Advice Needed on 0% credit

cherryblossom100

Hi all. I am a single parent to twins and they are just about to start nursery and I am returning to work after maternity leave. 

The nursery ask for payment half termly upfront which is £3000. I will be claiming this back through universal credit. I am not entitled to any advances through uc so have to find this money myself. 

My plan was to put this on an interest free cc but can't work out how to get one that can either pay a business account or transfer a balance to my current account. (I have transferred a balance to my current account before but was in my overdraft,does it work if you aren't in debt?)

I already have a virgin money card with a £9000 limit but has no 0% offers left on it (the card is empty) 

I also have a sainsburys card with £2000 debt that I need to move to another 0% card. 

Long term, this debt isn't an issue as uc will always pay back a month in arrears so the money is there, just not available upfront. 

Thanks for any help you can offer. 

MorningcoffeeIV

All credit cards can pay businesses if they accept cards.

If they don't, then you'll be looking at a money transfer option, with the fees that entails, assuming you can get one.

Alternatively, you get a 0% purchases card, put your normal spend on that and pay the fees from the money you save - assuming you have time to accumulate the cash.

th081

MBNA offer a money transfer card and also do a soft search which tells you if you will be accepted and no impact on your credit file if you are not. 

MattMattMattUK

cherryblossom100 said:

The nursery ask for payment half termly upfront which is £3000. I will be claiming this back through universal credit. I am not entitled to any advances through uc so have to find this money myself. 

I would speak to them nursery about this, they will be aware that is a large amount to ask most people to pay upfront, less than half of all households under 44 (likely to have children of nursery age) have enough savings to cover that as an upfront expense. There may be some flexibility if you talk to them about it, explain that you are coming off maternity and going back to work, can cover the cost, but just not find £3k upfront before you return to work. 

cherryblossom100

MattMattMattUK said:

cherryblossom100 said:

The nursery ask for payment half termly upfront which is £3000. I will be claiming this back through universal credit. I am not entitled to any advances through uc so have to find this money myself. 

I would speak to them nursery about this, they will be aware that is a large amount to ask most people to pay upfront, less than half of all households under 44 (likely to have children of nursery age) have enough savings to cover that as an upfront expense. There may be some flexibility if you talk to them about it, explain that you are coming off maternity and going back to work, can cover the cost, but just not find £3k upfront before you return to work. 

Thanks. I already asked. They are the only nursery in the area and have a monopoly so do what they like with charges. There is no wiggle room on this sadly. 

cherryblossom100

MorningcoffeeIV said:

All credit cards can pay businesses if they accept cards.

If they don't, then you'll be looking at a money transfer option, with the fees that entails, assuming you can get one.

Alternatively, you get a 0% purchases card, put your normal spend on that and pay the fees from the money you save - assuming you have time to accumulate the cash.

Thanks. Would it count as a purchase or a transfer if I paid the business directly from the credit card and how would I do this?

grumbler

cherryblossom100 said:

My plan was to put this on an interest free cc but can't work out how to get one that can either pay a business account 

All shops are businesses, although not all shops accept CCs.

or transfer a balance to my current account. 

balance = debt
What you want is to transfer money to your current account (or a debt (=overdraft balance) from your current account)
MSE:  0% money transfer cards

(I have transferred a balance to my current account before but was in my overdraft,does it work if you aren't in debt?)

This makes no sense to me

I already have a virgin money card with a £9000 limit but has no 0% offers left on it (the card is empty) 

What do you mean by "left"? Many cards have offers for existing customers. Have you checked thoroughly?

I also have a sainsburys card with £2000 debt that I need to move to another 0% card. 

If you manage to get a card with 0% on balance trasfers and big enough limit, you can pay for the nursery with your existing card (if they accept CCs) and transfer the balance to the new card too, but this will cost you - unlike if you pay with a card with 0% on purchases.

cherryblossom100

Thanks all. My existing credit card  has just sent me this offer for my existing limit of £4000. So would people take any of these options?

I have also emailed the nursery and asked if they accept credit card payment. Sorry if I'm a little confused by it all. The only way I currently have to pay the nursery is through bank transfer with sort code and account number which I dont think you can do by credit card? 

cherryblossom100

What do you mean by "left"? Many cards have offers for existing customers. Have you checked throroughly?

I also have a sainsburys card with £2000 debt that I need to move to another 0% card. 

If you manage to get a card with 0% on balance trasfers and big enough limit, you can pay for the nursery with your existing card (if they accept CCs) and transfer the balance to the new card too, but this will cost you unlike if you pay with a card with 0% on purchases.

Sorry I meant that the 0% interest term had ended and they hadn't offered me a new 0% rate. The correct terminology is all new to me. 

I have asked the nursery if they will accept a credit card. I'm guessing I'll need them to do a card payment similar to how a shop would? Thanks for your help. 

Martico

If you take that money transfer offer, they'll transfer the money to your bank account and you can proceed from there. If you'll be able to clear that in the next few months, the 6.9% APR with no upfront fee option might be better than the 0% PA with a 5% upfront fee

cherryblossom100

Thanks all, 
Another question, is it best to close the credit card account with the empty credit card that has a £9000 limit or is it better to have unused credit show on my credit search?