This year Christmas could be tougher than usual due to the impact the credit crunch has had on the economy. 2008 has brought increased living costs which has effected many households making Christmas the last thing people want to worry about.
One solution to this problem is taking advantage of the great 0% deals on
credit cards currently available, helping you to spread your Christmas spend over a longer period of time.
It generally takes about a month to process a credit card application so now is the time to apply, giving you time to find the best card for you and receive it in time for your Christmas shopping.
This week's top credit card dealsIf your idea of getting a credit card is so that you are able to spread the cost of Christmas rather than paying for it all at once, consider looking at
credit cards that offer an interest-free period on purchases.
The Capital One Platinum -available through Which4u.co.uk - has the longest 0% purchase offer period on the market. With 0% on
balance transfers and purchases until November 1 2009, this card will give you a full year to spread your Christmas shopping bill. With 0% on balance transfers you are able to move any existing debt over to this card at a fee of 3%. This means that you will pay no interest on your current balance until November 2009. This 0% offer will change to a typical rate of 15.9% after the period has been reached.
What to remember
If you are planning to transfer an existing debt over to a new credit card, you must make sure the
0% on purchases and 0% on balance transfers are equal. If this is not the case you will find you accumulate interest on the original balance when the 0% period ends.
There are lots of cards currently available offering equal 0% periods on balance transfers & purchases, including
Bank of Scotland All In One and the
Halifax All In One Credit Cards both offering 0% on purchases and balance transfers for 10 months, with a balance transfer fee of 3% and a typical rate of 15.9%.
If you are not looking to transfer an existing balance then your main priority is finding a long-running 0% purchase period.
If you require longer than the offer period to repay your debt or have thought about taking out
loans, it may be worth considering a low rate credit card.
The
Capital One low rate card is fixed of 8.5% until August 2012, meaning that it will not increase before this date – unlike a variable rate that could increase at any time.
Cashback credit cards
If you are fortunate enough to be in the position to clear your balance in full each month, then you don't need to worry about 0% offers as you won't pay any interest. However, there are still a number of cards offering rewards every time you use them for you purchases.
One reward offer that can save you money is cashback.
Cashback Credit Cards offer you cashback on a percentage of your spending. This percentage can vary between products, but generally has an introductory period off a high rate.
For example, the
American Express Platinum Cashback Credit Card offers an introductory cashback rate of 5% every time you use it for the fist 3 months up to £200. After this period you can earn up to 1.5% cashback, with no limit to how much you can earn.
The more you spend on your Platinum Card, the more cashback you will recieve, and you can spend your cashback on whatever you want.
Alternatively, you could be better off choosing a card that offers loyalty/reward points. These can be useful if you frequently shop in a particular outlet such as Tesco, or Marks & Spencer, or if you are looking to accrue airmiles.
There are several types of credit card reward schemes such as air miles, gift vouchers, store vouchers and other goods and services. When used correctly, these cards than be very rewarding. An effective way of making the most of these cards is by using them for as many purchases as you can. These include things like grocery shopping, bills, fuel etc. This way you will be rewarded for things you currently buy anyway.
Compare
Reward cards at Which4u today and start earning rewards
Remember, you should only ever use these cards if you can pay off the full balance owed every month, because the interest you are charged on the outstanding debt will exceed the value of the reward.
Please Note
You may find your application is rejected due to a poor credit rating. If this is the case, don't make unnecessary credit applications because every time you are declined you will cause a further negative impact on your score, making it even harder to get accepted for credit in future.
Published by Sam Gooch