Advice on balance transfer/claiming fees

jumpingene

I am about to apply for a Nationwide credit card with the aim to balance transfer the full amount (£4000) from my Smile cc. A few months ago I was hit with non-payment fees on my Smile account when the direct debit wasn't paid because it was right before payday, two months consecutively (I've never missed any other repayment on any type of credit). So I think I can reclaim fees on the Smile cc. What order should I do things in, though? I was thinking I should
1 - apply for the new cc
2 - make the claim
3 - make the balance transfer
4 - close the old cc account

but if step 2 takes a long time, I may miss the 0% transfer window; also the longer I keep my old cc, the more interest I'll pay. If I empty the old cc, how likely are they to repay the fees given that it's quite obvious I'm about to close the account anyway? And how successful are these claims usually?

Perhaps I can just phone Smile and ask for a goodwill refund given my previous history with them ...?

Thanks for your help!