Consumers like John have polished their tactics as the number 0% cards has widened to more than 50 in the past year. And there has been a surge in the number of providers offering 0% APR on balance transfers for longer and longer periods. At first the average was six months and then nine months, but Barclaycard broke the mould last summer by offering a deal for over 12 months. Admittedly, Lloyds has offered a 0% deal for 12 months for some time on its Advance card but this has the unusual, but considerable snag of having no interest-free period on purchases. But the success of people like John Ryder poses a real danger - with the collective debt of UK households already topping £1 trillion. David Newman, director of marketing management at Co-operative Financial Services, which owns Smile, the credit card provider, says: "Between 50% and 80% of customers move (to another 0% deal) or repay at the end of the 0% deal. This is not sustainable." Stuart Glendinning, director of credit cards at moneysupermarket.com, agrees: "While the deals on offer have been great for consumers, the question remains of how far providers can go in offering ever-longer 0% deals. "The longer the period, the harder it is to make a profit." Barclaycard has thrown down the gauntlet with the introduction of a 2pc fee on the amount transferred to its card, up to a maximum of £50, on 0% offers running until March 2006. MBNA has followed suit and Mint has introduced a fee of 2pc until March 31 this year. Stuart says: "Barclaycard is the UK's biggest credit card provider and their decision to implement a fee did, in my opinion, trigger others to follow. "It could be that the days of long 0% balance transfer deals without a fee are numbered as all providers will be looking at ways to avoid losses accruing from customers that frequently 'churn' their debt from one card to another without using the card for purchases. "Charging a fee on balance transfers is one way of recouping some losses, given it is impossible to make money lending at 0% if the customer conducts no further transactions on the card. "I expect other providers will take the lead by Barclaycard, MBNA and Mint and start charging for balance transfers, especially for periods of nine months and over. This isn't good news for customers. "The consumer should keep an eye on more credit card providers charging a fee to transfer their balance for long periods. Unless the long 0% balance transfer period outweighs the fee charged, then consumers are better off sticking to a balance transfer card with no fees." | 
