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

izools

rebeccatalbot wrote: »

Can somebody clear up a few un answered questions for me please!
1.) I have 2 joint outstanding loans with my now ex husband, with 2 different companies together totaling £24,000 can i dispute that both loans are chopped in half, with half being on my credit score and half on his credit score??
2.) Or if 1.) is not possible, then how much can i offer these companies as a settlement figure, is it like 50% of the outstanding loan or more of a % than 50???

Any advice very grateful!!
(4/6/12)

Unfortunately they won't allow either.

According to the credit agreement you'll both be joint and severally liable for the full amount of the entire loan. If the lender were to draw up new contracts they would loose any protection they have against one of you not paying.

The only way you would be able to do this is each take out a sole loan in your name only and each pay half of the settlement figure for this loan. But keep in mind, if either party failed to pay their half off you would both still remain joint and severally liable for the full amount left; so you may be in a position where you've borrowed £12,000, paid half of this loan off, and still get lumbered with the remaining £12,000 if your ex decides to screw you over.

Just leave it as is and continue to make each of your contributions towards the loan

zen135

rebeccatalbot wrote: »

Can somebody clear up a few un answered questions for me please!
1.) I have 2 joint outstanding loans with my now ex husband, with 2 different companies together totaling £24,000 can i dispute that both loans are chopped in half, with half being on my credit score and half on his credit score??
2.) Or if 1.) is not possible, then how much can i offer these companies as a settlement figure, is it like 50% of the outstanding loan or more of a % than 50???

Any advice very grateful!!
(4/6/12)

1) No, as you are jointly liable up to the full amount of the loans. Even if your ex fails to fulfil his obligation, they could come after you for the full amount of the loans ( and vice versa).

2) The settlement figure depends on the company in question really and their perception of the risk for this specific liability. The best option here would be to try asking them directly.

izools

NSL wrote: »

I'm not too sure if this is the correct thread but I'll give it a go...

Over the next couple of months I'll be in a position where my CC debts will be about £5k and I've been thinking about maybe trying for a 0% deal.

I've just come out of a divorce and I am presently living in a rented apartment but my name is also on a mortgage at my former matrimonial home (and will be for next 5 years !).

On applications where it asks if I'm a homeowner or live in rented - what do I say ?

Also, if I say I'm in rented and they see on my credit file that I've got a mortgage - would that be an instant refusal ??

Thanks - any advice would be greatly appreciated

The first thing you need to do is make sure you're registered to vote at your new address and have all of your accounts recorded at your new address. If anyone holds your old address, update them.

You will then need to wait six to eight weeks for the changes to take effect on your credit file. Don't apply in the mean time as if you use an address at which your accounts / electoral registration isn't at, you will in all probability be declined.

To be honest, the difference between being a home owner and a tennant isn't that much when it comes to unsecured credit card applications so don't worry about that; just worry about having all the address data up to date.

If you are declined after updating everything, waiting, and applying at your new address, I'd bet it isn't because you're a tennant.

What is likely to go against you is short time at your new address, unless you've been there a while already in which case you should be a shoe-in.

Creation are relatively lax with applications, too, so I would suggest their balance transfer card be the first application you submit:

http://apply.creation.co.uk/creation/web_channel/cards/microsite/carddetails.aspx?termsAndConditionsCode=MC5307&MC=99100000&operatorCode=WebMC&responseCode=DIR019

Good luck!

NSL

:T Thank you very much izools, I'll give Creation a go

bignit80

I'll start by saying i'm incensed....

I read Martin's article on obtaining your credit report for £2 i thought that's a good idea, i've not had a copy for quite some time, it may be a good idea to check.
A long and drawn out process, but it said instant, so i thought i'll give it a go.
Equifax have charged me £3, then it said it cannot complete my request please call customer services.....hmmm so much for instant.
I called and spoke to someone who didn't give me a name, he eventually located my newly created account and said i have to email them a copy of my driving licence and a bank statement/utility bill not more than 12 weeks old. HANG ON THOUGHT THIS WAS INSTANT...
I have no scanner so I won't be uploading anything, so great spent £3 just for tapping my name into a form. May as well given it my 9 year old for a comic.:mad:

IrishGypsy

bignit80 wrote: »

I'll start by saying i'm incensed....

