It's good practice to shop around when looking for a credit card. Going for the first one that comes your way just because you recognise the name can be a costly mistake. There are also plenty of facilities available online that offer a comparison of all the cards currently available. With such a vast amount of financial information available freely on the internet, there's really no excuse for being ill informed when it comes to your finances.
If you're a new owner of a credit card then here are a few things that are worth remembering:
Avoid using
credit cards at ATM machines unless you really have no other choice. Each time you use your card you will be charged a percentage of the cash that you withdraw. Overtime this can prove to be very expensive.
Be organised with your finances and make sure that you pay at least the minimum payment each month and on time. You may incur a late charge if you miss the pay by date, which can be as much as £30. This practice is now considered illegal and it's possible to reclaim these fees from your bank or credit card company.
Take care of your
credit cards when in restaurants or other places where your card is taken away to be processed. There have numerous reports of unscrupulous workers swiping the details from
credit cards when they are out of sight of the card holders.
Carefully check your monthly incoming and outgoings of your account against what your minimum card re-payments will be. Avoid financial difficulties by avoiding taking on more than you can afford.
If you do find yourself getting into debt, then try to transfer your current balance to another credit card that has 0% balance transfer. This will help save you money and hopefully reduce some of your financial stress. Avoid temptation by destroying your card once the debt has been transferred to the 0% credit card.
