CREDIT CARDS - UK

WHAT'S HOT?
Virgin have a great combination offer of 0% p.a. on balance transfers for 15 months from opening your new account. (2.98% handling fee (minimum £3)) along with 0% p.a. on card purchases for 3 months from the date your account is opened.

Capital One have a market leading introductory offer on purchases of 0% until 1st May 2009 along with a low standard rate of typical 9.9% APR variable for the platinum card.

BARCLAYCARD ONEPULSE combines an Oyster Card, cashless payment system and standard credit card into one piece of plastic!

Alliance and Leicester have savings account paying up to 12% P.A./a.e.r  >>>more

Football fans look here>>>

Now you can make purchases without having your own credit card or even bank account. 3V vouchers are a pre-paid credit card.
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Cash Withdrawals
Never forget that using a credit card to withdraw cash from an ATM is the most expensive way of obtaining cash. Far better to use a debit card. Not only do most companies charge extra high interest for taking out cash (higher than the usual APR) but they normally charge a fee (with minimum amounts applying), so small sums carry proportionality higher costs to withdraw. Check the summary box for each companies website to see the true cost. Also note even if you pay your balance in full at the end of the month, cash withdrawals attract interest from day one, there is no grace period, so you will be paying interest on the sum withdrawn.

Why So many Choices When I Just Want  A Low Rate?
It may seem strange when one provider has a range of similar cards where there is little difference between them other than the standard interest rate. However there is a reason why your given such a choice of say two near identical cards but one has a rate of 9.9% APR and the other 15.9% APR. Quite simply the higher your credit rating the lower the rate the merchant is prepared to offer you. So they may well not accept you for the lower rate but will for the higher rate. Look closely at the terms for the application, terms used will vary from good crediting rating required to excellent credit rating required. These terms really do match the merchants criteria for application.
The difference between good and excellent?
Well this will differ by supplier but generally excellent might cover:
Have a current credit card with a high credit limit. Have had a card for over 5 years. Never missed more than 2 payments. No large outstanding balances. Never defaulted on a loan or credit or had CCJ's.
Good may be:
Have existing loans, over draughts. Held a card for 3 years. No defaults.

UNSECURED PERSONAL LOANS FROM JUST 6.7% APR VARIABLE

Make sure you compare the charges made for handling fee's when looking for balance transfer deals.

DID YOU KNOW?
MasterCard SecureCode and Verified by Visa registrations are were in excess of 10 million by August 2007. These third party solutions to online fraud are set to become part of all online transactions. The systems work in tandem with merchant checkout systems and adds an extra layer of security by requiring a password to authorise the transaction. The merchant never sees that password, they only receive authorisation to proceed with the sale. The password is totally separate to the credit card and so is not compromised if the card is lost or stolen.
more did-you-know>>>

Latest news stories added:
Paypass launched in the UK in September. The system works very much like the current oyster cards and is basically a touch and go pay system. You simply pass your card over a reader and your purchase is authorised. There is no need to input your pin number. To address security concerns the system will only be used for items costing £10 or less and after every 5 transactions you will be required to use your PIN.

credit card news>>>

Tip:
0% for 6 months? What exactly does this mean? Pretty simple you would think, the first months of opening a new account includes this offer but this is not always the case. There are two ways this can apply. Take balance transfers for example, this could mean 0% applies to any balance transferred in the first 6 months bit it may also mean any balance transferred within a specified time frame qualifies for this rate for 6 months. You must make sure you read the small print or summary box to cover all ways this may apply. You may well see that the offer is for the first 60 days of your account activation and then 6 months applies to those balances. This is why you will often see an offer marked as life time.

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