Had a conversation with Lloyds the other day.
I'd phoned about something else, but then they told me I was eligible for a loan. I need a new boiler, so asked about rates etc.
They said that as I have a £1,500 overdraft (which is interest free) I would have to pay that off with the loan money and have no overdraft.
I asked then what the interest rate was - some scuffling about there, and they told me more than 25%.
So I asked how much it would cost to pay off my overdraft and how long it would take - she said £2,000 would be £75 or so a month for 40 months (think this included not paying it for three or four months.)
She kept insisting that if I didn't do this, I'd never get rid of the overdraft. The boiler was forgotten at that point.
The thing is, that if I paid £75 per month off the overdraft (without it being a loan) it would only take 20 months. She wanted me to take it as a loan and take nearly twice as long!
I know some of you will say that I shouldn't have an interest free overdraft (can't think why anyone would say that, but still...) but it is part of the deal that I pay for each month, with the type of card I have.