Balance Transfer Credit Cards 27 months 0%, 3.5% fee

Cheap balance transfer deals are designed to make lenders money when you fail to pay them off before the low rate ends, or forget to switch the debt again to another card. That's because at that point, the interest rate jumps massively, to a standard 15%-20% APR.

Your aim should always be to clear the amount you transferred over in the cheap period, minimising the interest. If that's not possible, next best is to shift again before the intro deal comes to an end - or even back to the original card you shifted the debt from, if that's cheaper than the go-to rate on the balance transfer card.

To see the cost of paying off different cards over varying time periods, use our Which Card Is Cheapest? calculator.

Just because you've grabbed a 0% deal, that DOESN'T mean you can get away with paying nothing. You must keep up with monthly payments of at least the minimum amount, or some card providers will snatch back the deal, and leave you on an expensive rate.

Of course, your aim should be to pay more than the minimum - unless you've pricey debts elsewhere, in which case focus max repayments on them. Minimum payments are designed to make debts last as long as possible - see tips to beat this in Danger: Minimum Repayments.

Credit cards let you do a number of different things such as spend, shift balances or withdraw cash. Banks must now put any repayments towards the most expensive debts first. This means spending on a balance transfer card isn't as bad it was before rules changed in 2011, but it can still cost you if you're not careful.

Spend on a 0% balance transfer card and any repayments will go towards the spending first. To avoid interest, you'll have to repay the full amount you spend each month. This could get complex, so if you need to make new purchases, it's best to get a separate 0% Spending Card.

Most top balance transfer deals are for new cardholders, and require the debt to be shifted within a couple of months of opening the card account for a fee of around 3%.

Yet if you have other credit cards open, speaking to the provider can save you applying for a new one. Ask if it has any special balance transfer deals for existing customers. If it does and it's cheap, you could shift debt there instead, or even to complement a new 0% deal elsewhere.

Full details in the Credit Card Shuffle guide.

Lenders use credit scoring to decide whether to loan out money - this is a combination of checking your credit reference file, looking at your history with that company, and some of your history with other lenders.

Credit scoring doesn't just dictate what products you'll receive, but also how good the ones you actually get are. For example, most loan rates are representative , meaning the APR depends on your credit score.

So with credit cards, if your score's too low for the sexy deal you wanted, you might get accepted but not get the headline offer that you applied for.

0% deals used to be the preserve of those with a sparkling credit history. While for the top cards this can still be true (our eligibility checker will help cut through the fog), some specialist cards exist which are aimed at those with chequered pasts.

If you've missed payments, or even had some CCJs or defaults, you now aren't frozen out of the balance transfer market. If this sounds like you, try reading Credit Cards for Bad Credit guide.

Many credit card lenders use 'representative' offers. By law, the offer they advertise has to be given to at least 51% of people who are accepted for the card. The rest can be accepted and given a higher APR - and with balance transfer credit cards, often a shorter length of time at the 0% rate.

It's worth being aware that you might not get the headline rate advertised if you've less than perfect credit.

The current top 0% deals are huge. Switch debt to the top 0% card and even if you end up on the APR, if you can't repay in full or switch again (though you should always aim to), it can still beat the best long term deals, if you don't do any extra spending on it. To help find the cheapest route, use the Which Card Is Cheapest? calculator.

The exception is if you get a higher APR - 49% of people could get a rate higher than the representative APR advertised - particularly if your credit rating's a bit shabby. If so, 'life of balance' deals - where the rate advertised is the rate all accepted customers get - become better much sooner.

Long-term, low rate plastic can beat personal loans, as they allow the flexibility of paying off more when you can afford it. However, you must be disciplined for this to work - if you're less organised, look at the top Cheap Loans.

A. When you apply for the new card, it will usually include a 'do you want to transfer debts from other cards?' section. In this, you just put in the details of the other cards; and if you're successful getting the new card, it will pay them off.

Even if you don't do it at initial application, most cards normally allow you to do a transfer within a set period of getting the card (usually 30-90 days). All you need to do is call up and send the details of your other cards.

