UK Balance Transfer Credit Cards

Credit cards are pretty popular and in widespread use in the UK due to ease of use and the credit facilities it provides. UK credit cards are on offer from various banks and financial institutions and they offer a number of benefits which vary from one UK credit card to another (though there are a lot of common benefits too which are the same across various UK credit cards).

Something peculiar to the UK credit card market (perhaps due to the fierce competition) various UK credit card suppliers offer attractive balance transfer schemes. There are some UK credit cards that offer 0% balance transfer for 9 months and there are others that offer 0% for 6 months. Now if you have a balance on your credit card that you are paying off over a few months, you would obviously rather prefer to pay 0% interest instead of 18%. This is why balance transfer credit cards are so attractive.

However, the catch here is that these UK card credit suppliers differ on their standard APR rate i.e. the APR rate which comes into effect after the expiry of the introductory 0% balance transfer offer. Further there are some UK credit cards that do not offer a 0% balance transfer but instead offer a better standard rate (APR) throughout. Some UK credit card suppliers combine 0% offers with accrual of points on a rewards programme. Another popular thing among UK credit cards is to combine cash back offers with balance transfers. Then there are some very attractive offers which give 0% not only on balance transfers but also on Purchases (for a short period like 5 month or so). You also have a few UK credit cards that can be procured by people with a bad credit history too (of course, the decision on approval of such a credit card application will lie with the credit card supplier).

So what do you need to do if you want to transfer your credit card balance to another UK credit card?

• You need to take stock of your current financial situation and determine if a period of 6 months, 9 months or even 12 months would be sufficient for you to fully pay back the balance on your UK credit card. If the answer is yes, then you are safe to get the UK credit card that offers 0% balance transfer for this period even if the APR is higher than normal. Keep in mind that when your balance is paid off and you start spending on this credit card, you will need to pay off your balance every month, otherwise you will get stuck with a high interest rate.



• If you think that 9 months is not sufficient to pay back the debt on your UK credit card, then you should look to strike a balance between the zero APR period and the standard APR rate. Calculate how long it will take you to pay off your balance and work out which credit card will be cheapest over that period. Don't forget to look at UK balance transfer credit cards that offer a low APR for the life of the balance - sometimes they will work out cheaper.

These are the basic aspects of considering a UK balance transfer credit card. Other benefits like rewards, cashback, etc are secondary considerations and should be seen as an extra bonus.