all that glitters is not gold (LLoydsTSB)

Member Name: flupen

Product:	LLoydsTSB
Date:	18/06/01 (918 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: a good emergency fund, high credit limit, one month when you dont have to pay each year

Disadvantages: high credit limit!!, low user fee

I have a gold card from Lloyds TSB and I must confess, I only got it because when I went into the bank for my “annual review”, the customer service girl really pushed it and told me how useful it would be. I just took her advice, as I have found Lloyds helpful over the years, especially when I have been in dire financial straits, so I duly signed all the paperwork and left.

The card arrived shortly afterwards. I had thought I would keep it for emergencies only. But like most people, this good intention did not last long and I ran up a bill of just over £1000. Determined to cut it down, I religiously paid more than the minimum 2% they insist on. Just as I was making great inroads into paying out the debt, they increased my credit limit without me even asking them!!!

I have now paid the card off, but have encountered another problem. they say that they have no annual fee – which is great. BUT, they do have a “low usage” fee which they charge you if you use your card less than ten times a year, or if you go for a year and incur no interest charges. The low usage fee is £10/ year.

This is obviously designed to ensure that you continue to use the card and pay them interest. But if you just plan a little, you can still have the benefits of a free card with the convenience of having it foe emergencies, without paying for it. You can either do what I do, which is to put my petrol on my card each time I fill up, then pay it off in full , thereby using the card more than 1o times a year, or you can buy something for less than a tenner, pay off the minimum payment ( which is a fiver), and then you will get a few pence of interest charged and pay it all off the following month.

I think its not a bad card. The monthly interest rate is currently 1.313%, and if you have a gold card, you can opt not to make a payment in January if you are short of cash after Christmas ( I think they offer this to everyone, not just m
e!). But they still charge you interest though!!

The statements arrive monthly, you can pay by cheque, at the bank, by phone banking or by internet banking. You get the usual “ up to 56 days interest free credit” depending when you make your purchases and I have found the customer services team to be really helpful when I have phoned them.

So, I think it’s a useful card to have – but I don’t like their tactics of offering you higher and higher credit limits, when you are obviously trying to clear your debt. But maybe I should be stronger and not take the card shopping!!

Summary: