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

izools

BaconandEggs wrote: »

Quick question:
Type of current account: effect on credit rating?
I currently have an "added value" account from Lloyds TSB, for which I pay a fixed amount each month. I use the AA cover and travel insurance. The overdraft facility it useful to have incase of emergency. However, I know I can save money by having a standard current account, and getting the services seperately myself. Would changing my current account type have any effect on my credit rating?

None whatsoever.

However holding a standard / vantage account means you'll incur a £5 charge (atop interest) each time you use your authorised overdraft from December onward. Gold it's still 100% free up to £100 and Platinum 100% free up to £250 so when deciding whether the AA and Travel benefits are worth the fee, also take into account the overdraft fee

fulhamnonny

Hi,

My boyfriend is a European national who has lived here for the past 4 and half years.
He's been with the same bank since moving over, and has one credit card with them.
He earns a decent amount and has no debts in this country or in his own country nor has any CCJ's etc against his name.

On his credit card his limit is £250 and he has asked the bank if they can increase it. They have said no. He has also applied for a credit card with and they have refused him. We both agree the limit is very low and he finds it frustrating that he cannot have a card with a bigger limit if he wants to pay for something that is more than £250. When he does spend on it, he always pays the full amount off. If the bigger amount is to benefit the both of us, then I either have to use my credit card or he uses his bank account - which is not great if we decide to go abroad.

We've also recently opened a joint account together, so that all our bills and anything which we pay which is for the both of us was to come out of that account.

A couple of questions... I know joint finances affect your credit rating. As we've only just opened a joint account is it worth us closing it down so that my credit rating is safe and not lowered etc up by my boyfriend.
We are looking at trying to buy a place in the 18 months, how will his lack of being able to get credit affect our chances to get a mortgage?
Also, how can he go about getting more credit and improve of having an application accepted?

BugsyBrowne

Don't really know about citizenship but most credit cards you need to be a british citizen.

You are now financially associated so every time you make an application they will check his as well,so don't matter if you have an excellent history if he has a poor history you will not get accepted.

If you close down your bank account with him make sure you get in contact with the credit agencies as well,as they will be the ones who take you off as financially associated.

Has he checked his credit report recently.

chexum

star-fire wrote: »

Don't really know about citizenship but most credit cards you need to be a british citizen.

No - resident yes, citizen no.

Resident is not clear cut either - from the horse's mouth:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/cbtmanual/cbtm10020.htm

"How long has the person lived in the United Kingdom? The longer they have lived in the United Kingdom, the stronger the indication that they are ordinarily resident. If a person has already lived here for three years or more, it should normally be accepted that they are ordinarily resident. (This does not mean that people who have lived here for less than three years are necessarily not ordinarily resident. A person can be ordinarily resident from the first day they arrive in the United Kingdom if they have genuinely come to make their home here.)"

fulhamnonny's oh just needs to show the same kind of stability, conistency and persistence as expected from anyone taking out credit. They just need to try harder (and more careful at the same time) to apply for credit that they can show to afford. Move banks, check sub-prime lenders, and so on.

BaconandEggs

izools wrote: »

None whatsoever.

However holding a standard / vantage account means you'll incur a £5 charge (atop interest) each time you use your authorised overdraft from December onward. Gold it's still 100% free up to £100 and Platinum 100% free up to £250 so when deciding whether the AA and Travel benefits are worth the fee, also take into account the overdraft fee

Thanks - that's very useful to know!

fulhamnonny

chexum wrote: »

fulhamnonny's oh just needs to show the same kind of stability, conistency and persistence as expected from anyone taking out credit. They just need to try harder (and more careful at the same time) to apply for credit that they can show to afford. Move banks, check sub-prime lenders, and so on.

He is definitely classed as a resident - as mentioned he has lived here for 4 and a half years. Thanks for clearing that up

I know he can afford credit, as he has worked for the same company since moving here and wages are not bad either. The only thing I can think off affecting his credit rating is the moving from renting. He has checked the Equifax (and is in the process of checking the others) report and it comes up with nothing. The only point on it, is that he couldn't put the correct number of our flat as his current address in which he plans to write to them to change and correct it. Everything else is on it is showing as clear.

chexum

fulhamnonny wrote: »

He has checked the Equifax (and is in the process of checking the others) report and it comes up with nothing. The only point on it, is that he couldn't put the correct number of our flat as his current address in which he plans to write to them to change and correct it. Everything else is on it is showing as clear.

There's your problem then. Everyone checking your credit file expect to see a consistent moving history. Each provided address should be on the credit file as linked address. You will need to make sure every lender has the correct addresses, and every CRA has the good version of it.

Occasionally, the CRA's have a different idea to Royal Mail what is the canonical version, and it can take a while to sort it out. In the meantime, online applications will have a little chance of success. Maybe in a branch he can explain, and bring proof of addresses, but probably not worth it.

You might want to check if Experian/Callcredit is broken as well, or if it's only Equifax.

folkestonelisa

Hi

Ive just accessed my credit report and it has a u on one of the files and wondered if someone could tell me what that means please.

chexum

folkestonelisa wrote: »

Ive just accessed my credit report and it has a u on one of the files and wondered if someone could tell me what that means please.

http://www.experian.co.uk/downloads/consumer/creditfileexplained.pdf

"Status history - U

The lender cannot give the account a status code for this month. This may be at the start of the credit agreement when the lender is allowing time for the account to be set up, when you are waiting for goods to be delivered, when you have received the goods but payment is not due to start immediately, when there is a dispute over the payments due or the goods received, or when the account is not being used."

woodywyc

I'm new to this forum so sorry if this is not posted in the right place but I couldn't find anywhere better.
I have an account with Experian (which I intend to cancel after 6 months) and they have alerted me to a credit inquiry for £300 from a firm called MCO Capital Ltd. That firm occurs somewhere in this forum in connection with Payday loans. The inquiry is clearly fraudulent because they have guessed how long I have been at my address. They had my dob right but I wonder if that came from Facebook. Previously in this forum there was an exchange from a series of people who had received bills for £573 from MCO Capital, made up of £300 loan plus a £273 charge. That thread seems to have been removed although it still shows up in a Google cache. I've searched the forum but I can't find anything. Can anyone tell me where it was. I'm wondering how long it will be before I get a spurious bill from MCO too.