 |
|
||
|
|
|
Credit Card Fees IncreaseBest credit cards do not seem to exist anymore in the UK. There are many issues currently with the credit card companies trying to recoup their losses through new acts being created as well as the loss of consumers being able to pay back their balances. The fees for credit cards have jumped considerably in the last several weeks. It seems that in an effort to get more income from consumers, credit card companies have forgotten to be the best credit cards and have increased over 30 fees since September. It seems that the most important impact on credit cards has to do with withdrawing money from their credit card accounts. The individuals at Moneyfacts have determined that the consumers wallets are being hit the hardest with fees. Alliance and Leicester’s fees for withdrawing cash have increased more than a .05%. In fact they have increased their fees for withdrawing cash from 2.25% to 3%. This means that an individual withdrawing an amount of ₤200 has now forfeit a fee of ₤6. This doesn’t say much for best credit cards, when consumers are trying to find the lowest fees possible. There are several other lenders who have been creating hikes for withdrawing and other fees including Bank of Scotland, Halifax, Co-operative Bank, Nationwide and Yorkshire Building Society. If, you once thought these were the best credit cards to have you may want to think again. Interest rates have also seen an increase as well. The Smile current account holders of Gold Visa Card have seen an increase in interest rates from 14.9% to 23.9%. Yorkshire Building Society has increased the Classic Card from 15.4% to 23.9% as well. It seems that the best credit cards are no longer an option for many individuals with these weighty increases. There is more news regarding the increase of fees. There have been many deals out there on the internet for best credit cards regarding 0% balance transfers; however all of this has been changing with the fees of those 0% balance transfers. Most companies that offered 2% or 2.25% for balance transfer fees have increased them to 2.5% and 3% respectively. Such banks as Natwest, Royal Bank of Scotland, and Tesco Personal Finance are just a few of the big name lenders who have done this in the last few weeks. The last fee hike that has sent consumers into a tail spin is the commissions applied to foreign transactions. It seems that Bank of Scotland, Britannia Building society, Intelligent Finance, the AA, and Amazon have all upped the commission rate from 2.75% to 2.95%. This makes it difficult for someone to use their credit card abroad. It seems that banks have felt it necessary to raise the fees based on consumers having trouble paying more than the minimal balance. The credit card companies have been trying to find ways to refill their pockets. While it may seem there is nothing you can do there are many ways to avoid the fees such as not withdrawing cash with a credit card. Channelregister.co.uk |