Virgin Money launches a 26-month balance transfer card
The balance transfer market heats up again with another provider upping its 0% period.
Virgin Money has extended the 0% period on balance transfers with its MasterCard card to 26 months, from 20 months.
The card has a transfer fee of 2.99%. And after the 0% interest period finishes you'll face an APR of 18.9%.
Providers in the balance transfer market are currently caught up in a fierce battle to improve their products and ramp up customer numbers.
This offer from Virgin is competitive but there are a few better deals on the market.
The deal
Virgin Money’s credit card not only offers more than two years of 0% interest on balance transfers, but also has six months 0% interest on new purchases.
When moving over a debt to the card you’ll be charged a fee of 2.99%, which works out at £59.80 for a balance of £2,000.
It’s a good deal and sits in third place when looking at the best buy tables. Barclaycard is firmly at the top with the longest ever deal of 27-months and a 3.5% fee. It’s followed by cards from NatWest and RBS which also have a 26-month period but a lower fee of 2.65%.
Our comparison charts show the full market but here I’ve picked out the five cheapest deals for long balance transfer deals.
|
Card |
0% period |
Balance transfer fee |
Fee paid on £2,000 transfer |
Representative APR after 0% period ends |
|
27 months |
3.5% |
£70 |
18.9% |
|
|
26 months |
2.65% |
£53 |
18.9% |
|
|
26 months |
2.65% |
£53 |
18.9% |
|
|
26 months |
2.99% |
£59.80 |
17.9% |
|
|
25 months |
2.4% |
£48 |
18.9% |
If you’d prefer to pay less for moving over a balance, there are cards for this, but the 0% period will also be shorter. The Halifax All in One Card, for example, has a much lower fee of 1% but the 0% period is only 15 months.
You can find out more in our article - The best 0% balance transfer credit cards.
Balance transfer warning
When picking a new card be careful not to get caught up in the headline rate and read the small print. You’ll need to get a card that is right for you – so if you’re making expensive interest payments a balance transfer card would work.
But, these cards only work if you pay the balance off during the 0% period. There are also strict rules on repaying the loan so you need to aim to clear the debt by the end of the balance transfer period.
Missing payments is a quick way to get the 0% period shortened, the interest rate increased or even receive a fine or get a black mark on your credit score.
> Fancy winning £50? We’ve got five £50 prizes in a draw for anyone who answers one of our Lovemoney surveys.
More on credit cards:
Lloyds cuts balance transfer fee to 1% on Platinum credit card
The best reward credit cards
Barclaycard bites back with longest 0% balance transfer card EVER!
The best credit cards to use on your travels
It's war! NatWest and RBS launch top 0% balance transfer credit card
MBNA launches first UK Etihad Guest air mile credit card
Comments
Be the first to comment
Do you want to comment on this article? You need to be signed in for this feature