Credit Rating: How it works and How to improve it discussion area

black_taxi_2

first time ever i had to look at my credit report

i was denied a credit card(first time ever--going to use it to pay for holiday/flights for financial safety due to recent fiascos--volcanic ash/firms-going into receivership)

equifax--rating 480---quite high

prob--for some reason its given me a linked address where i live---as one number--but its a block of flats

i stay at that number and flat number in building.(im on electoral roll)

so they have me down having lived in two properties when in-fact its the same property.

when other firms are checking my linked address its showing---i dont live there anymore(hence refusal of credit card)

contacted council and they agree linked address doesnt exist--but equifax wont remove it from file/they said they recieved info from another body--which is totaly wrong.

whats my next step?









catch 22

BugsyBrowne

Your next step is to stop waisting your money on a credit score as it don't mean a thing..
You should also check your experian report as most credit companies search them rather than equifax..
Check experian and look at your address on there..

izools

Sam,

If you'd moved prior to the CCJ being recorded and you had it recorded at the wrong address then yes, you can have it set aside because of this.

Notices of correction normally do more harm than good. Don't bother.

The effect a CCJ will have on you depends on the rest of your credit file and personal circumstances. If you have a gleaming credit file besides the CCJ, having never missed a payment, having held all your accounts for a very long time and have a couple of long standing credit cards with sensible limits, low balances, and you've not moved house / job / bank in a long time then the CCJ will have a small effect.

If you have moved job / house / bank recently and the rest of your credit history is lackluster, it will have a bigger effect.

Swiftcover don't perform a credit check when calculating your quote so it may be worth getting a quote from them. If it is still high, then the quote will likely be raised up by your Postcode risk rather than the CCJ.

Ignore your Experian score and don't pay for another. There's no such thing as "One score fits all" - every creditor you apply to will score you differently, using their own criteria.

The CCJ stays on your file for six years from the date it was recorded, settled or otherwise.

Good luck

izools

The fact alone that you moved before the CCJ was recorded against you means you should apply for it to be set aside.

You may wish to seek advise from someone else regarding the wording to use, I've not done it myself before, but know that it is possible. It is worth looking into and getting done

Insurance quotes will be higher if you have a CCJ as the quote reflects the insurers risk analisys of you. Someone who has been taken to court for non payment of debt presents a higher risk than someone who hasn't and it's as simple as that, whether or not your paying for the year up front. Another reason for you to apply for the CCJ to be set aside.

The CCJ will disappear from your file six years after it was recorded - this means six years after the original date of the CCJ - not when it was settled. Sorry, should've been clearer

So if the court granted the water company a CCJ against you in March 2005 it will drop off March 2011.

How old is the CCJ?

josie_lloyd

I have recently tried to apply for a TOPSHOP store card (april) and a mobile phone contract (july) and have been refused for both.
I opened my current account in April and was told I wouldn't be able to get an overdraft at that time.
I am 22 years old have lived at my current address for 1 year and 3 months. I was at my previous address for 3 years.
I have never had any credit cards and only a TOPSHOP store card when i was 18, i opened it and bought £150 shopping on it and for the life of me can't remember if I ever paid it off.
How can I improve my credit rating if I can't get any credit?

Jimmy_P_4

josie_lloyd wrote: »

I have recently tried to apply for a TOPSHOP store card (april) and a mobile phone contract (july) and have been refused for both.
I opened my current account in April and was told I wouldn't be able to get an overdraft at that time.
I am 22 years old have lived at my current address for 1 year and 3 months. I was at my previous address for 3 years.
I have never had any credit cards and only a TOPSHOP store card when i was 18, i opened it and bought £150 shopping on it and for the life of me can't remember if I ever paid it off.
How can I improve my credit rating if I can't get any credit?

Check your credit rating with equifax/ experian.
Have a look at what's on there, then you can see what lenders are looking at.
If you want to improve your credit rating, there is some fantastic advice on this website.
Try getting a subprime credit card, vanquis is the easiest to get, repay it every month without fail.
GET ON THE ELECTORAL ROLE.

If all else fails you can pay for a pre-pay credit card (cashplus credit builder), this will help build your rating.

fiestafantastic

I have been refused a student account with the bank I have been with for 15 years. I am on the electorial roll, lived at the current address for 26 years. I have never defaulted or had any ccjs or any debts unpaid. I do have a store card and a credit card that are unused. If I cancel them how long will it take to show up on my credit report? I have checked my credit report on equifax and there is nothing untoward any suggestions? If they still refuse who can I complain to as my bank tend to just to say no end of discussion.

lkjhgfdsa_2

I've recently had trouble opening a second bank account with Barclays where I've banked for over 10 years and have just been refused a Tesco CC. As part of the account opening with Barclays I checked my credit history and there is absolutely nothing bad on there, I never pay late, I'm on the electoral roll and my only debt is a small mortgage. Any idea what's going wrong?

dandelions

If I use the "deficit banking" technique in the Student Account section, will it harm my credit rating? Can it harm my standing within a certain bank (in this case Halifax) even if it doesn't harm my credit rating overall?

(summary of the technique: I have a £2k 0% arranged overdraft on my current account. I'd move the overdraft money into a savings account and keep a permanent negative balance on my current account, though without ever dipping as far as an unarranged overdraft.)

hullight

dandelions wrote: »

If I use the "deficit banking" technique in the Student Account section, will it harm my credit rating? Can it harm my standing within a certain bank (in this case Halifax) even if it doesn't harm my credit rating overall?

(summary of the technique: I have a £2k 0% arranged overdraft on my current account. I'd move the overdraft money into a savings account and keep a permanent negative balance on my current account, though without ever dipping as far as an unarranged overdraft.)

You would need to ensure that you keep it in an instant access account because they can ask for the overdraft back at any time. They can also reduce your limit whenever they want so you always need to keeep enough to cover the full overdraft instantly.

And yes some lenders would look at your history and assume you are always living in your overdraft which makes you a higher risk.