Halifax Bank of Scotland
The Halifax, now officially known as Halifax Bank of Scotland Group (HBOS) is one of the UK’s largest High Street retail banks and they offer a wide range of credit cards currently with some of the UK’s most competitive deals.
Now dominating some of the top slots in our balance transfer and purchases credit card tables, Halifax credit cards have recently burst back onto the scene with some revised offers which make their portfolio worth considering if you’re changing cards.
If you are shopping around, these deals are not available in Halifax’s High Street branches so make sure you apply online here today!
Compare Halifax Credit Cards
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Halifax Balance Transfer Credit Card | 0% on balance transfers up to £3000 for 22 months, & on purchases for 3 months | 3.5% | 17.9% APR |
Great 0% balance transfer offer Deals on travel, entertainment & shopping Move MBNA, Virgin & Barclaycard balances
No transfers from other HBOS cards |
Halifax 20 month Balance Transfer Credit Card | 0% on balance transfers for 20 months, 0% on purchases for 3 months | 3% | 16.9% |
Good balance transfer offer Deals on travel, entertainment & shopping Move MBNA, Virgin & Barclaycard balances No transfers from other HBOS cards |
Halifax All in One Credit Card | 0% on balance transfers and purchases for 15 months | 3% min. £3 | 17.9% APR |
Deals on travel, entertainment & shopping Great all round package 15/15 No transfers from other HBOS cards |
Bank of Scotland Advantage Credit Card | 0% on balance transfers & purchases for 13 months | 3% min. £3 | 17.9% APR |
Excellent 13/13 'dual' package Deals on shopping, entertainment & travel No transfers from other HBOS cards Only available to Bank of Scotland customers |
Bank of Scotland All in One Credit Card | 0% on balance transfers and purchases for 12 months | 3% min. £3 | 17.9% APR |
Great balance transfer and purchases offer Complete all round package Deals on travel, entertainment & shopping No transfers from other HBOS cardsHalifax Credit Card Guide
The Halifax has recently repackaged it’s credit card products and after many months in the doldrums with some fairly average offerings, they now have some of the best credit card deals on the market. The repackaged Halifax credit cards have come to the market with a more open policy of Risk Based Pricing which will suit those with a good credit record and high credit score. However this means that many applicants without a perfect credit record may not be offered the Halifax’s headline deals.
Under the revised credit card rules laid down by the Consumer Credit Directive, Halifax only has to offer its best advertised deal (on each product) to a minimum of 51% of applicants. This means nearly half can be offered a lesser deal. On their current longest balance transfer deal of 22 months interest free, their best advertised rate is 17.9% APR. But you could be offered 21.9% APR or 23.9% APR if your credit profile is substandard, and the Terms and Conditions also state that under these circumstances you may only be offered a 13 or 18 months 0% promotional period.
Although credit card offers have been packaged this way by the Halifax (and many other credit card issuers) for some time its only more recently that this information has become openly available. The problem is of course that until you apply and are accepted, you won’t know what actual deal you will be offered.
Halifax credit cards all feature
- Internet shopping fraud protection
- Online card and account management
- Regular retail, travel and entertainment deals and offers
- 24 hour customer support
- Secondary cards where applicable
- No annual fees
- Replacement card service
- No extra charges if statement balances are paid in full and the credit cards are operated within their terms and conditions
Background on HBOS, the company that issues the Halifax Credit Card
What everyone knew as the Halifax Building Society, the UK’s biggest mortgage lender, is now a somewhat smaller part of a much larger organisation of merged banks, as consolidation and centralisation has hit the High Street Banking sector.
Halifax evolved into a demutualised PLC in 1997 and at that stage was the UK’s fifth largest retail bank. However, in a market where there is little to differentiate between the top 10 players, mergers were always on the cards and in 2001 Halifax merged with Bank of Scotland in an £11 billion deal.
The newly formed Halifax Bank of Scotland Group (HBOS) stated at the time that the names of both institutions would be retained, but over the last 10 years Halifax branches in Scotland have been amalgamated, and north of the border the Halifax name continues only as a branding exercise on some mortgage and savings products.
HBOS itself was acquired by Lloyds TSB in 2009 amid uncertainty over its share price and its future. Rumours at the time sighted HBOS’s high exposure to the so-called ‘toxic debt’ on property portfolios that was instrumental is causing the banking crisis.
The revised company, now called Lloyds Banking Group needed some £18 billion of tax payer’s money to remain afloat. Lloyds’ recovery from the credit crunch has been slower than some of its rivals as it’s taken longer to rid itself of its non-core portfolio of loans backed by poor quality property.
In a reprieve for the old Halifax name, in December 2010 Halifax applied and was accepted to be a clearing bank meaning it can accept Bank Giro Credits. This has gone some way to ensure the future of the name on the high street, and has meant all new till and counter technology being rolled out across local branches.
