Best Balance Transfers Discussion Area

jrwpro

hi there guys, new to the forum hope you can help?

just applied for the abbey 15month BT card and was rejected

can't think why as i haven't missed any payments and bring in more than enough to cover the costs. in fact they didn't even ask me how much i wanted to transfer or what the balance on my other card was?

the only thing i can think is, like an idiot, i have never gotten round to cancelling my two old cards (lloyds and capone) both of which have £0 balance (in fact capone actually has £40 credit!).

can anybody offer any suggestions? how long should i wait before making another application? just need to get this one balance onto a 0% rate so i can pay it off then should be free and clear forever..... :rotfl:

thanks for your help,

J

blibnobdeeb

Hope someone might be able to give me some general info on balance transfers here. Just aquired first credit card with 0% transfer facility on it and wondering if it's possible to transfer balance from my wife's card to mine. Not sure I've posted this question in right place. If not - sorry! I'm a bit of a dinosaur on the computer!

Moggles_2

MattCardiff wrote: »

I am being made redundant and working my notice period. Now I'm in the position where I will get around £16,000 in redundancy due to length of service which is equal to a years taxed salary. However, I really need to get to grips with my debts. I have two credit cards, a joint loan and an overdraft. I also have a mortgage, but haven't included this as I have mortgage protection insurance that will pay out for up to two years at 125% of the monthly payment. I don't have PPI on the cards or loans. If I get my redundancy payment, I was going to try and pay off the joint loan as this makes the biggest monthly dent and either my OD or part of the larger CC2 debt and leave a few thousand (maybe £4K) to live off until I find a new job.

As the interest rate on your loan is fixed at 6% APR, I'd concentrate on paying as much as possible off the deal with the highest variable APR (CC2 from November?). Clearing this debt ASAP will reduce the interest you pay and you'll be building a better credit history in the process. This, in turn, reduces the risk of further interest hikes from other cc providers.

Has anyone got any suggestions on how I can reduce my outgoings and get to grips with what feels like spiralling debt?

As you're nearing the end of your 0% deal on CC2, I would line up a new 0% BT card now, while you're still employed. (With around 6 weeks to go, it's not too early to do this anyway.)
To help you further, we would need to know which credit cards you have at the mo or have held recently.

Your post raises some other issues and you may want to post again on the *Debt-Free Wannabe* board. You'll get lots of advice and support there from users who have faced similar situations.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.html?f=76

Ninarich666

Hi

I'm new to the forum but not the site.

I've been trying to consolidated both my Mint & Barclaycard to one card on a 0% balance transfer. I applied for one with Santander and was turned down.

I have since looked at my experian report which I have a monthly membership with and it is excellent. I did my Credit score which was excellent, all my debts have been settled apart from these two cards and my overdraft (excluding mortgage) and I have not defaulted on anything.

I have sent a letter to their appeals department asking for further info as to why I was declined but need to know if there is anything else i can do or whether it would be best trying another company.

I dont want to run the risk of having too many searches on my report on ruining my history?

Please help?

Moggles_2

jrwpro wrote: »

Just applied for the Abbey 15 month BT card and was rejected. I haven't missed any payments and bring in more than enough to cover the costs. In fact they didn't even ask me how much i wanted to transfer.

From feedback here, this applies to virtually all credit cards (except Capital One). Your BT request would not affect the decision. It would neither help nor hinder your chances of acceptance.

... or what the balance on my other card was?

Abbey would find out anyway when they searched your credit files.

The only thing i can think is, i have never gotten round to cancelling my two old cards (Lloyds and CapOne) both of which have £0 balance.

There are any number of reasons why a given lender may refuse to extend credit, so I'd keep an open mind. Have you checked credit files to see what's actually on there? For help, see page 1 of the *How to obtain credit reports* sticky.

Can anybody offer any suggestions? Just need to get this one balance onto a 0% rate so i can pay it off then should be free and clear forever.

For tips to improve your chances of credit card acceptance, have a look at the *Credit Rating: how it works and how to improve it guide* especially Martin's *Manage and Improve your credit score* article

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/credit-rating-credit-score#improve

To help you further, we would need to know which credit cards - besides CapOne and LloydsTSB - you have a the mo or have held recently.

Moggles_2

blibnobdeeb wrote: »

Another money saving virgin!
Just acquired first credit card with 0% transfer facility and wondering if it's possible to transfer balance from my wife's card to mine.

Welcome to MSE!

