Minimising Your Account Fees

• Choose the best type of credit to suit your needs

• Never treat credit like cash

• Shop around—don’t just look at interest rates, consider fees and charges too

• Don’t take on more debt than you are comfortable to repay over time

• Set a spending limit with your credit or loans

• Don’t build up debt now, on the promise of income you expect to earn later

• Every dollar you pay in interest is money out of your pocket. Reduce the interest you pay, by repaying more than the minimum required payment

• Paying off debt should be a priority. Set up a direct debit that allows for more regular repayments to pay off the debt sooner

• Don’t take on a higher credit limit without understanding your ability to repay the higher debt

• Pay with cash or Visa Debit card whenever you can—that way you only spend the money that you have saved.

Possible warning signs of financial trouble

• Regularly spending beyond your budget for the week or month

• Living from pay packet to pay packet.

• Being unable to meet large one-off expenses like household insurance.

• Paying only the minimum repayments on your credit card each month.

• Not knowing the amount of your total debt

• Being near, or at, your credit card limit – especially if you have more than one card.

• Consistently paying bills late.

• Hiding your indebtedness from your spouse or partner.

Getting your finances under control is not always easy. And it can take time. Most people get into debt simply because they spend more than they earn. It may be possible to increase your income, but it’s usually easier to cut back your spending.

Ways to cut your expenses

• If you do need to use your credit card for large purchases, then do not use it again until you have completely paid off the balance of the card from the previous purchase.

• Set up a direct debit to pay down or off the balance on a monthly basis to avoid interest charges

• Visit the shops less frequently. The more often we shop, the more we are likely to purchase ‘impulse’ buys.

• Aim to pay in cash. 

• Avoid borrowing from one credit provider to pay another—this can lead to over-indebtedness

Tips to get you back on track with your finances:

Pay more than the minimum

By paying more than the minimum repayments you will lower the principal and thereby reduce the interest charge.

Prioritise your debts

List all your debts, ranking them according to the rate of interest . Concentrate on paying off the higher interest debts first. Once the highest-rate debt is paid off, add the total you were paying on this debt, to the next one on your list. 

Talk to your lenders

Some members make the mistake of avoiding making payments all together as they fear contacting us. There is no need to be embarrassed; we are more than willing to try to help in these circumstances.

It is much better that you call before your credit history is affected. In circumstances such as these, we can possibly revise your repayments and/or extend the time you have to pay.

Consolidate your debts

Debt consolidation involves combining all your debts into one loan. This can have many advantages including reducing your minimum monthly repayment; establishing a payment structure that will see the loan paid off in a structured way, setting a fixed monthly payment that helps with budgeting. Note though, that this strategy only works if you change the spending habits that got you into debt in the first place.