Does it look bad if card is maxed out?

vet8

I have a Sainsbury's CC which I have only used for three very good LOB transfer offers. I pay the minimum each month to concentrate paying off other bills with higher interest. Now Sainsbury's keep lowering my available credit. I am not bothered about this as I do not use the card at all, but it makes the card look maxed out on my credit rating.

Is this bad news? It is slightly annoying as originally I had only used about 2/3rds of the available credit, now it looks as if I have deliberately used it all. Every time I pay off a bit they lower the credit limit again. I know they are allowed to do this and I realise that I do not make them a great deal of money so I should expect this treatment, but I am just concerned that it looks as if I am using all the credit I have.

debtdestroyer007

i would def start reducing my balance and then eventually apply for another card.

yes maxing out on your cards will mean you are overstretched and may hamper your chances with main stream cards. thats exactly the problem i am facing at the moment, my next months wages ill use to clear some of my credit card balances and keep it to 50% of my available credit mate

jonnyb

many of the lenders are now, or will soon be, able to see if the card you have is on a special promotion.
that means when they see a card maxed out, it may not be taken as so much of a negative.

I would not be too worried if it was me; most of my balance transfer cards look maxed out but so far I have not had problems changing credit products.

ladylumps45

ive had this with the halifax.they all of a sudden reduced my credit limit by 4000 pounds! i had a limit of 10,888 pounds and owed 5ooo. i always paid more than the minimum payment and always on time.
the other day i went online to pay my credit card monthly payment and realised that my dredit limit had been reduced to 6000.i phoned them to ask why and they said a letter was on its way.
i received the letter which just said that my card came up for review and as my spending on it had levelled around 5000 they said thats all i need!
i know they are wll within their rights to do it but it cheesed me off a bit as i felt i was being punished for something wrong which i hadnt done.im trying to pay it off now and then ditch the card.

byebyedebt

HBOS and MBNA are currently reporting the extra information showing balance, amount paid, if above min, if on a promotion.

Moggles_2

Sainsbury's keep lowering my available credit. I am not bothered about this as I do not use the card at all, but it makes the card look maxed out on my credit rating. Is this bad news?

It might affect your credit rating if your Sainsbury's card is the only credit card you have at the mo.

That said, if you have others that are not maxed out, I wouldn't worry.

Bismarck

byebyedebt wrote: »

HBOS and MBNA are currently reporting the extra information showing balance, amount paid, if above min, if on a promotion.

is that to anyone doing a search?

is this going to help anyone but the providers in the end?

anna42hmr

byebyedebt wrote: »

HBOS and MBNA are currently reporting the extra information showing balance, amount paid, if above min, if on a promotion.

as is capital one and nationwide according to my equifax report yesterday

debtdestroyer007

Bismarck wrote: »

is that to anyone doing a search?

is this going to help anyone but the providers in the end?

yes, i think it shows the other lenders if you only pay the min for eg.( status M )
I suppose what it it really means is that if someone is only paying minum, they may be struggling as it is. also cash advances appear too. i was told by halifax specialist lending that regular cash advances lower the internal score as cc are not designed for cash withdrawal's and furthermore it impacts any future increases in cc limits.... no wonder halifax still havent increased my limit after 14 months of good account history

martafdz

Have you considered to ask for a loan and pay that credit card off?

The interest you pay in credit cards is usually more than twice the interest you pay with a loan, unless it's a deal with no interest at the moment.

I would ask for quotes in different banks, to see if you can pay your minimum amount, but with a loan instead. If you do this, be sure they understand it's a QUOTE and not an application, otherwise they ask for the credit score, and even if you do not sign or take the loan it appears in your file. If you already have a loan, ask your provider for a quote to "top up" your current loan, or for a new one which pays off the one you have and the credit card.

Asking and getting quotes it's free, see all your options, do not asume it is not worth or you are going to pay more. You would be surprise how many times people save hundreds a month just for reviewing their current loans/cards/insurances/mortgages and switch to a better deal. Sometimes it's not worth the hassle, that's true, but sometimes you could get a nice surprise. I have just done that: I have applied for a loan to pay off my current loan and my credit card, and increase the lenth by 2 years. Now I pay about 100 pounds less a month. This allows me to save a little, if at any point I see I have enough saved to pay it off, I will just cancel the debt. Ask first if there's any charge for paying it off earlier.

clio

If your Min is say £10 and you pay £50 that's 5 times more than the Min, so does it still say Min on file??