What to do with UK banks & cards?
Feb 24th 2004, 2:45 am
#1
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
Joined: Feb 2004
Location: Leicestershire, UK
Posts: 48
What to do with UK banks & cards?
Hi,
We've been in Oz for four months now and are expecting to "upgrade" our visas soon so we can stay for much longer! At the moment we have a couple of Oz bank accounts (HSBC - for transferring cash from the UK, and National - for day-to-day use).
Meanwhile, back in Blighty we have more bank accounts, credit cards and outstanding loans than you can shake a stick at and certainly more than we can afford to pay off at the moment.
Any advice on what to do with these UK-based organisations if we end up staying in Oz? Will they even allow us to give an overseas address as our main one? And how easy is it to make regular payments towards UK cards and loans from an Australian bank account?
I'm assuming it's not a sensible option to go AWOL and just stop making the payments!
We've been in Oz for four months now and are expecting to "upgrade" our visas soon so we can stay for much longer! At the moment we have a couple of Oz bank accounts (HSBC - for transferring cash from the UK, and National - for day-to-day use).
Meanwhile, back in Blighty we have more bank accounts, credit cards and outstanding loans than you can shake a stick at and certainly more than we can afford to pay off at the moment.
Any advice on what to do with these UK-based organisations if we end up staying in Oz? Will they even allow us to give an overseas address as our main one? And how easy is it to make regular payments towards UK cards and loans from an Australian bank account?
I'm assuming it's not a sensible option to go AWOL and just stop making the payments!
Feb 24th 2004, 2:51 am
#2
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Joined: Feb 2003
Location: Brisvegas
Posts: 3,506
Re: What to do with UK banks & cards?
Keep 'em if you need them. There should be no problem giving Oz addresses as I have done with mine for over a year. If you maintain a UK bank account with internet banking it should be quite easy to send money to it (costs me about $28 a time) and pay your UK bills, presumably your HSBC account can do this, I still foolishly use CBA.
If struggling with UK debt, phone them all up and tell them, they will be kinder to you than waiting after months of non-payment. You may even be able to reschedule your loans over longer periods if you explain your change of circumstances.
One thing to beware, if you run a UK bank overdraft facility you may wish to contnue to let them think you are in UK, they may suddenly cancel your facility otherwise.
Also don't go AWOL, don't ruin your credit record
If struggling with UK debt, phone them all up and tell them, they will be kinder to you than waiting after months of non-payment. You may even be able to reschedule your loans over longer periods if you explain your change of circumstances.
One thing to beware, if you run a UK bank overdraft facility you may wish to contnue to let them think you are in UK, they may suddenly cancel your facility otherwise.
Also don't go AWOL, don't ruin your credit record
Feb 24th 2004, 2:53 am
#3
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Feb 2003
Location: Perth
Posts: 495
I just kept mine,
Both the credit card and the bank were happy enough to take an overseas address.
I currently use the UK account to pay any card bills but obviously I don't put much on the UK card. The odd purchase (occasional rather than "odd"
) will keep the card active.
Both the credit card and the bank were happy enough to take an overseas address.
I currently use the UK account to pay any card bills but obviously I don't put much on the UK card. The odd purchase (occasional rather than "odd"
) will keep the card active.
Feb 24th 2004, 2:54 am
#4
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 11,149
I have kept them all at my parents addess for e-commerce reasons.
All I can suggest is to pay off the higher interest accounts first to speed up pay off. If you can balance transfer from the higher interest rate credit cards to the lower rate card then do so.
Try and move large lump sums rather than small monthly pay offs because of the fixed transaction fees.
Keep your UK current account to channel your funds to and pay off the other debts using internet banking.
All I can suggest is to pay off the higher interest accounts first to speed up pay off. If you can balance transfer from the higher interest rate credit cards to the lower rate card then do so.
Try and move large lump sums rather than small monthly pay offs because of the fixed transaction fees.
Keep your UK current account to channel your funds to and pay off the other debts using internet banking.
Feb 24th 2004, 5:00 am
#5
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
Joined: Feb 2004
Location: Leicestershire, UK
Posts: 48
Thanks for all this good advice, folks. Main thing it's good to know is that I can maintain the accounts with a foreign address.
Incidentally, I'm with First Direct in the UK, which is great for several reasons:
The bit about not making payments was tongue in cheek! I'm sure credit agencies act globally these days and the last people you want to piss off are the likes of Visa and Mastercard!
Incidentally, I'm with First Direct in the UK, which is great for several reasons:
- You can contact them at any time of the day or night to transact business
- They have a "normal" UK phone number (i.e. not 0800 etc) for international callers
- They are part of HSBC, so charges for transferring funds to and from an Aussie HSBC account are low
- You can access you account online and make payments, etc.
The bit about not making payments was tongue in cheek! I'm sure credit agencies act globally these days and the last people you want to piss off are the likes of Visa and Mastercard!
