Can credit card limits be consolidated?
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My question wasn’t about negotiating for MORE money. It was about redistributing the existing total credit limit across cards and providers. I don’t think that’s to (sic) hard to understand.Verityspinelli wrote: »Credit card companies don’t negotiate whether they’ll give you more money, you ask, they say yes or they say no. And please don’t ask me to explain to you how I came to that conclusion or what I mean, i don’t think it’s to hard to Understand.
Succinct and to the point. Your second point answers my first question. Thank you.Some lenders will let you consolidate across their products.
You can’t consolidate across different providers.
And on your first point, yes this has been my experience as I have previously successfully consolidated limits across cards with the same provider.
The limit I describe as ‘massive’ is £40k. It’s a credit card that I once used a lot but haven’t used for some time now. They’ve just sent me a new card. I have another card with a £25k limit that I tend to use most frequently now. My other existing cards (with the exception of the recent Barclaycard see below) range from £7k to £20k.When you mention a 'massive' credit limit could you give us some idea of how much this credit limit actually is.
The latest card I have received (a Barclaycard) has an overall credit limit of £3.5k and a cash credit limit of £1k. I applied for it as I need a fee-free card for non-GBP transactions instead of my Saga card (£9k credit limit), given the Allied Irish Bank is severing its ties with Saga next month and closing the Saga card for all customersThe lower cash limit is nothing to do with your credit standing. It will be a normal feature of the card.
(As an aside I wonder if (uninformed) lenders will deem this bank-driven card closure as a customer loss of credit?)
The Barclaycard not only comes with fee-free non-GBP transactions (as per Saga) but it also offers fee-free cash withdrawals overseas. However its cash credit limit is limited to £1k.
With a forthcoming overseas trip to a largely cash-driven economy, the £1k is too low for my needs and that’s what I am trying to change if possible.
I called Barclaycard and got lots of conflicting information – some said the cash limit was a percentage of the overall limit, others said the cash limit was fixed irrespective of the overall limit, some said not everyone gets a cash credit limit, some said it wasn’t possible to change it. How embarrassing that these people don’t even know how their own products work!Credit limits totalling 70% of your income is not excessive.
It is perfectly normal for a person with a long established credit history who habitually repays in full each month to have thousands and thousands of pounds unused available credit. It is said that the optimum utilisation is 10%.
In your place I would not leave the cards completely unused as no use for an extended period could result in cancellation of the card. It would be better to put a small purchase through each card from time to time just to keep them active.
With regard to the consequences of closing some accounts, avoid closing any cards with high credit limits or cards which have been open for a long time. High credit limits show that lenders trust you with such limits. Old credit card accounts show stability and also show that you have maintained the account for a long time without defaulting it. You do have quite a lot of credit cards so if there are any particular cards with low limits or cards that for one reason or another you don't particularly like etc it wouldn't do any particular harm to close them.
This is very useful to know and understand. I found your post informative, clear, reasoned, specific, helpful and practical. Thank you very much @Ben82820 -
Based on the information given it is clear that your annual income is in excess of £150,000. So long as you don't start managing your accounts really badly, I think that you have very little to worry about as far as credit cards are concerned.
I was interested by the Barclaycard that you mention so I looked more closely at it. It appears almost too good to be true as far as the foreign cash withdrawals are concerned. No foreign transaction fee. No cash withdrawal fee. Normal 56 days interest free period on the foreign cash withdrawals.
I think that I can understand why Barclaycard may wish to place a limit on these foreign cash withdrawals, You refer to a cash limit. Is this limit over a specific period of time, for example do they say £1000 per-month or something like that, or is it a general cash limit. If the latter, I believe that you simply need to repay the cash amount and then you will be free to withdraw more cash up to the limit again and so on.0 -
You refer to a cash limit. Is this limit over a specific period of time, for example do they say £1000 per-month or something like that, or is it a general cash limit. If the latter, I believe that you simply need to repay the cash amount and then you will be free to withdraw more cash up to the limit again and so on.
I never mismanage my cards - which is great for me but probably doesn't make me a great customer in the bank's eyes! What I was trying to get to the bottom of was why the Barclaycard limit I got was comparatively low, and within that why the cash credit limit was only £1000.
To answer your question, it's a cash credit limit between consecutive statemented periods (not to be confused with a daily cash withdrawal limit). If it was as simple as repaying the cash withdrawn while I'm away (by faster payments say) to effectively reset the available cash credit back to zero then the limit would be a non-issue and I wouldn't be asking the questions I am.
Sadly however, Barclaycard tell me that it doesn't work that way - in effect, they say, if any repayments are made before the next statement then they are held in suspense until the next statement and so the cash credit limit between statements is the maximum that can be withdrawn, and making 'repayments' against it has no effect.
