Shoppers urged to get their Christmas credit cards now as applications enter peak week
0% purchase cards offer up to 30 months interest free shopping
With only six weeks left until Christmas and the Black Friday sales likely to start earlier than ever this year, GoCompare Money is urging shoppers to get their Christmas credit cards sorted now.
It’s the peak week* for credit card applications and time is running out for festive shoppers to apply and spread the cost of Christmas with a 0% purchase credit card.
Provided they keep up with the minimum repayments, shoppers using a 0% purchase credit card won’t have to pay any interest on purchases for up to 30 months. However, customers who miss a payment will forfeit the interest-free period and will be charged interest on their outstanding balance.
The longest 0% purchase credit card deal is currently 30 months.
|
0% Purchases Credit Cards with the longest interest-free periods |
0% purchase period (months) |
Thereafter - representative APR (variable) |
|
Santander All in One Credit Card * |
30 |
21.7% |
|
Sainsbury’s Bank Dual Offer Credit Card |
29 |
19.9% |
|
Barclaycard Platinum Balance Transfer and Purchase Credit Card |
27 |
19.9% |
|
Sainsbury’s Bank Purchase Credit Card |
27 |
20.9% |
|
M&S Shopping Plus Offer Credit Card |
25 |
19.9% |
*annual fee of £36 applies
Matt Sanders, GoCompare Money’s credit card spokesman commented, “For many people, Christmas is one of the most expensive times of the year. A 0% purchase credit card can be an effective way of spreading the cost – so long as you don’t spend more than you can afford to repay.
“Interest-free purchase cards offer 0% interest on new purchases for a set period. If you don’t manage to clear the card before the 0% period expires you’ll be charged interest on the outstanding debt. But, if you keep up with your monthly repayments and clear the debt within the interest-free period, all your payments go towards repaying the balance - not in interest to the card provider.”
Matt Sanders continued, “Interest-free purchase periods vary between 3 and 30 months, so people need to shop around to find the most suitable card for their circumstances. A really long interest-free period may not be the right solution if you are confident you can pay off Christmas in 6 months. It is also a good idea to do a smart credit search, as not all credit card deals will be available to everyone. This allows you to look at a range of products and see which offers are likely to be available to you, without adversely impacting your credit report.
“Once you’ve been approved for a new credit card, it typically takes around 10 working days for it to arrive through the post, longer during busy times. So, to maximum the benefit of an interest-free card for Christmas shopping, people need to apply for a card sooner rather than later.”
Click here for more information on the different types of credit cards visit: https://www.gocompare.com/credit-cards/
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For further information please contact:
Anders Nilsson or Martyn John or Louisa Marsden at GoCompare on 01633 654 054 / 01633 654 725 / 01633 655 132
Gordon, Jason or Liz at MAW Communications on 01603 505 845
Keep up-to-date with GoCompare on Twitter; @GoCompare
Notes to editors
*According to GoCompare data from January-December 2017, showing the level of credit card applications throughout the year compared to the month leading up to Christmas.
About GoCompare
GoCompare is a comparison website that enables people to compare the costs and features of a wide variety of insurance policies, financial products and energy tariffs.
GoCompare does not charge people to use its services, and it does not accept advertising or sponsored listings, so all product comparisons are unbiased. GoCompare makes its money through fees paid by the providers of products that appear on its various comparison services when a customer buys through the site.
GoCompare does not sell its customers’ data.
When it launched in 2006, it was the first comparison site to focus on displaying policy details rather than just listing prices, with the aim of helping people to make better-informed decisions when buying their insurance. GoCompare has remained dedicated to helping people choose the most appropriate products rather than just the cheapest, and has teamed up with Defaqto, the independent financial researcher, to integrate additional policy information into a number of its insurance comparison services. This allows people to compare up to an extra 30 features of cover.
GoCompare is the only comparison website to be invited to join the British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA) and is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
For more information visit www.gocompare.com and www.gocomparegroup.com