Adverse Credit Credit Cards

Posted by Nick Niesen on October 29th, 2010

As their very name suggests, adverse credit credit cards are an option available to those who have a bad credit history and, thus, credit rating.

Why you may want to apply

If you do happen to have a bad credit rating, then there is a strong likelihood that you?ll be successful when applying for one of these credit cards where you have been turned down when applying to the mainstream card issuers.

Moreover, if you do have a bad credit rating, then applying for adverse credit credit cards can help you to re-establish you credit rating quicker ? provided, of course, that you manage the card correctly and pay your bills on time!

How to apply

You can apply either Online or in the more traditional method of sending off an application form. Normally it will take a couple of days for the issuer to decide your creditworthiness. Having said that, provided your credit rating is not totally destroyed you should be successful in your application.

What will the credit limit be

Don?t get too excited, although, like all mainstream cards, there is no set card limit, depending instead on your ability to repay the limit balance that may be outstanding, one of the ways in which adverse credit credit card issuers limit their exposure is to set the card limit below that which you may otherwise have received with a successful application to a mainstream issuer. That said, provided you keep a clean record and pay all of your bills in a timely manner, there is no reason why your limit should not go up over time as you build trust between you and the provider.

What?s the interest rate

Along with the credit limit, the interest rate is one of the factors that puts most people off applying for this type of card. In most cases the APR is higher than that offered by competing cards and if you were merely comparing credit cards then it would look unattractive. Nonetheless, the best interest rate offered by the card is the same as that with any other card ? 0%. So, if you pay off the balance in full each month, and with the lower limit this should be easier to do, the card will cost you nothing, while at the same time helping to rehabilitate your credit rating and history.

Adverse credit credit cards are an easily affordable option of getting your financial health back on track. It is important, however, that you try and repay as much of the balance as you can possibly repay each month and that you never fail to miss a repayment date ? otherwise this type of card can very quickly turn into an expensive and bad experience!