Do Not Use Virgin Credit Card

Dieselladuk

Do not be fooled by all these money saving companys recomending VIRGIN CREDIT CARD!!!

I have today received a letter saying they have increased my APR to 29.9% from 15.9% and after researching online this seems to be a general thing virgin and MBNA do.

I actually thought virgin / mbna was a good company but since this i am totally against them especially in the money crunch times.

When i called virgin today to ask WHY i was told they can change the credit APR at any time, i said i appreciate this but by 100% is very excessive and especially as the bank of scotland has reduced the credit rate. I was told that the 15.9% as advertised is for NEW CUSTOMERS ONLY! how long does it take to be no longer a new customer. i only joined virgin in sept 07. hardly an OLD customer. I have never missed a payment, so thought it wouldn't be that. i was told its not a personal assessment of my credit history its a company decision. HOW MANY OTHER PEOPLE HAVE BEEN CAUGHT OUT BY THIS???????????????????????????

I think all these money saving websites should stop advertising VIRGIN as being the BEST BUY etc as for a consumer this DEFIANTLY not a good deal!!

DO NOT USE VIRGIN CREDIT CARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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---lee---

A common tactic with CC's these days. CC companies are using these methods to increase their returns. As you have already identified, they can increase the APR at will. If you have an outstanding balance, you can always apply for another card from a different provider and transfer your balance.

My prefered tactics for CC providers is to either repay the balance in full each month thereby taking advantage of the purchase protection and interest free loans for up to 56 days or stoozing from them.

Dieselladuk

Yes this is true. but from researching online there is a very limited few credit card companys that are using this method. unfortunately its the companys that most review sites are advertising as the best. so people will be caught out in the long run! so how helpfull are these money saving sites?

---lee---

I suspect this and other methods will become the norm. Amex started doing it well over a year ago allocating individual rates according to credit histry and risk. Egg operated a similar excersise with their recent customer purge. With the current economic climate, no doubt more providers will using these and other contraversial methods. There are also posts where people are having their credit limits reduced which I guess is a paper exersise to make it look like the providers are not exposing themselfs to unnecessary risks or overlending.

Dieselladuk

makes me wonder if they pay money saving sites to advertise there products? all a big con. think i will just take out a loan pay off the cards and open the barclays base rate 8% or similar product for any necessary card use. these companies will lose out in the long run. If they go down the route of credit history? sure they looked at that at the application stage? if they are doing regular credit checks on you sure they need your approval for another check to be run on you as this will effect your credit rating?

and theres 2 ways to look at risk. if you lower peoples interest rates and help people who are struggling surely the credit card company wins in the end as they have more chance of getting the money back from the customer. keep increasing peoples APR doesnt help in current climate.

I was told by the advisor i called today that the increase was nothing to do with my personal credit status. etc

I am going to call them tomorrow to ask further questions and i would like it in writing the reasons for my increase. and if any searches were made? if so why etc. data protection act allows me to access any files they hold on a person. so would like to see whats going on.

---lee---

Dieselladuk wrote: »

makes me wonder if they pay money saving sites to advertise there products? all a big con. think i will just take out a loan pay off the cards and open the barclays base rate 8% or similar product for any necessary card use.

Think long and hard before consolidating any credit card debts into loans. It becomes far to easy to then run debts up on cards again. Also credit cards are unsecured. I think Martin has an article offering advise on this. It may be a good solution if you are diciplined enough not to start using credit cards again. Some cards offer a decent life of balance rate.

these companies will lose out in the long run. If they go down the route of credit history? sure they looked at that at the application stage?

They always check at the applciation stage.

if they are doing regular credit checks on you sure they need your approval for another check to be run on you as this will effect your credit rating?

They don't need to run regular checks. They can form an option of your credit worthiness by looking at the trends of how you use your card (debt increasing month on month, only paying the minimum payments and approaching credit limit might suggest somone who is becoming a risk for example). They can also look at missed, late payments etc. Further information would also be avaialble from other cards from the same company and bank accounts.

When you think about it, there is quite a lot of data to work with so it's not necessary to revert to further credit checks.

and theres 2 ways to look at risk. if you lower peoples interest rates and help people who are struggling surely the credit card company wins in the end as they have more chance of getting the money back from the customer. keep increasing peoples APR doesnt help in current climate.

Agreed. It's a paper exersise to satsify the bean counters. I expect they work on the assumption that a lot of people will be to lazy to change their cards/make other arrangments. They will of course use computer models to forecast profits based on different scenarios of fees/APRs etc and go for the one that makes them the most money.

I was told by the advisor i called today that the increase was nothing to do with my personal credit status. etc

I am going to call them tomorrow to ask further questions and i would like it in writing the reasons for my increase. and if any searches were made? if so why etc. data protection act allows me to access any files they hold on a person. so would like to see whats going on.

You can get your credit files from the major agencies (equifax and experain) for £2 each. These will show all recent searches and a lot more besides. As you rightly say, you are also entitled to request all the details stored relating to you on their systems under the DPA.

Bismarck

completely agree Lee, well put!

Treadmill

Most CC companys start off with a "Hoik you in" rate, then put up the APR, all the litrature you sign states the APR is variable though so its hardly like they sprung it on you.

dhassen

I just replied to a message on the 'BEST BALANCE TRANSFERS' post just like this one. Virgin wanted to raise my rate to 29.9% when my offer ended over a year ago. I complained over the phone twice, with no effect. I then wrote a letter to the complaints dept and received a good response within a few weeks saying they were so sorry and are keeping the rate at 15.9%. Writing a well written letter of complaint is a good idea.

It has to be said though, 15 months 0% is a great deal, and you did sign a credit agreement stating you agree that they (MBNA/ Virgin) can increase the rate whenever they want, to whatever they want.

Dieselladuk

I have just called virgin again and after a lengthy conversation got my APR reduced back to 15.9% just annoying to have to argue your case. so if they have done this to anyone else keep complaining and they might budge! its worth a try!!!

dhassen

it's annoying but well worth it!! Complaining does sometimes make a difference, nothing to lose but time and / or your rag!