22 September 2005
Fees for balance transfers on credit cards are back, according to a new report.
Research from This is Money says that 32 per cent of all cards now impose a balance transfer fee.
Card issuers are said to have changed heart because of the behaviour of so-called 'rate tarts' who switch cards for a better deal.
This is Money reckons that card switching costs the card industry up to £1 billion a year in lost revenue and administration fees.
Nick White, head of personal finance at financial comparison site uSwitch.com, told This is Money: "In time it will be very difficult to find a card with a balance transfer offer that doesn't have some sort of fee.
"Initially we predicted that by the end of the year fee free BT's [balance transfers] would not exist. It looks like it will take some time for that to happen but that is still my feeling."
However, 63 per cent of cards still offer free nought per cent interest, so it's worth shopping around for good balance transfer deals.
Use uSwitch.com's impartial calculator to compare all credit cards and find the card to suit your needs.