNA also offers me a 2 year low interest deal which in my opinion is better value than their 0% offer.

So 0% 12 months with 5% fee

or 5.9% 24 months

I actually think the 24 month deal is the better offer, as the 5% is paid at the start, so is paid on the full balance, whilst the 5.9% is calculated and charged monthly on a reducing balance, and then also that the 5.9% is a 2 year deal which further reduces its cost as there would be an extra cost to renew a 0% deal for a second year.

The 24.66% you see is likely not an offer at all but simply the standard interest rate.

Like an earlier reply I have the opinion the rules are tightening up.  Out of my 6 0% cards, only 2 now have live offers.  Although I know recently sainsburies and barclaycard have been emailing me offers, so new one's might still pop up for those for me.

BDeluxe

Chrysalis said:

They will have different tiers of packages offered to customers, this of course includes offers, but also the rates when there is no existing offer.  They are likely to be factored on a combination of risk and profitability of each customer as determined by their algorithms.

Halifax and MBNA both have the same parent company so dont be surprised if they match up.  Both cards for me have same standard interest rate, same 0% offer, although the MBNA also offers me a 2 year low interest deal which in my opinion is better value than their 0% offer.

So 0% 12 months with 5% fee

or 5.9% 24 months

I actually think the 24 month deal is the better offer, as the 5% is paid at the start, so is paid on the full balance, whilst the 5.9% is calculated and charged monthly on a reducing balance, and then also that the 5.9% is a 2 year deal which further reduces its cost as there would be an extra cost to renew a 0% deal for a second year.

The 24.66% you see is likely not an offer at all but simply the standard interest rate.

Like an earlier reply I have the opinion the rules are tightening up.  Out of my 6 0% cards, only 2 now have live offers.  Although I know recently sainsburies and barclaycard have been emailing me offers, so new one's might still pop up for those for me.

This is just it, they don't.

Halifax are offering 5.9% over 24 months.

CliveOfIndia

BDeluxe said:

Chrysalis said:

They will have different tiers of packages offered to customers, this of course includes offers, but also the rates when there is no existing offer.  They are likely to be factored on a combination of risk and profitability of each customer as determined by their algorithms.

Halifax and MBNA both have the same parent company so dont be surprised if they match up.  Both cards for me have same standard interest rate, same 0% offer, although the MBNA also offers me a 2 year low interest deal which in my opinion is better value than their 0% offer.

So 0% 12 months with 5% fee

or 5.9% 24 months

I actually think the 24 month deal is the better offer, as the 5% is paid at the start, so is paid on the full balance, whilst the 5.9% is calculated and charged monthly on a reducing balance, and then also that the 5.9% is a 2 year deal which further reduces its cost as there would be an extra cost to renew a 0% deal for a second year.

The 24.66% you see is likely not an offer at all but simply the standard interest rate.

Like an earlier reply I have the opinion the rules are tightening up.  Out of my 6 0% cards, only 2 now have live offers.  Although I know recently sainsburies and barclaycard have been emailing me offers, so new one's might still pop up for those for me.

This is just it, they don't.

Halifax are offering 5.9% over 24 months.

So go for Halifax then.  Brands under the same parent company will usually have broadly similar criteria, but they tend to target different customers, so the details of their criteria will usually be subtly different (though sometimes very different - Coutts and Natwest target very different customers!)

Better still, don't assume you'll always be able to shift the debt elsewhere, instead focus on paying it off.  This will save you a lot of money and a lot of grief in the long run.

daivid

BDeluxe said:

Chrysalis said:

They will have different tiers of packages offered to customers, this of course includes offers, but also the rates when there is no existing offer.  They are likely to be factored on a combination of risk and profitability of each customer as determined by their algorithms.

Halifax and MBNA both have the same parent company so dont be surprised if they match up.  Both cards for me have same standard interest rate, same 0% offer, although the MBNA also offers me a 2 year low interest deal which in my opinion is better value than their 0% offer.

So 0% 12 months with 5% fee

or 5.9% 24 months

I actually think the 24 month deal is the better offer, as the 5% is paid at the start, so is paid on the full balance, whilst the 5.9% is calculated and charged monthly on a reducing balance, and then also that the 5.9% is a 2 year deal which further reduces its cost as there would be an extra cost to renew a 0% deal for a second year.

The 24.66% you see is likely not an offer at all but simply the standard interest rate.

Like an earlier reply I have the opinion the rules are tightening up.  Out of my 6 0% cards, only 2 now have live offers.  Although I know recently sainsburies and barclaycard have been emailing me offers, so new one's might still pop up for those for me.

This is just it, they don't.

Halifax are offering 5.9% over 24 months.

Am I right to assume your Halifax card is more or less maxed out? If not, and you cannot beat it’s offer elsewhere then it seems like a no-brainer to transfer from MBNA to Halifax. If you don’t have space on the Halifax card you could ask for a limit increase, even if not enough to clear the whole MBNA balance anything you get off standard APR will be a saving.

I would echo the previous advice to check out the 'debt free wannabe' sub forum. From what you have said it sounds like if you can avoid the high APRs you are in a position to make meaningful inroads into the debt so it seems like you are at a critical point.