Credit card advice

[richie_few]

Ive never owned one, never wanted to but with the aditional insurance they offer on purchases and the fact that i buy alot of stuff on line ive decided to get one.

Any advice on which ones are best??

ive been on the usual sites that compare loans and credit cards but i would appreciate some advice from the PH collective.

Many thanks

[DocJock]

My best advice is pay off your balance in full every month.

In that case, they are all the same, ie interest free.

[_DeeJay_]

Not true. What about those that offer cash back schemes? Different limits?

I personally use an Egg Blue card, which offers a decent limit and cash back.

D

[Raify]

There's a good comparison of all the credit cards in the Sunday Times Money section. Get it tomorrow and see which one suits you.

>> Edited by Raify on Saturday 26th February 15:59

[jimothy]

Check out

www.fool.co.uk

They've got some good advice.

[rsvmilly]

A few resellers re-badge Accucards. Easy Card is one. You can customise it for a higher rate of cashback at the expense of a higher APR (not an issue if you clear the balance each month.)

[thegreatsoprendo]

American Express Blue - by far the coolest looking card around and the best cashback deal AFAIK - 1% or 0.5% cashback (depending on your spend, I think).

[birdbrain]

I change cards every time the 0% interest offer runs out. Never had any problems.

[Pies]

birdbrain said:

I change cards every time the 0% interest offer runs out. Never had any problems.

Be carefull thats all about to change,as the CC companies have wised up to this and will soon not offer a card to people who regularly change company

[mcflurry]

thegreatsoprendo said:

American Express Blue - by far the coolest looking card around and the best cashback deal AFAIK - 1% or 0.5% cashback (depending on your spend, I think).

Cool looking? Yes it is.
Widely accepted? Errrr....

[simpo two]

I have a Capital One 'Circle' card and get 1% cashback credited to my account annually. Worth having.

Rule One of credit cards - set up a direct debit so you pay it all off each month and can't forget. In other words, you're not using it so much to borrow, but for convenience.

[AJLintern]

I pay mine off completely each month, but what are these cash back schemes? Say you spend £500 per month on the card and there is 1% cash back, do you get £5 per month back?

[rsvmilly]

AJLintern said:

I pay mine off completely each month, but what are these cash back schemes? Say you spend £500 per month on the card and there is 1% cash back, do you get £5 per month back?

That's the gist of it. Money for nothing really.

[thegreatsoprendo]

mcflurry said:

thegreatsoprendo said: American Express Blue - by far the coolest looking card around and the best cashback deal AFAIK - 1% or 0.5% cashback (depending on your spend, I think). Cool looking? Yes it is. Widely accepted? Errrr....

I very rarely have trouble using mine. I've had no trouble using mine in any petrol stations, hotels, restaurants, supermarkets or high street shops. Where have you had trouble using yours?

[vixpy1]

thegreatsoprendo said:

I very rarely have trouble using mine. I've had no trouble using mine in any petrol stations, hotels, restaurants, supermarkets or high street shops. Where have you had trouble using yours?

I got rid of mine ages ago because i always had trouble. I also prefer for my customers not to use it, although accept it as a last resort.

They are only ever good if you have another card.

I'd go with a shellvisa card... Double plus points..

7000 air miles baby!

[condor]

I mainly use the Sainsburys visa card - but always pay off the balance in full....the interest rate is very bad if you don't.
They give you points on every purchase - and pay up monthly via their reward scheme called Nectar. On a typical £700 monthly bill - I get £5 back off my Sainsburys shopping bill

The cash-back schemes by other companies are usually once a year type jobs.

[pmanson]

condor said:

I mainly use the Sainsburys visa card - but always pay off the balance in full....the interest rate is very bad if you don't. They give you points on every purchase - and pay up monthly via their reward scheme called Nectar. On a typical £700 monthly bill - I get £5 back off my Sainsburys shopping bill The cash-back schemes by other companies are usually once a year type jobs.

I've got a Sainsburys visa. Signed up for 12 months 0% finance!

[condor]

pmanson said:

condor said: I mainly use the Sainsburys visa card - but always pay off the balance in full....the interest rate is very bad if you don't. They give you points on every purchase - and pay up monthly via their reward scheme called Nectar. On a typical £700 monthly bill - I get £5 back off my Sainsburys shopping bill The cash-back schemes by other companies are usually once a year type jobs. I've got a Sainsburys visa. Signed up for 12 months 0% finance!

I've had mine for about 5 years...and probably got that in the first place - when the offer period runs out you can get stung with high interest payments.
I've always paid mine off in full...and occassionally get the extra interest free period for 5 months for balance transfers every 18 months or so...which I've taken full use of.
It's still a good card to go for - re their reward scheme - if you pay it off each month ....and you shop their regularly

[pmanson]

condor said:

pmanson said: condor said: I mainly use the Sainsburys visa card - but always pay off the balance in full....the interest rate is very bad if you don't. They give you points on every purchase - and pay up monthly via their reward scheme called Nectar. On a typical £700 monthly bill - I get £5 back off my Sainsburys shopping bill The cash-back schemes by other companies are usually once a year type jobs. I've got a Sainsburys visa. Signed up for 12 months 0% finance! I've had mine for about 5 years...and probably got that in the first place - when the offer period runs out you can get stung with high interest payments. I've always paid mine off in full...and occassionally get the extra interest free period for 5 months for balance transfers every 18 months or so...which I've taken full use of. It's still a good card to go for - re their reward scheme - if you pay it off each month ....and you shop their regularly

I've really only got mine to use when I go to America at the end of next month. Just something useful to have in my pocket!

[GavinPearson]

I have a British Airways cridit card. I get an air mile for every dollar spent. Sometimes two miles for a dollar.
This has paid for quite a number of holidays.

My recommendation is to have a card that give you a benefit of real use. The interest rate should be irrelevent - only a fool doen't pay off the entire balance every month.