(Don't) Get the Macs

Figment

How do you get your photo on the card? Simple, after you've got the card, just send us a multi-media text message from your phone of the chosen photo and that's what you'll get.

So, um, they're going to send me the card, then I'm going to send them the MMS with my photo, and it will miraculously appear on the card? Cool trick ::)

MSE_Martin

Oops Emdee - that's me - on the real leaflet there was a piccie explanation of the photo process i devised. So when i put it on the site i just noted something down quickly - i shall go and amend ::)

hopefulfooluk

The minimum payment was actually the LOWER of 2% or £5 - so it would take you even longer to pay off.

philhuff

I feel the program failed to get over the problems with this card. On the face of it, 13.9% APR, 6 months interest free BT's, no annual fee etc., aren't bad. Nothing special, but certainly not in the rip-off area.

It's only really when you get to the small print that the problems all become clear, and that's something that didn't come across too well in the show.

The card personalisation would sell well, however, but I personally wouldn't pay any extra for it.

Mind you, I did laugh out loud when the girl explained that 'you get 12 MACS points for each £1, where as other card companies only give you 1 piont'. Brilliant.

deemy2004

Would I get a higher limit if I applied for their Big MAC ?  ;D

6 months 0% introductory, whats bad about that ?

Does not matter what it says elsewhere as you are in the introductory period and thus would have 6 months interest free from account opening. Any messing about and its off to the ombundsman  or Directory General of the BBC

The £5 minimum payment is great for stoozing

You deal with the £30 fee by putting the account into credit by £1k AFTER you 6 months at 0%, and then spendign the £1k over the following couple of months - net cost in lost interest being about £10-16 so you save £14-£20 on the annual cost.

alanjarrett

Lots of high charges for cash abroad etc and I went around in circles for ages trying to decide if BTs were free or not (with 50 or so other 0% cards to choose why bother worrying - don't bother with this one).

I also would not go for any card with an annual fee potential, also not worth the worry.

My main concern was the passing mention of card protection - no mention of what that cost is and no way of opting out, so you can bet it will be sky high and an industry 'best'.

Figment

Oops Emdee - that's me - on the real leaflet there was a piccie explanation of the photo process i devised.  So when i put it on the site i just noted something down quickly - i shall go and amend  ::)

Tsk, what are you like.

Off to fill in the application now you've cleared that up - I expect a decent credit limit ::)

Martinslovechild

Foreign Exchange Commission 2..75%

If you ask me, a commission of between 2% and 75% looks a bit dodge!!

Ferris

Macs = Scam backwards...

although, to be fair, i did sign up for a cashback mobile phone deal with a company called "SCANCOM", which is only one letter swap away from being both a SCAM and a CON...:)

(they are a very reliable company actually)

student100

Would I get a higher limit if I applied for their Big MAC ? ;D

6 months 0% introductory, whats bad about that ?

Does not matter what it says elsewhere as you are in the introductory period and thus would have 6 months interest free from account opening. Any messing about and its off to the ombundsman or Directory General of the BBC

The £5 minimum payment is great for stoozing

You deal with the £30 fee by putting the account into credit by £1k AFTER you 6 months at 0%, and then spendign the £1k over the following couple of months - net cost in lost interest being about £10-16 so you save £14-£20 on the annual cost.

Remember there's no interest free period on purchases, so even if you were to spend £1000 in the second 6 months of the card to avoid the £30 monthly fee, you'll still end up paying them a fair bit in interest. Even if this was less than the money you would make by stoozing during the 6 months 0%, it would be a lot of hassle and you could probably get a better deal elsewhere.

For someone who wasn't quite aware of the implications of the T&Cs, they could do a large BT to the card thinking they'd get it at 0%, then they might spend, say, £200 a month on the card which would bring them over the £1000 minimum spend to require avoid the monthly fee. Even if they paid off the £200 in full each month, they'd still be hit with a load of interest at 13.9% as the money they were paying would actually go towards the BT not the purchases.

This "card" demonstrates quite clearly how someone who is not quite as attentive to the T&Cs as MoneySavingExperts like us can be stung by credit cards, and the "ombundsman or Directory [sic] General of the BBC" wouldn't be able to help at all.