Tip of the week

Spare a few moments to check you have the correct credit card by running through a few golden rules. If you pay it off each month, you don't need attractive interest, so you should chose a card with additional incentives, such as cashback, loyalty points or air- miles.

If you borrow regularly opt for competitive interest, such as a zero card. But always check how much you pay after the introductory period finishes, because this can be high, and prove expensive in the long run.

Find out if your card levies fines for missed payments, late payments or exceeding borrowing limit. This is typically (pounds) 25, on top of any interest charges. Always check your credit card statements carefully, because they are very vulnerable to errors as plastic fraud is heading off out into hyper-space.

Finally, if you can't settle all your bill, then only pay the minimum as you will be charged interest on the entire statement, not on just the amount owing.

Copyright 2002 SMG Sunday Newspapers Ltd.
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