A. No. These are totally separate things. Unlike loans, with credit cards you choose how much you repay each month, though every card has a set minimum monthly repayment. The interest rate is the cost of the debt. For example, a rate of 20% on £1,000 means it costs you £200 per year (see the Interest Rates guide for more).

This does mean in some circumstances you may shift debt to a new cheaper card, but if it has a higher minimum, you'll need to pay more each month. If that may be unaffordable, ensure you check the minimum repayments before switching.

A. As much as you can - even 0% debt is still debt. The more you repay, the faster the debt disappears. Especially important is that you try to pay more than the set minimum. For more on that and tips on how to do it, read the Minimum Repayments: Danger! guide.

A. The cheaper the interest rate, the more of your repayment goes towards clearing what you owe rather than servicing the interest. This means you'll be debt-free more quickly and will have to pay less in total to do it.

A. Move what you can, then if needed, simply apply for another provider's card and move the rest there. Don't leave it unused, it's already on your credit file so you may as well use it. Read the Credit Card Limit: Didn't get what you wanted? guide.

A. If you've regularly used cards to balance transfer in the past, it's likely you'll have held cards from many of the top pick providers in this guide. Each has its own rules, but many card providers will automatically reject you if you already have one of their products, or had one in the past 12 to 18 months.

To help, where possible we've listed alternative cards, in case you aren't eligible for the top picks. To improve your chances of getting the best deal, cancel any cards you have open but don't need. Read more in the Should I Cancel Old Cards? guide.

A. As many times as you like. You can balance transfer from card, to card, to card. The only limiting factor is whether your credit score is high enough to be accepted for new cards.

A. The best time to apply is roughly six weeks before your current 0% deal ends. This gives you enough time to apply, find out if you've got the card, and shift the debt, while your other card is still at 0%. Use the Tart Alert to remind you when.

A. Multiple applications, especially close together, and high outstanding debts, even at 0%, diminish your ability to get competitive credit. The most important preventative measure is to spread card applications out.

Do this and most people with reasonable income and no missed payments should be able to tart without worry, though occasionally some get scored out. Read the Credit Ratings guide.

A. The basic answer is to always err on the side of caution. However, if a card has a 0% deal for purchases and balance transfers that lasts exactly the same length of time, then it's fine to spend on. However if they're not identical, eg, 0% for purchases for 3 months and 0% on balance transfers for a year, it's best not to do it.

A. This depends on the specific card, and it varies. Sometimes you will pay interest on the fee, yet it's arranged so your first monthly repayment pays all of it off, so the interest is negligible.

A. This is almost impossible to answer - you're credit scored depending on that lender's wish-list for a profitable customer. So it all depends on how well you fit what it wants. In general, though, Barclaycard has a reputation for lower credit limits and MBNA higher limits.

A. Lenders choose on their wish-list for profitable customers - it's not all about risk. Read the Credit Scoring guide for a full explanation. Of course, you should check for errors on your credit file, but hard and fast reasons are difficult to come by. It may be as bizarre as a lender choosing to give credit cards to customers it's more likely to be able to flog a mortgage to.

A. Some cards operate a rate for risk policy.

A. If you want to get a little advanced, it's worth considering whether the card offers existing customer balance transfer deals (as explained in the Credit Card Shuffle guide). This is a useful option for long-term tarts, as it offsets the risk of being rejected due to a poor credit score.

The best picks for this are as follows:

• MBNA card range: While most of these cards have a balance transfer fee, MBNA tends to repeatedly offer good deals to existing customers, often at 0%, though you need to call and ask. If you're adopting this strategy, it may be worth taking the hit of a fee to keep this facility open. Main cards are MBNA and Virgin.
• Barclaycard. Barclaycard allows existing customers to shift debts to it at 7.9% life of balance (until all the debt is repaid), thus giving you a back-up option of long-term cheap debt if necessary. Or you can transfer to existing credit cards, as sometimes there are hidden offers for cheap rates. For more info, see the Credit Card Shuffle guide.

A. If it's a general question about how balance transfers work, then please ask it here and we'll endeavour to include it in the guide. If it's a specific question about your situation or a product, then please use the question/discussion link which will take you to the forum. There, you can chat about it with other MoneySavers.