What I am trying to do is find a way to increase my Barclaycard overall credit limit and especially its cash credit limit, while reducing credit limits elsewhere. And also trying to get a sense of the impact of closing cards or reducing limits before I'd do same.
As my Saga card is being closed then the no-brainer would be to simply transfer its credit limit to my Barclaycard. Unfortunately, the feedback here tells me it doesn't work that way. Worse still, I've learned that decisions are being made by lenders with incomplete information and based on assumption.0 -
xmarksthespot wrote: »What I am trying to do is find a way to increase my Barclaycard overall credit limit and especially its cash credit limit, while reducing credit limits elsewhere. And also trying to get a sense of the impact of closing cards or reducing limits before I'd do same.
As my Saga card is being closed then the no-brainer would be to simply transfer its credit limit to my Barclaycard. Unfortunately, the feedback here tells me it doesn't work that way. Worse still, I've learned that decisions are being made by lenders with incomplete information and based on assumption.
That's right - that's not the way it works.
Each lender has their own match for you in-terms of lending criteria - where lender A might feel comfortable lending you £5000, lender B may only feel comfortable lending you £3000.
You won't be able to ring up Barclaycard when you Saga card is closed and say "I had £XXXX limit with Saga that is now closed, can you please increase my limit with you by that amount?".
That's always been the case, except when you consolidate between the same lender.
What you can do is wait for the account to be closed and settled off then apply for a limit increase with Barclaycard - but don't put all your hopes into getting what has been "freed up" from the Saga card.
Also you should avoid using your CC for Cash Withdrawals and Cash Purchases.0 -
What you can do is wait for the account to be closed and settled off then apply for a limit increase with Barclaycard - but don't put all your hopes into getting what has been "freed up" from the Saga card.
Yes, will do this in due course - but the whole point is that Saga is closing end March whereas I'm travelling overseas from this weekend for 3 weeks and so really need the increased cash limit on Barclaycard for this forthcoming trip.
Not sure I understand what you mean here. Can you please clarify? The primary use of the Barclaycard for me is to withdraw cash overseas, as that's fee-free, does not attract daily interest and is in fact interest free if paid off in full when statemented.Also you should avoid using your CC for Cash Withdrawals and Cash Purchases.0 -
Are you sure it's interest fee?
I've not known a credit card that allows cash withdrawals (either at home or overseas) where interest doesn't occur from day one - fee free yes - but not interest fee.
Maybe you should look at getting a Starling/Monzo/Revolut account that allows for fee-free cash withdrawals0 -
Are you sure it's interest fee?
I've not known a credit card that allows cash withdrawals (either at home or overseas) where interest doesn't occur from day one - fee free yes - but not interest fee.
Now you have some new-found knowledge! I can confirm that there is no interest to pay on cash withdrawals if the statemented balance is paid off in full. This is also confirmed by Ben8282 above in this thread: "It appears almost too good to be true as far as the foreign cash withdrawals are concerned. No foreign transaction fee. No cash withdrawal fee. Normal 56 days interest free period on the foreign cash withdrawals".
No, definitely not, I have already ruled these out. Not just because of Barclaycard's superior offer but also because Revolut (for example) incurs local ATM transaction fees at most bank ATMs where I'm going, whereas Barclaycard's (and Visa's) arrangements are such that there are way more ATMs where there will be no local cash withdrawal fee. Trust me, I've looked at this closely, and also taken advice from the TripAdvisor forum from those who have found drawbacks with Revolut etc. in certain locations.Maybe you should look at getting a Starling/Monzo/Revolut account that allows for fee-free cash withdrawals0 -
Are you 100% sure?
The T's and C's on the Platinum Travel Card clearly state that there is interest payable on Cash Withdrawals:
No interest free period on cash withdrawals and balance transfers
Foreign Usage
Non-sterling transaction fees will not be charged on transactions made on or before 31 August 2022. (Standard or cash interest rates apply depending on the type of transaction).
Interest Charging Information
If interest is payable, it will be charged over the following period:
Purchases and non-sterling cash withdrawals:
from the date the transaction is debited to your account until the date of your last statement before the transaction is paid in full.
Sterling cash withdrawals and balance transfers:
from the date the transaction is debited to your account until it is paid in full.
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@!!!. Yes, 100% sure. *Rolls eyes*. As is @Ben8282.
From the Barclaycard website:
"Planning a trip abroad? Take foreign currency out with your Barclaycard while you’re abroad, and you’ll benefit from the ‘up to 56 day interest free’ period if your balance is repaid in full by your payment due date."
Perhaps you should call them to satisfy yourself?
So, trust me (although you clearly didn't previously) - you now have some new-found knowledge! :-)0 -
The "no fees abroad" are not the same as cash withdrawal interest.
They are referring to a withdrawal fee, which is usually around 2.5% of the amount being withdrawn.0
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