If you’ve got expenditure in the pipeline that you can’t pay off immediately, put it on a 0% new purchases credit card.
There are a number of competitive cards out there that will allow you to avoid interest for up to 14 months. With the sky high APRs charged on most credit cards these days, the savings will be significant.
Imagine you have £2,500 expenditure coming up, which will take you a year to pay off. Using a top new purchases credit card, you would be able to pay it off at no extra cost.
However, if you were to put that spend on your old credit card, which charges the average market APR of 17%, you would have racked up £236 in interest on top of the original debt.
So what cards are available to you?
If you are in the market for a new purchases credit card, there are two cards that stand head and shoulders above the rest.
The first is the Capital One Platinum Card, which offers a spectacular 14 months interest free* on new purchases. It also comes with a similar offer on balance transfers, and an APR of 12.9% - far lower than the average.
The catch is you’re going to need an extremely impressive credit rating to qualify for this card (read more about your credit rating and how to improve it here).
If you’re concerned your credit rating might not be up to scratch, you may want to consider the HSBC credit card. This offers 12 months interest free on new purchases with a 15.9% APR*.
Need a balance transfer instead?
Of course not all expenditure is planned, so you may not have had a chance to apply for a new purchase credit card and had to put the debt on your interest earning card instead. If so, you should choose a balance transfer credit card instead (Read more about this here).
*Information correct at time of publication (17/07/2008)
