Virgin Money Dual Credit Card review
- Representative example:
- When you spend £1,200 at a purchase rate of 24.9% (variable) p.a., your representative rate is 24.9% APR (variable).
- 0% interest on balance transfers
- 16 months
- 0% interest on purchases
- 13 months
- 0% interest on money transfers
- 12 months
Our verdict
This card has the longest 0% deals among Virgin Money's three "all round" credit cards.If you’re looking for a card that offers different types of 0% deals, this card is one of the best you can apply for with Virgin Money. It gets you its longest 0% period on purchases (13 months), plus 16 months on balance transfers and money transfers. Virgin Money offers two more “all round” credit cards, but this has the longest 0% deals.
More in general, the good thing about Virgin Money’s 0% cards is that there are a lot of them. Calculate how long it will take you to repay your old balance, your upcoming purchase or both, then just pick the card that comes closer to what you need. You can compare them all on this page.
On the downside, other credit card companies often have longer deals than Virgin, and the balance transfer and money transfer fees are also quite expensive. So, if you need to both pay back an old balance and spread out the cost of an upcoming purchase, you may want to compare other dual credit cards on the market.
Finally, spending with this card will allow you to earn cashback at selected retailers thanks to a scheme called Virgin Money Back. This is a comparatively rare reward among 0% credit cards.
Pros
- Customers report excellent customer service when dealing with Virgin Money
- Over a year of 0% interest to focus on reducing existing card debt
- Over a year to spread the cost of purchases
- A year of 0% interest on funds you transfer out from the card
- No annual fee
Cons
- Applicants with low credit scores are unlikely to be eligible
- Relatively high money transfer fee
- A punishing fee of 5% on cash withdrawals (you should avoid using a credit card to withdraw cash in any case)
Details
Product Overview
Issuer | Clydesdale Bank |
Network | Mastercard |
Annual/monthly fees | £0 |
Balance transfers | 0% for 16 months reverting to 24.9% |
Balance transfer fee | 3% for 2 months reverting to 5% |
Purchases | 0% for 13 months reverting to 24.9% |
Purchases interest-free period | Up to 50 days |
Money transfers | 0% for 12 months reverting to 26.9% |
Cash advances | 29.9% |
Minimum credit limit | £0 |
Maximum credit limit | Subject to status |
Additional cards available | 3 |
Additional Rewards Info | Enjoy exclusive offers and rewards on the Virgin Red app. Customers choosing a Man Utd card design will benefit from the United Reward scheme where each month customers can win a range of prizes including: matchday tickets, signed replica t-shirts, hospitality tickets and other exciting prizes. Earn up to 15% cashback with Virgin Money Cashback at selected major retailers through the app (offers allocated automatically). |
Potential costs | 7.2Great |
Doing its job | 6.5Standard |
Extras | 9.1Excellent |
Overall Finder Score | 7.4Great |
Fees and charges
Minimum monthly payment | 2% or £25 (whichever is greater) or 2 times the month's interest plus 2 times default charges due. |
Annual/monthly fees | £0 |
Balance transfer fee | 3% for 2 months reverting to 5% |
Money transfer fee | 4% for 12 months reverting to 5% |
Foreign usage charge (EU) | 2.99% |
Foreign usage charge (rest of world) | 2.99% |
Cash advance fee | 5% (min. £0) |
Late payment fee | £12 |
Replacement card fee | £0 |
Exceeding limit fee | £12 |
Additional card fee | £0 |
Dormancy fee | £0 |
Application Requirements
Minimum Age | 18 |
Availability | Available to new customers |
The Virgin Money Dual Credit Card is issued on the Mastercard network, so it's accepted at more than 50 million merchant locations across more than 210 countries and territories.
How does this card compare with similar products on the market?
Finder Score for credit cards
To make comparing even easier we came up with the Finder Score. Costs, perks and suitability across 120+ cards are all weighted and scaled to produce a score out of 10. The higher the score the better the card – simple.
Read the full methodologyRepayment options
You can make manual repayments through Virgin Money's app by logging in to your online banking or over the phone (0800 389 2875). Alternatively, you may wish to set up a direct debit.
A direct debit protects you from forgetting to make a repayment and either damaging your credit score, getting hit with a penalty fee (£12) or losing any promotional rates as a result.
You can arrange a direct debit for repayments when you apply for the credit card. The table below shows the options available.
Choose from the following direct debit options for your monthly repayments:
Minimum amount | |
---|---|
Fixed amount | |
Fixed percentage | |
Full amount |
How to apply
You can apply for this card online in around 15 minutes. Before you apply, check that you meet the eligibility requirements and have the information and documents you'll need to make the process as straightforward as possible. Don't forget to include the details of any other people you'd like to be cardholders.
Frequently asked questions
Can I withdraw cash using the Virgin Money Dual Credit Card?
Although it's possible, withdrawing cash from a credit card account is generally not a good idea, as "cash-like transactions" (such as withdrawing cash at an ATM, getting cashback at the till, spending at a casino or buying currency) often incur steep fees and/or higher rates of interest.
The cash advance fee on the Virgin Money Dual Credit Card is 5%.
The interest rate on this part of your balance will be 29.9%, which is 20% more than the standard purchase rate (chargeable from the day of the transaction – the card's usual "up to 50 days interest-free" grace period won't apply).
How much does it cost to use the Virgin Money Dual Credit Card abroad?
Non-sterling transactions are subject to a 2.99% charge (which is very standard). For example, if you spend 200 euros (£164.83), it'll cost you around £4.93 in fees.
What is the minimum payment on the Virgin Money Dual Credit Card?
Each month, you must pay at least 2% of your balance at that point or £25.00 – whichever of the 2 figures is greater. So if you had, say, £1,225.00 outstanding, you'd pay £25.00, and if you had £5,000.00 outstanding, you'd pay £100.00.
Paying only the minimum required amount each month is generally not advisable as it makes it much harder to get debt-free before that introductory 0% period expires.