Credit Card Rejection but I have an Excellent Credit Rating - Why?

izools

And Barclaycard used to be the complete opposite.

When I was 19 I had three cards:

Natwest VISA - £400
MBNA Classic - £750
Barclaycard Initial - £2,000

Barclaycard also upped my mothers limit to £6,400 in 2003 whilst she was still on benefits and sent her platinum cards with £250 cheque guarantee - on the CREDIT CARD(!).

I guess Barclaycard learned from their mistakes - maybe they've gone to the other extreme a little too much

Moggles_2

missk_ensington wrote: »

It's daft because not all card applications ask for 'other household income', the majority of my income isn't from my salary, I have about £15,000 a year from other sources like tax credits and child support which I'm not sure if they are taking into consideration even when I submit the information.

In that case, you may want to consider the Marks & Spencer &More card when the time comes. I believe the application asks for household income rather than salary

http://www6.marksandspencer.com/pages/default.asp?PageId=home&Product=CC&WT.mc_id=MASM_CCardRetailWeb01

missk_ensington

Thanks guys, so if Barclaycard are known for being particularly stringent, which ones are known for being particularly easy to get a card?

Moggles_2

missk_ensington wrote: »

Thanks guys, so if Barclaycard are known for being particularly stringent, which ones are known for being particularly easy to get a card?

You mentioned you have a lot of 0% deals coming to an end that you would like to transfer to new cards.

To help you further, we would need to know which credit cards you have at the mo or have held recently.

missk_ensington

Thanks, I have Capital One which has £6,000 on it ending approx November time, HBOS £1,200 which the 0% ended recently, Egg £1,183 but that doesnt end for a while yet, and Halifax £2,284 which I think ends in the coming weeks/months.

I had an MBNA card which I settled and cancelled towards the end of last year, and an RBS card which I recently settled (so dont think I can have RBS again for 6 months?)

Moggles_2

missk_ensington wrote: »

I have Capital One which has £6,000 on it ending approx November time, HBOS £1,200 which the 0% ended recently, Egg £1,183 but that doesnt end for a while yet, and Halifax £2,284 which I think ends in the coming weeks/months. I had an MBNA card which I settled and cancelled towards the end of last year and an RBS card which I recently settled (so don't think I can have RBS again for 6 months?)

The Royal Bank of Scotland stable (which includes Lombard Direct, Mint, NatWest, Tesco & Ulster Bank, as well as RBS itself) makes former customers wait 8 months following closure of one of its cards.

To maximise the 0% period, 16 months is currently available from Virgin on BTs made in the first 60 days. A 2.98% transfer fee applies.

http://uk.virginmoney.com/credit-card-v3/

Alternatively, you'd get 12 months at 0% from the Post Office on BTs made in the first 3 mths. There's a 2.98% BT fee. Also, 5 months at 0% on new balance transfers requested in the month of your 1st and 2nd anniversary.

http://www.postoffice.co.uk/portal/po/jump2?catId=19400177&mediaId=34100665

creditscorehelp

Thank you for all the replies. Firstly sorry I gave the wrong info - it was in fact Equifax and not Experian.

All the information has been very helpful, I also played around with the Credit Checker Tool, which helped me to work out what my problem was.

I had just moved address and I found that this single bit of info was having a huge affect on my credit score.

I then decided to do something a little cheeky - I reapplied on-line for a Virgin card using my old address and keeping all the other details the same. Having only very recently moved I have a postal re-direct in place, so I receive all the mail in my name at my new address and will do for months to come. This time I got the card! I later plan to notify Virgin of my change of address.

In general what has really annoyed me is the really poor information banks give out. I hate the way they sell you something telling you 'yeah you'll be fine', go through an application with you and you get rejected! Then are unable to provide a reason why.

Why not be more honest, perhaps go through a checklist with the customer first, for instance have you moved recently?! At least tell them there's no guarantee of getting the card and the consequences of a failed application.

Regarding my situation I hope Virgin don't realise that I applied twice, maybe they will and my cheeky plan won't work! Still I feel the system is pretty stupid, my address change in no way affects my financial ability to manage a credit card.

Moggles_2

creditscorehelp wrote: »

In general what has really annoyed me is the really poor information banks give out. I hate the way they sell you something telling you 'yeah you'll be fine', go through an application with you and you get rejected! Then are unable to provide a reason why. Why not be more honest, perhaps go through a checklist with the customer first, for instance have you moved recently? At least tell them there's no guarantee of getting the card and the consequences of a failed application.

The trouble is, bank staff have sales targets to meet. It's in their interest to persuade customers to apply for as many services (or products as they insist on calling them) as possible. Even when you're pre-approved, pre-selected or whatever language is used, there are no guarantees. The bank can still turn you down.

Moggles_2

I feel the system is pretty stupid. My address change in no way affects my financial ability to manage a credit card.

Only data that can be independently corroborated is used for credit scoring purposes. That's why it pays to get on the electoral roll as soon as possible after you move to a new address and check your electoral status is recorded correctly on credit files.

Because of the sheer volume of applications received, lenders routinely reject applicants whose identity cannot be verified electronically via the CRAs, which in turn collate data from public records such as the electoral register. If you're not on the electoral roll at your current address, you'll struggle to get the best credit card deals

izools

creditscorehelp wrote: »

Thank you for all the replies. Firstly sorry I gave the wrong info - it was in fact Equifax and not Experian.

All the information has been very helpful, I also played around with the Credit Checker Tool, which helped me to work out what my problem was.

I had just moved address and I found that this single bit of info was having a huge affect on my credit score.

I then decided to do something a little cheeky - I reapplied on-line for a Virgin card using my old address and keeping all the other details the same. Having only very recently moved I have a postal re-direct in place, so I receive all the mail in my name at my new address and will do for months to come. This time I got the card! I later plan to notify Virgin of my change of address.

In general what has really annoyed me is the really poor information banks give out. I hate the way they sell you something telling you 'yeah you'll be fine', go through an application with you and you get rejected! Then are unable to provide a reason why.

Why not be more honest, perhaps go through a checklist with the customer first, for instance have you moved recently?! At least tell them there's no guarantee of getting the card and the consequences of a failed application.

Regarding my situation I hope Virgin don't realise that I applied twice, maybe they will and my cheeky plan won't work! Still I feel the system is pretty stupid, my address change in no way affects my financial ability to manage a credit card.

Congratulations!

An instant approval online? Don't worry, once it's been approved, it's been approved and that's that.

It just goes to show that the credit scores from the likes of Equifax and Experian can be misleading because they don't know things like your time at address, with employer, bank, etc.

But still, an Equifax score of 507 is very impressive! Keep up the good work