You can switch credit card balances from family, friends or Dave down the pub. You should be aware though, that the person whose card her balance is shifted to, becomes solely liable for the debt.

From the lender's perspective, it's not a problem. You may be asked for the name on her card, but this is purely an additional verification check. At the end of the day, the card company is after your business. They're not really interested in knowing who ran up the debt, as long as you, their customer, pay up on time each month!

Caution: you cannot transfer balances between cards underwritten by the same bank. This table on the stoozing site (which is sponsored by Money Saving Expert) should help:

http://www.stoozing.com/cards.htm

jrwpro

thanks moggles, i'll be sure to take a look at the articles you referenced.

presently I have:

virgin cc: balance -£4k
capone: balance +£45
lloyds: balance £0

i've never used the lloyds one and haven't touched the capone in two years.

also have the usual student loan and a car loan @£100/month for the next 12 months. never missed a payment. nominal overdraft and one joint account with my girlfriend (who was once rejected for a cc because she had 'no credit history' - never had a loan of any kind before).

good luck to everybody else trying to get their credit in line on here!

p.s. something not mentioned in most places that the abbey lady mentioned is that their 15month BT card has a 'dormancy' fee of £10/month for every month after 6 months that you don't spend on it - effectively charging you another £90 if you never spend and pay off your balance in full every month!

jaffajader

Hi!

Wonder if I could maybe get some advice. I took out a loan for £7000 in June 2008, repaying £200/month (approx 12.8% APR). Noticed in my annual statement in June this year that I had been paying PPI without my knowledge, fired off a letter to the bank – they are currently in the process of paying it back JJ

I now have £6000 left of my loan to pay and I intend to put £500 of my PPI refund towards this, bringing it down to £5500. I have also recently started a new job on a slightly better salary and would be quite happy crippling myself for the next year-18 months just to get rid of this loan and start saving for a deposit for a flat.

Bank of Scotland have said that i have to keep the terms and conditions of the old loan on which means i am now paying back £162/month for the same length of time and adding up that i will pay back £7800 for my £6k loans. i have applied for a few credit cards - MBNA - Virgin - Tesco and been rejected although my boyfriend thinks this is because i'm not registered as living at my flat but still at home with my folks. i would really rather not take out a credit card at my folks address as that's how i got into this mess in the first place!

could anyone advise - should i try and get another £6k loan at a better rate or shop around for the 0% deal from a credit card? I really don't want to stick with this BoS loan as if i have the extra money i'm more likely to spend it than save it....


Thanks !

Moggles_2

Ninarich666 wrote: »

I've been trying to consolidate both my Mint & Barclaycard to one card on a 0% balance transfer. I applied for one with Santander and was turned down. I have since looked at my Experian report which I have a monthly membership with and it is excellent. I did my credit score which was excellent. All my debts have been settled apart from these two cards and my overdraft (excluding mortgage) and I have not defaulted on anything. I have sent a letter to their appeals department asking for further info as to why I was declined but need to know if there is anything else i can do or whether it would be best trying another company.

Bad luck.

If you appeal against the decision, that could result in further delay. There's no harm in asking Abbey the reason(s) you were unsuccessful, but be prepared for a fairly nonspecific response.

For tips to improve your chances of credit card acceptance, have a look at the *Credit Rating: how it works and how to improve it guide* especially Martin's *Manage and Improve your credit score* article

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/ban...-score#improve

To maximise the 0% period, 16 months is currently available from Virgin on BTs made in the first 60 days. A 2.98% transfer fee applies.
Minimum monthly payments are the lowest in the UK.

http://uk.virginmoney.com/credit-card-v3/

Alternatively, you'd get 13 months at 0% from Halifax on BTs made in the first 90 days. There's a 3% BT fee.
The minimum monthly payment is just 1% of the balance shifted.

http://www.halifax.co.uk/creditcards/pluscard136.asp

Which option is best depends, to some extent, on which credit cards - besides B'card & Mint - you have at the mo or have held recently.

NickX

jrwpro wrote: »

p.s. something not mentioned in most places that the abbey lady mentioned is that their 15month BT card has a 'dormancy' fee of £10/month for every month after 6 months that you don't spend on it - effectively charging you another £90 if you never spend and pay off your balance in full every month!

No, this is not correct. The Dormancy Fee of £10 is not for every month that you do not use the card, but is applied after 6 months of dormancy.

I use my Abbey Zero occasionally when abroad to make use of the fee-free foreign currency conversion and avoid the Dormancy charge.