By: Kate Anderson | Updated: 27th January 2021.
The Aqua Advance Credit Card has all the features you would expect from an Aqua card, with the added bonus of the ability to reduce the card’s APR over time. This is a credit rebuilder card which in three years’ time could potentially give you an APR of just 19.9%.
The Aqua Advance Credit Card includes many of the features that make other Aqua cards great for those looking to build or rebuild credit. As an added bonus though, users of the Advance Card that stay on time with their payments will see their APR go down by 5% per year. Over time, this could bring the APR down to 19.9%.
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This card gives you everything you would expect from a credit rebuilder card, plus the potential to significantly reduce the interest you are charged. If you stay within your credit limit and make your minimum repayments on time, your APR will be reduced by 5% each year until your rate is as low as 19.9%, an APR typically unheard of among cards designed for those with a poor credit history.
There is a lot to like about this card: not only the ability to reduce your APR, but other little perks such as access to the free Aqua Credit Checker and no fees for using your card abroad.
I worked on the front line of personal-finance best buys for over eight years at one of the world’s largest research companies, Nielsen. I reported daily on the developments of the 2008 financial crisis and beyond, keeping up with the changing financial landscape and providing insights to all the major banks in the UK. I know the key players in the market and the tactics behind how they behave. All of which I will apply to highlight the best deals and give honest reviews to help you in your search.
While the Aqua Advance Credit Card does give cardholders the chance to reduce their interest rate, it starts with a high APR.
There are other cards on the market that offer a lower starting APR or other offers such as cashback and reward points, but none will bring your APR down as low as 19.9%. The Aqua Advance Credit Card is unique in the APR that borrowers can reach in the long term, plus it has support services in the form of the Aqua Credit Checker and the added bonus of no fees when using the card abroad.
Aqua offers a personalised approval service and will consider your application even if you are self-employed, unable to prove a regular income, have had a county court judgement (CCJ) (other than in the past 12 months), work part-time, are a student, are new to credit, have been turned down for credit in the past or are on a lower income.
The card does require applicants to be aged 18 or over and a UK resident. Applicants must also not have been registered bankrupt in the past 18 months or have any current bankruptcy proceedings against them.
Applications can be made through Aqua’s website. You will be required to provide personal details, contact details, your residential status, employment status and information regarding your income. Applicants are also required to provide details of a current UK bank or building society account.
It depends whether you are happy to wait for the reward, because you will not feel the real benefit of this card for three years. You would also have to be relatively confident that you could stick within your credit limit and make your minimum payments each month for a long period of time in order to get that 5% annual reduction. If you are looking for a credit rebuilder card that is a long-term option then the Aqua Advance Credit Card is one to consider, because you could achieve one of the lowest APRs on the market. Added to that, you would benefit from support services, no fees for using the card abroad, and potential credit limit increases in the future.
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