Payday Loan compared side by side

Barclaycard have introduced a brand new balance transfer deal that has already got people talking. The fantastic offer includes 18 months with a 0% interest rate. This is set to benefit those who have quite a large debt on their existing credit card. The deal is only available to new customers and it also offers a great 3 months interest free on purchases. After that has run out the average interest rate will be 16.9%.

Card providers have been recently competing against each other to gain new customers. It seems that these new bad credit credit cards offered by Barclays is set to be a winner. Up until now, Nationwide were leading with a 17th month balance transfer deal. The head of credit cards at confused.com, Chris Griffiths, states:

“They matched the 17 month 0% period offered by Barclaycard but with a lower representative APR at 15.9% compared to Barclaycard’s 16.9%. Barclaycard responded immediately by launching their 18 month deal, which includes a £20 discount from the balance transfer fee when new customers transfer £3,000 or more during February.”

While there is a 0% interest free offer for 18 months, there will still be a fee of 2.9% to move your debt onto the card. The £20 discount will be given against this fee if you transfer more than £3,000 in February.

The Director of Marketing at creditchoices.co.uk, Chris Eagle, states:

“If you have a pile of credit card debt that you are struggling to get rid of – and on which you are paying huge interest – then seriously consider transferring it to this card. If you do, you will not have to pay any interest on it until July 2012.”

However, what the deal doesn’t tell you is that for the Barclaycard Platinum you will need to meet a variety of terms and conditions. Platinum cards usually require you to earn a minimum salary and they come with a lot of benefits. Therefore before you rush to sign up for this great deal, you will need to make sure that you qualify. Existing Barclaycard customers cannot take advantage of this deal. Instead you will have to shop around for other great balance transfer deals.

This new offer is bound to draw in a lot of new customers. Large amounts of credit card debt will rack up a lot of interest. Often consumers end up paying just the interest each month, without actually touching their debt. When you move to a balance transfer 0% deal, it enables you to focus purely on the debt.

Chris Eagle also goes on to say:

“Remember that to make the most of these balance transfer cards you should try to pay off all of your debt before the interest-free period comes to an end. To get the right one for you, compare the different 0% balance transfer deals available today”.

If you do manage to get accepted for the Barclaycard platinum then you will also be able to take part in the rewards scheme. You will earn points for everything that you spend.