The Card With The Yellow Duck! (Argos Card)

Member Name: andy0304

Product:	Argos Card
Date:	20/10/04 (5857 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Reward Points, Special Offers, Buy Now Pay Later Options

Disadvantages: High APR

I first took out an Argos card a few years back as a bit of an emergency measure really. My mobile phone had broken and, yes it was that time of the month, a week before payday. Being the impatient person I am I wanted a new one, and I wanted it now! So after having a look through what at the time was quite a thin Argos catalogue, not like today’s one, I saw the details of their Argos card. So I figured that this would be a good idea.

After picking the phone I wanted, I can’t remember which one now; I went to the cash desk to apply for the card. The application process was a very simple one which involved me and the cashier filling out an application form to begin with. After we had entered all of the details he then had to make a phone call to the finance company and my application was accepted.

Because the member of staff was given the card number straight away over the phone I was able to use that card number to make an immediate purchase using that card. So I did, and bought my new mobile. Since then the application process has been improved and you can now apply either in store, by calling 0870-010-2103 or visiting www.argos.co.uk and clicking the Argos Card link at the very bottom of the page.

The card itself arrived within about 10 days which is pretty average for these sorts of things. Anyway I had already made my purchase. When you apply for the card you get the choice of 3 different card designs, one bright yellow with a duck on it, the second with a picture of to dolphins diving, and the third card is a boring plain blue card. Just to be different from other cards in my wallet I decided to go with the duck!

One of the worst things about ever taking out a store card is that you can pretty much guarantee that the Apr is always some ridiculous figure. The Argos card is no different, they currently charge 25.9%, which as far as these sort of cards go is not really too bad. Especially when you consider some other store cards such as; House Of Fraser 29.3%, Topshop 28%.

Other benefits of the Argos cards are that they are nearly always offering additional ‘Buy Now Pay Later’ offers. However as part of their current deals available you get two options of paying later. The first involves you paying nothing for 6 months, to qualify for this you have to spend £195 or more in an Argos store or via their website. To qualify for ‘pay nothing for 12 months,’ you have to be buying a selected item which is marked specifically so in their catalogue or website. However be prepared that unless you settle the balance at the end of these periods then you will pay the standard interest rate. On top of this they also offer Interest Free Credit, this is only available on selected items, again these are clearly marked in the catalogue.

If you do decide to apply for the one of these cards then during the application process you will be asked a question relating to promotional offers. If you answer yes to receiving these offers then enclosed with your statement and sent to you separately will be special offers. These offers come exclusively to Argos Card holders and some of them are well worth having, an example maybe that you receive a certain discount for spending over so much on your Argos Card during a certain period.

For those of you that have previously read my review on the Nectar card will know that BP stopped offering the reward points that you were able to spend in Argos. However Argos still offers these points. Although there are some restrictions on the products on which you can earn these points. Previously before BP stopped offering these points you could only spend in Argos, but they now have taken over this facility from BP and offer 5 points for every pound spent. Although I will say that at one point I thought I was not earning points. So after sending an email to their customer services they told me the points are only added to your account when you have cleared the payment of off the card that you earned them on. This process can become a bit complicated, and as I have yet to find anywhere in the leaflet that it explains this.

When it comes to paying the bill you receive a statement through the posts once a month as you do with other credit and store cards. With the Argos Card you are required to pay £2 or a minimum of 3% of the balance depending on which is the greater. To pay the bill you can do this in various ways. Firstly you can send a cheque to them through the post, take it into a bank to pay, do it via telephone banking or as I do pay it via online banking. This involves me searching for Argos Card in the list of store cards on my banks website and entering my card number. Once this is done the details are saved and then I can choose the amount I want to pay when I pay it every time without having to re-enter the card details. The advantage being there is no waiting for the post to get there.

Overall this is not a bad card, as far as store cards go. For me the best bit is the Pay Nothing options which I tend to make the most of when purchasing things such as appliances etc. I then get 6 months to pay for it without paying a bit of interest. So if you are looking for a store card or to buy something which you would like a bit of time to pay for then give this card a look at least.

For more information on this card you can visit www.argos.co.uk, call 0870-010-2103 or visit a store.

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