I read Martin's article on obtaining your credit report for £2 i thought that's a good idea, i've not had a copy for quite some time, it may be a good idea to check.
A long and drawn out process, but it said instant, so i thought i'll give it a go.
Equifax have charged me £3, then it said it cannot complete my request please call customer services.....hmmm so much for instant.
I called and spoke to someone who didn't give me a name, he eventually located my newly created account and said i have to email them a copy of my driving licence and a bank statement/utility bill not more than 12 weeks old. HANG ON THOUGHT THIS WAS INSTANT...
I have no scanner so I won't be uploading anything, so great spent £3 just for tapping my name into a form. May as well given it my 9 year old for a comic.:mad:

Sounds to me like you didn't answer all of their security questions fully. Last time I done this was 2 weeks ago (with Call Credit) and they asked different security questions than Experian or Equifax.

Bottom Line: You NEED to prove it's really you that's asking for this, highly sensitive, financial data. They can't take the risk of it going to the wrong person (think massive potential for ID Theft).

ruthy_86

I need some help please...

I am getting married next year and need to save £10k.
Jointly my partner and myself have around £15k outstanding on credit cards, store cards and and a small loan.

The interest we are paying is huge and I am thinking of consolidating by getting a loan to pay of the debts to have one payment per month on a lower interest rate over a 5 year period.

My Experian check check says that I'm excellent, but the checker on here says that I and poor/ok?

I would love to be able to pay off all my debts this year, but we are saving for the wedding so I cant.

Any advice?

Thanks

IrishGypsy

ruthy_86 wrote: »

I need some help please...

I am getting married next year and need to save £10k.
Jointly my partner and myself have around £15k outstanding on credit cards, store cards and and a small loan.

The interest we are paying is huge and I am thinking of consolidating by getting a loan to pay of the debts to have one payment per month on a lower interest rate over a 5 year period.

My Experian check check says that I'm excellent, but the checker on here says that I and poor/ok?

I would love to be able to pay off all my debts this year, but we are saving for the wedding so I cant.

Any advice?

Thanks

Are you at the maximum limits on all of your cards? Have you got any available balance left to 'play with'? If so, you could do a credit card 'shuffle' between existing card holders to reduce rates with promotional offers, would cut the interest down at least (even if your monthly payments stay very similar to what they are now).

If you've not missed any payments and your Debt to Income ratio isn't too high, then apply for a statutory £2 credit file report from each reference agency and triple-check the accuracy of your data. Accuracy of addresses, credit file statuses etc. Basically, your info should be 100% correct before you apply for any loan. This may delay your application, but it gives you the best chance of success overall.

Only recently I noticed that CallCredit had the wrong address for me on their records, two e-mails later, they ammended it and I could see the correction for myself.

Bear in mind that the common route of people who've consolidated a loan from CC's is to rebuy on the CC's again (I've been guilty of this myself in the past). So you could compound the problem if you've got little self-restraint!

Best of luck.

em_z

Hello
I'm just wondering how long I should wait between credit applications? I have a long standing Halifax One card that I use from time to time for small-ish purchases, which I usually repay in full. I applied and got a Barcalycard in Feb to buy a car (£1200), and am paying this off at about £150 a month. This month a got a new mobile phone contract, which Martin's article mentions leaves a search on the credit file.
I'm going to the US in August, and would like a fee free card, the Halifax Clarity. My question is whther these recent (approved) applications have an effect on the application for the new credit card?
Cheers

tasty_snacks

em_z wrote: »

Hello
I'm just wondering how long I should wait between credit applications? I have a long standing Halifax One card that I use from time to time for small-ish purchases, which I usually repay in full. I applied and got a Barcalycard in Feb to buy a car (£1200), and am paying this off at about £150 a month. This month a got a new mobile phone contract, which Martin's article mentions leaves a search on the credit file.
I'm going to the US in August, and would like a fee free card, the Halifax Clarity. My question is whther these recent (approved) applications have an effect on the application for the new credit card?
Cheers

I suspect the timeframes involved stand you in good stead. What would also help is the fact that you are applying for a Halifax Clarity card when you already hold a Halifax credit account (with the proviso that you have been running it well previously - no late payments etc). This will be improved further still if you bank with Halifax/ Lloyds and can demonstrate good account operation.