Why you should love credit cards

If you've got a plastic card or two lurking in your wallet, you should already appreciate the convenience it provides. Not having to carry thousands of pounds in cash around whenever you wish to make a purchase is an obvious benefit, but did you realise the other advantages your flexible friend offers?:

1. Interest Free Periods

Paying for purchases with your credit card will provide more than just convenience, it can also be the same as an interest free loan. Credit card providers give their customers up to 59 days to pay their bill and if you pay your balance in full by this date you won't be charged any interest. So the trick is, if you have a large purchase to make, try to do so just as you receive your credit card statement and then you will benefit from the maximum interest free period.

2. A 0% Interest Credit Card

Although 0% credit cards haven't actually been around for very long it is difficult to remember a time before them! Essentially, the 0% interest card offers a period of time where card providers will charge no interest either for: balance transfers, new purchases or both. Deals typically run for between six and twelve months and by not having to pay interest for this period we can save you hundreds of pounds.

These deals are not be treated lightly however. Miss paying off the balance by the due date and you could negate all of your hard work. And should you get confused as to what your card's deal entails you could pay a high price; for example, balance transfer deals should be used solely for this purpose, any further spending will not be interest free and so could be costly. So cut that card up! But use your card for its purpose and you could save hundreds of pounds in interest payments, and pay off that debt much more quickly!

3. Cashback

Would you like to be paid to go shopping?, as the answer is YES! (who would say no?), Cashback credit cards offer just that, a percentage of most purchases (currently up to 2%) returned to you each year in the form of cash back. Alternatively, there are a number of charity cards on the market, which will donate money to the charity you select. Of course, this card is only useful if your balance is paid off in full each month, as any cash back earned would be completely negated by interest payments. But for people who use their cards sensibly, picking a cashback card can essentially reward you for your spending!

4. Purchase Protection

Did you know that many of the purchases made using your credit cards are covered by the Consumer Credit Act? Essentially, Section 75 of this act says any purchase costing more than £100 and less than £30,000 is protected, meaning that consumers can claim from their lender should anything go wrong. Therefore, should you pay by credit card for something costing over £100 and your supplier goes bust before you receive the item, or should the goods you buy prove faulty or have been wrongly described, you can claim for a refund via your card provider. This really is a great benefit, giving peace of mind especially for purchases such as holidays, which may be taken months after being paid for.

5. Extras

With over 1,500 cards on the market, there's a fair amount of competition between providers. And this of course means a better deal for us, the consumer! Fancy getting your money back for leaving your purchases on the bus? Then find a card that offers free purchase protection insurance, which will pay out if something you purchase with it (which must usually cost over £50) is lost, stolen or damaged up to 90 days later.

Fancy earning Airmiles or Nectar points on your spending? Then pick a card that offers them. And some cards will even give extended warranties for any electrical items purchased with their card. A particularly useful extra is given by the Nationwide and Lombard Direct cards which do not charge a loading fee on purchases made worldwide. Considering this fee is usually charged at 2.75% of each and every transaction made, this can save a holidaymaker a small fortune.

So now you've seen our favourite reasons to love credit cards, is it worth reviewing the deal your provider offers? If it isn't offering all of the extras you'd like, now may be a good time to cancel that card and find a new provider!

We have all the leading credit card providers in our credit cards section, click here to find out more.