Best Balance Transfers Discussion Area

andrew148

A long shot I know, but does anyone know if there is a card available that I can transfer to even though I live in France?

I sold my house in UK last year so I guess I will not have a good enough credit score?

I currently have old balances with MBNA and Mint but am paying way too much interest. Any advice?

Thanks

Moggles_2

andrew148 wrote: »

A long shot I know, but does anyone know if there is a card available that I can transfer to even though I live in France? I sold my house in UK last year, so I guess I will not have a good enough credit score. I currently have old balances with MBNA and Mint but am paying way too much interest. Any advice?

UK credit card providers will only consider applicants who are UK residents.

You may be able to reduce your costs though using credit cards you already hold. For details, see Martin's *Credit Card Shuffle*article.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cards/cut-credit-card-interest

Meanwhile, I would concentrate on paying off as much as possible each month. Clearing this debt ASAP will reduce the interest you pay and you'll be building a better credit history in the process, should you wish to return.

GrammarGirl

I'm sure this is a stupid question and has probably been answered elsewhere... but is it a good idea to apply for a credit card that you have been declined for in the past?

I tried to BT my HSBC Mastercard to Virgin back in August, but was declined because I wasn't registered on the electoral roll at my current address. I'm now fully registered (just waiting for my credit file to update before I apply) and Virgin still seems to be the best (or longest) BT offer out there.

Is it wise to apply again in a week or so, or will the fact that I've been declined before count against me?

Moggles_2

GrammarGirl wrote: »

I tried to BT my HSBC Mastercard to Virgin back in August, but was declined because I wasn't registered on the electoral roll at my current address. I'm now fully registered (just waiting for my credit file to update before I apply) and Virgin still seems to be the best (or longest) BT offer out there. Is it wise to apply again in a week or so or will the fact that I've been declined before count against me?

The only card company I know which specifically excludes applicants, who have been turned down during the previous 6 months, is Capital One.

That said, why not play safe? There are other options besides Virgin.

To maximise the 0% period, 15 months is currently available to new customers from Halifax. There's a 3.5% BT fee though.

http://www.halifax.co.uk/creditcards/pluscard153.asp

Alternatively, you'd get 14 months with Tesco. A 2.9% BT fee applies.

http://www.tescofinance.com/personal/finance/finance/creditcards/bonuscc/index.jsp

For a comprehensive list of 0% balance transfer cards, updated regularly and not influenced by advertising commissions, the stoozing site (which is sponsored by Money Saving Expert) is hard to beat

http://www.stoozing.com/0fees.htm

molley

Moggles wrote: »

No experience personally, but it's been reported from time to time by forum users.

If you're positive it's not your error, I wouldn't worry. The money was probably destined for a C1 card with a similar account number to yours. If so, the transaction will disappear again before long.

What an idiot I am . Capital One called me this morning about this payment and said it had come from an Abbey account but the sort code and a/c number didnt match mine on my current a/c.
She said they would put it in their holding account until the "owner" contacted them .Later they called back with more info and said the payment was a BT from Abbey . Even then the bells didn't ring in my head but as soon as I put the phone down I realised what had happened .A few weeks ago ( Early Nov) I applied for an Abbey CC and on the on-line apllication asked for any BT's I wanted .I put £390 to Cap1 . Abbey have BT'd that amount to Cap1 even though I still do not have the card nor ,obviously,activated it .In the meantime I had done my BT's from my Egg Card ,Abbey having taken so long to deal with the application. Now I need to decide if I leave my Cap1 account in credit and use the funds to reduce the credit back to zero or ask Abbey if they can recall the payment ( but need to watch for any fees for doing so)
How stupid I feel

NickX

molley wrote: »

Now I need to decide if I leave my Cap1 account in credit and use the funds to reduce the credit back to zero or ask Abbey if they can recall the payment ( but need to watch for any fees for doing so)
How stupid I feel

I don't think Abbey will be able to recall the payment after it has been made.

Capital One may be able to send it back upon your request, but why not just ask them to refund the positive amount to you by cheque. Then pay that into a high interest savings account for the duration of the Abbey promotion to make yourself some extra money ?

JimmyTheWig

NickX wrote: »

Capital One may be able to send it back upon your request, but why not just ask them to refund the positive amount to you by cheque.

Do you think they would do that?

molley

If not I suppose I could get a cash withdrawal to take the account to zero.I was intending closing the a/c anyway.....It would mean me paying a surcharge tho' for the withdrawal wouldn't it

NickX

JimmyTheWig wrote: »

Do you think they would do that?

Well I've never had a problem in getting positive balances refunded by cheque without incurring a charge.

They have usually been in the 100s rather than the 1000s though.

Moggles_2

molley wrote: »

If not, I suppose I could get a cash withdrawal to take the account to zero. I was intending closing the a/c anyway. It would mean me paying a surcharge though for the withdrawal wouldn't it?

Not a good idea, IMO. You'll be charged for a cash advance.

I would ask CapOne to post you a cheque. Some lenders take a dim view of this (eg. HBOS, HSBC), others (eg.MBNA) seem relaxed about it.
Don't know C1's policy, but there's no harm in asking

If the answers no, could you do some Christmas shopping and spend your way out of the predicament?

Let us know how you get on.
M