Barclaycard extends Initial credit card 0% period to five months

Borrowers with a poor credit record can enjoy five months of 0% interest on purchases with the Barclaycard Initial credit card.

Barclaycard has extended the 0% period on its Initial Credit Card to five months for purchases.

The Initial card is designed for borrowers who are just starting out with credit or who want to improve their credit rating. You start with a credit limit of up to £1,200, and a representative APR of 34.9%. However your account is reviewed every 12 months, so that rate will be cut if you always pay on time and stick to your credit limit.

Generally 0% deals are only reserved for borrowers with good credit ratings, so it’s interesting that the last couple of weeks have seen two 0% deals launched for borrowers with poor credit records.

The Luma Credit Card

Earlier this month Luma revamped its MasterCard to include a three-month 0% period on purchases.

Luma says that its card is designed for borrowers with less-than-perfect credit histories, explaining that you’re more likely to be accepted if you have had some experience managing credit in the past, even if you’ve had County Court Judgments (CCJs) and defaults previously.

Again, there’s a hefty representative APR of 35.9% to be aware of if you don’t manage to clear your balance before the end of the 0% deal.

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Best cards if you have a poor credit record

There has been a quite a bit of movement of late if you are after a credit card but have a poor credit history, as Capital One has launched the Classic Preferred Platinum MasterCard. This card has the lowest representative APR around in terms of poor credit record cards, at 28.9%. You start with a credit limit of £200 to £1,500.

There are plenty of other credit cards to consider if your have a poor credit record. Read Best credit cards if you have a bad credit history.

I have a good but not great credit record!

The longest 0% deals, whether it’s on purchases or balance transfers, are unsurprisingly reserved for borrowers with the most spotless of credit records. And the cards we’ve looked at so far are for people with some significant black spots in their credit history.

But what if you fall somewhere in between? What if you have a good but not great credit record?

One card explicitly designed for borrowers that meet that description is the Barclaycard 18-month Platinum Visa. It boasts an 18-month 0% period on balance transfers (with a 2.9% transfer fee) and three-month 0% period on purchases. After that you’ll face a representative APR of 24.9%.

However, it's not suitable for people who've had CCJs or Individual Voluntary Arrangements (IVAs) in the past five years or who have been declared bankrupt or who have no credit history at all. You should also only have two other current credit commitments, such as other credit cards, loans, store credit or mobile phone contracts.

Compare credit builder credit cards with lovemoney.com

More on borrowing:

Best credit cards if you have a bad credit history

How to repair your credit rating

What REALLY damages your credit rating

The best 0% balance transfer credit cards

The best money transfer credit cards