Interest free balance transfer

alstorey

Hi

I did a balance transfer of £4000 with 12 months 0%. and 3 months 0% on new transactions.

The 3 months is nearly up. to date i have made about £1600 of payments off the card, but then also added new charges of about £1000 (planning a wedding i will have to use it for some wedding related ietems).

When the new transaction interest becomes active, will it be on the new charges or any balance above the original £4000..

If its on new payments, i would assume i should have paid smaller lumps off the balance and kept any additional cash i had as savings for future purchases? rather than paying some off and then adding more charges to the card

Thanks

Alan

CliveOfIndia

It's always tricky when mixing spending and BTs on the same card.  The short answer is, you need to read your T&Cs carefully.

From the information you've given, I suspect any spending that hasn't been repaid in full will start accruing interest after the 3 months are up - promotional offers are usually "from the date of account opening".

The usual advice is not to spend on a BT card.  But if you have a specific offer that covers both spending and BTs, you really do need to read the T&Cs carefully to see how payments are prioritised.

alstorey said:

If its on new payments, i would assume i should have paid smaller lumps off the balance and kept any additional cash i had as savings for future purchases?

In all likelihood you'll need to clear your "spending" within the 3 months of account opening, then your BT will stay at 0% for 12 months.  But you really do need to check the T&Cs carefully.  I know they're not exactly light bedtime reading, but actually they're usually pretty clear if you take the time to read and understand them.

grumpy_codger

I don't fully understand your question, but generally, if you have two (or more) balances with different interest rates, you can see them separately in your statement. In this case all payments you make go towards the balance with the highest interest rate.

alstorey

grumpy_codger said:

I don't fully understand your question, but generally, if you have two (or more) balances with different interest rates, you can see them separately in your statement. In this case all payments you make go 

So any payments would go off the purchases rather than the balance transfer amount. Meaning if I always pay the bill for the additional purchases on time, no interest will be incurred. Thanks 

grumpy_codger

What exactly CC is it? Read the T&C.

For most CCs any purchases made outside of the introductory term (3 months in your case) will attract interest unless you pay the total balance in full, not just the recent purchases balance.