Hidden Interest?

jetsetwilly_2

Ok, the scenario is this.....

Marbles Card

I had approx 4500 on the card (stoozed BT) 6 months 0%

My statement came in June saying estimated interest next statement would be (£x) meaning the offer period was up.

I paid off all the balance in 5 days of getting the initial statement.

1 month on, a statement arrives saying I owe £15.11 interest.

Is this right? Do you need to pay off the balance on stoozed funds BEFORE the final statemtn of the period e.g, is my interest charged from the day of the last stement? If so, I am worried about my other stoozing cards

sloth

i received my marbles statement the other day (i still have a month or so to go before the end of my 0%). just past half way down on the statement it gives the date at which your 0% offer expires. as long as you paid the card of by that date you should not be paying any interest

have a look at the statement sent to you around may time and see what the expiry date was, it should be on there

Reaper

Although I do not have a Marbles card this is a common trap. The 0% interest period usually has nothing to do with statement or payment dates. You always need to find out what date it finishes (by email so you have it in writing in case they get it wrong) and pay it off by that date.

jetsetwilly_2

Thanks. Only cost me £15 (small percentage of my stooze profits), but even so, begrudge paying them anything when its pretty much a deception

Clariman

jetsetwilly wrote:

Thanks. Only cost me £15 (small percentage of my stooze profits), but even so, begrudge paying them anything when its pretty much a deception

It is not deception. Stoozers really must learn to be fully aware of all their credit card's detailed terms and conditions. It is essential that you know the last date when you have to pay the balance by in order to avoid interest. You should never assume it or guess it. I am pretty sure that Martin's "credit card revenge" article says this and so does the stoozing guide on the stoozing website.

As stoozers, we are exploiting the credit card companies' terms and conditions to earn ourselves free money. We can hardly complain when the credit card companies exploit those sames terms and conditions for their benefit. Get real.

Clariman

Clariman

Just checked what the various articles say about the end of the 0% period.

From Martin's Revenge article

The credit card debt is now at 0%, the savings at hopefully 4% plus. All you need to do is diarise the date the 0% period ends and let the interest grow.

From the stoozing guide on stoozing website

step 4
Ask each credit card issuer for the precise date by which you have to pay the complete balance in order to avoid any interest payments. Ideally you should get this in writing. If you get the information verbally, make a note of the date and time you called Customer Services and the name of the person you spoke to, so that you can refer back to it if necessary.
step 5
Read all the Terms and Conditions of your new credit card(s) so that you understand exactly how the card operates.

and from the "Risks" section on the website

You don't know the exact date of the end of the introductory period (very easily done) so miss the date and incur interest charges

jetsetwilly_2

Ok fair enough, my fault. Lesson learnt

Milarky

sloth wrote:

i received my marbles statement the other day (i still have a month or so to go before the end of my 0%). just past half way down on the statement it gives the date at which your 0% offer expires. as long as you paid the card of by that date you should not be paying any interest

have a look at the statement sent to you around may time and see what the expiry date was, it should be on there

This is becoming quite common - with the last date of the promotion being printed on the penultimate statement - but as others have said you can't rely on your card following this pattern.

But even the 'experts' can get it wrong! I have had two cards repaid recently - Scottish Widows [LLoyds] and Halifax both of which stated an 'end date' but which I slightly exceded - yet neither charged any interest in the end!

[Another tip is to pay the final minimum payment early - to escape late payment fees - and to push the final payment - the big one - as late as possible provided you know the actual end date. You could switch your direct debit from minimum to full for the final month instead, but this gives you less control and you still might get charged interest anyway]