Is Your UK Credit Card Doing You Credit?
With over 1,300 UK credit card providers, the credit card industry in the UK has mushroomed beyond all recognition in the last decade. Nonetheless, much like at any other time during which credit cards have been made available to us in Britain, once we select a credit card provider we rarely change. This does beg the question: ?Is your UK credit card doing you credit??.
Competitive interest rates
With the publication of the recent Office of Fair Trading report on excess interest and fess being charged by UK credit card issuer, many credit card providers in the UK are now having to re-examine the interest rates they charge. Consequently, it is possible to obtain extremely competitive (for credit card use) interest rates at the moment. Do be left behind, make sure your card provider is offering you the best rate of interest available in the market place.
Minimum fees
Some credit card providers charge their members an annual membership fee. Others charges what are known as hidden fees if they fail to make repayments on time, use an ATM to withdraw money, conduct transactions overseas, etc. However, with the cut-throat nature of the business at the moment, you should be able to make sure you get a provider willing to offer you a credit card without you having to incur these fees.
Make your credit card loyalty program work for you
9 out of every 10 UK credit card users now chooses to have a credit card provider that also offers a loyalty program that we like. However, more than 1 in 5 of us neglects to redeem our loyalty points in a timely manner. This is estimated to be a net cost to credit card users of ?50 per issued credit card. If you are not making maximum use of your loyalty program, then you are not making maximum use of your credit card and your credit card is not doing you credit!
In need, transfer your credit card balance
Credit card providers have caught on to the trick where credit card users transfer balances from one credit card provider to another in order to take advantage of special introductory promotions. However, if you?re on of the 6 out of every10 Britons? who carries over a credit card balance each month, and are stuck with paying high credit card interest, and have not investigated whether or not you might be able to reduce this burden by transferring your balance to a promotional program with a lower rate of interest, then you are not making maximum use of your credit card.
Be willing to look at the competition
Finally, whether you are credit card user who like to pay off their balance in a timely manner at the end of each credit card statement payment day, or one who carries over a debt on your credit card each month, the most important thing about using credit cards in the UK today is that you educate yourself about what is going on in the UK credit card industry and that you be willing to swap and change provider to meet your individual credit card needs. In short, similar to staying with the same employer throughout your working life, the days of staying with the same credit card provider throughout your adult life is a thing of the past.
Joe Kenny writes for the UK personal finance sites http://www.ukpersonalloanstore.co.uk and also http://www.cardguide.co.uk
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