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Credit cards might offer ‘introductory’ or ‘promotional’ interest rates.
The figures we’ve used are just for illustration.
A number of interest rates might apply to portions of your outstanding balance, varying based on transaction type, and whether a standard or introductory interest rate applies.
You can keep track by checking:
Have you been charged correctly?
If there’s a fee or charge on your Halifax credit card statement that you don’t expect, message us online. If you don’t bank online, give us a call or visit us in branch.
When introductory or promotional interest rates expire, the standard interest rates at that time will apply to any remaining balance. To keep any interest costs to a minimum, repay as much as you can before the expiry date.
Making the monthly minimum payment probably won’t be enough to clear your balance before any offers expiry date, especially if you’ve used your card for other things, so it’s a good idea to pay more whenever you can.
A number of interest rates might apply to portions of your outstanding balance.
To keep your interest costs to a minimum, payments you make are allocated to balances with the highest interest rates first, and to those which appear on your monthly statement, before those which will feature on future statements. That’s still the case, even if an introductory interest rate is expiring soon.
It’s useful to understand the way payments are allocated so you can work out how much of your balance will switch to a standard interest rate when any introductory interest rates expire.
On the transactions pages of your PDF or paper statement there is a of breakdown your balance and the interest rates that apply. If any of your balance has a promotional or introductory interest rate the expiry dates will also be shown here.
When you’re looking for a credit card, you might notice that some introductory interest rates are advertised as being available for ‘up to’ a certain number of months. That basically means you could be offered the advertised rate, but you could also be offered a shorter duration instead, based on an assessment of your personal circumstances.
Similarly, where a low interest rate is offered as standard with no fixed expiry date, the interest rate itself could vary.
When you apply for a credit card, lenders make decisions about the interest rate and credit limit to offer, based on a number of factors, including:
The better your financial position and credit score, the more likely it is that you’ll be offered a lower introductory or promotional interest rate.
Checking your eligibility
Many lenders, including Halifax, now provide an eligibility checker to help you to find and compare cards you’re likely to be accepted for, without impacting your credit rating.
Although you could be offered an introductory or promotional interest rate lasting for months into the future, it might only be valid on transactions made early on.
Offer conditions might vary between cards and transaction types, so when you’re comparing benefits, make sure you check over the details carefully.
If you manage your credit card account well, by keeping up with payments and staying within your credit limit, you might be offered other promotional interest rates in future.
We usually get in touch by email or post when promotional rates are available, but you might also see them advertised when you sign into Online Banking or the Mobile Banking app.
Terms and conditions will apply, so make sure you read the offer details carefully.
You can manage your contact preferences online, or call us to make changes. If you’ve told us you don’t want to receive marketing communications, we may still contact you with updates about your account, including when new rates are available, just so you don’t miss out.
If you need communications in other formats, such as large print, Braille or audio CD, please call us.
These often include 0% or lower than average interest rates which last for a fixed period.