0% balance transfer credit card to pay debs

[PandaEyes2]

Hi,

Just wondering if anyone knows anything about transfer free credit cards to pay existing debts. I don't owe a huge amount of money.... £200 on Very, £200 to Next and about £50 somewhere else. It's getting silly trying to make minimum payments here and minimum payments to someone else. Was hoping to pay it all to a credit card and pay it all that way as I feel like I'm not really clearing the balance on any of it due to the interest and paying out different amounts for all.

But what am I looking for before I take out a credit card to do so?
I won't be making any additional purchases with it (it will be locked away so I can't). But I'm hoping by doing this it's easier to pay more and pay it off as whole if that all makes sense.

Any information is greatly appreciated

You need to read this: www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/balance-transfer-credit-cards/

@SilverHairedCat thank you. That's what I'm after but I just don't know what's a good deal and what isn't. I know that sounds really naive but I've not been in this position before to know the best thing to do regarding interest rates etc.

Would the CAB be able to talk me through the best option or waste of time?

Why don't you ask on the MSE forum? The CAB can be impossible to get appointments with, and they aren't financial advisors.

@SilverHairedCat thank you! I shall have a look

Someone may be along here shortly with more info, but the MSE forums are also a great source of info for financial stuff. Good luck!

If you're paying off Very, Next etc then it wouldn't be a balance transfer, you'll need 0% on purchases.

I don't think you can do balance transfers for store accounts, but you could transfer the direct debit to the new credit card and maybe see about them going out on the same day so you know where your up to each month and use the credit card to pay over minimum (as long as you can afford to pay it all back each month) probably need a 0% on purchases but I'm not entirely sure (my mum did the same thing a few years back but I can't remember what type of card she got)
There's lots of great advice from Martin Lewis (I think that's his name) about credit cards and the differences between the types so might be worth a Google, or ring your bank and speak to an advisor see what they recommend.

How much do you usually spend on food, petrol or other regular monthly shopping, OP?

It’s quite hard to find a way to balance transfer off store accounts.

So the easiest thing would be to get a 0% in PURCHASES card (these are often for 3-6 months), put your £200 regular monthly grocery spending on that, then use the £200 in your bank account to pay off Next entirely. Next month do the same for Very, etc. You can pay back the minimum on the 0% card until you’re then in a position to make bigger payments to it. Just don’t buy anything on it after the 0% in purchases runs out.

My outgoings aren't very high but neither is my income. I'm left with a little bit of money to "play" with but that's just from me making minimum payments to the credit that I owe.

I'm now starting if understand more about balance transfer cards. What I'm hoping to do is, use a credit card to pay for the credit I owe and then just pay monthly for the credit card (but I didn't explain that very well in my original post 🙈). Would just a standard credit card be better?

You can do that with a credit card that has a 0% deal on purchases

Everyone has been so helpful! I think I'll look into a credit card and pay it all that way.

One last thing, my latest statement on Next is showing £334 but I know I've made a few returns since then that will go into next months statement. So if I paid the £334 this month (using a credit card) I know they'll use the money I've paid as like pre paid credit but I don't know if can withdraw it back into my account (I'm hoping to pay as little as possible) so I don't really want the store credit so to speak. So am I best waiting another month and then get it all sorted. I couldn't be sure exactly how much my returns cost so I can't even pay what i think it'll be left with 😩. Never will I use credit again! Lesson learnt

Finally, how would I work out before taking out a credit card what their minimum monthly payment be? I know I can afford at least £50 a month, if not more but don't want to be caught out by it

Not a financial person but what I would do is get a 0% purchase card with a reasonable credit and time limit. Then use the card to settle all the other balances in full and pay it off within the new time limit. I’d suggest fully closing all your other accounts or at least cutting the cards up so you’ve got no temptation to use them again.

Your minimum payment often starts at £5 but increases based on the amount you owe. I don’t think you’ll be able to find out until you’ve actually opened the account.

Thank you everyone. You have all been so helpful and so not judgemental. I'm going to use my time today to have a little research and find a decent credit card with what I'm looking for

Good luck with it all! It’s a great feeling when you get everything cleared.