Declined a card application - but credit rating looks ok?!

NormW

I've just tried to apply for a sainsburys credit card online and been declined, I can't find out why till tomorrow when the applications dept is open.

But, I did some digging and got the 30 day experian trial and my credit file looks ok. All accounts are satisfactory, the only thing that looks out of place is the no of previous searches in the last 12 months, when I applied for some insurance in feb this year the company has searched my file 7 times on the same day!!!!! They then searched it twice again 2 weeks later which bumps the total upto 15 when it should only be 6?

Is there anything I can do to reduce this number or have the insurer knackered my credit score for a year by excessively searching my file?

All help greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Norm.

PNPSUKNET

insurance ones wont be counted, only credit applications are. It maybe that your just not the type of client they want to attract. How much debt etc do you have on their?

lisyloo

People with good ratings are being rejected left right and center.
Having a good rating does not guarantee you credit during a credit crunch.

It's sensible to check your reports every now and again (although you should do equifax as well) but it's possible there is nothing wrong and the company have just chosen not to lend to you.

jenny_13

As Lisyloo has said a good credit rating does not guarantee credit. People with excellent credit ratings can be declined if the creditor believes they won't be making any money out ofthe customer. Although it is a good idea to pay off credit card balances in full each month for the company it costs them money as they are having to lend you money but getting no return (interest).

NormW

Hi,

Many thanks for all the replies!

I only have 5k of debt (2 x car loans as one is in joint names) on my file then I've got my mortgage.

Maybe it might have something to do with the fact I usually clear my current card balance every month. I wanted the sainsburys card for the 0% as my current card is whatever HSBC's std APR etc is.

I need to find out why I was declined before I try elsewhere though incase there is something wrong on my file.

I also need to get in touch with the company who left the deplicate entries to find out what it was all about too! As the dates don't match anything I can think of!

PS - It asked about other monthly household income (or something like that) on the app so I put my partner's salary - was this the right thing to do?

nickmack

NormW wrote: »

Maybe it might have something to do with the fact I usually clear my current card balance every month. I wanted the sainsburys card for the 0% as my current card is whatever HSBC's std APR etc is.

This could well be a factor. If this information is analysed by Sainsburys, they could conclude that you are unlikely to provide them any profit from accruing interest.

I need to find out why I was declined before I try elsewhere though incase there is something wrong on my file.

Get hold of your files using the information in this article to see if there's any obvious issues. You usually only get a standard answer when you're refused which isn't incredibly helpful:

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/loans/credit-rating-credit-score#check

PS - It asked about other monthly household income (or something like that) on the app so I put my partner's salary - was this the right thing to do?

If they asked for household income then this seems fine. Do you have any income yourself?

lisyloo

I need to find out why I was declined before I try elsewhere though incase there is something wrong on my file.

You almost certinaly won't get a definite answer.
They won't reveal their system or any part of it.

You can only try to work out whether there are any errors by looking yourself.

The entries from the insurer are not credit checks and won't be send by other lenders.
They are only identity checks.

It's most likely the fact that you aren't the sort of customer they want.

NormW

Nickmack - I'm actually the main income, I earn betwen 20-30kpa, partner (it'll be wife in 4 months time!) earns just under 10kpa.

lisyloo - the only thing I could find was the large number of searches which it sounds like aren't all credit checks anyway.

I've fixed my problem, my current bank credit card limit has been upped by another £1k today, they also told me that according to their system my credit check was fine. It's not ideal as it's not a 0% card (= interest to pay) but it's still credit.

I must just not fit some of sainsbury's 'unpublished' criteria I guess.

Again, thankyou for all the replies!

nm123_2

My OH is in a similar situation - has a score of 827 and no outstanding debt, yet he can't seem to get a credit card. Ironically we want to get the credit card so that his score is even better........

marksoton

NormW wrote: »

Maybe it might have something to do with the fact I usually clear my current card balance every month. I wanted the sainsburys card for the 0% as my current card is whatever HSBC's std APR etc is.

If you get yourself in a position to clear the balance every month you wouldn't need to change cards.

Might be worth rejigging your finances and seeing if you can manage it....

izools

nm123 wrote: »

My OH is in a similar situation - has a score of 827 and no outstanding debt, yet he can't seem to get a credit card. Ironically we want to get the credit card so that his score is even better........

That score is only Experian's interpretation of your credit file. Every lender will have a different score sheet and apply a different score.

Experian's score sheet is so flawed that it doesn't even acknowledge defaults - I've seen three people's score totally unaffected by defaults appearing / dropping off so far - the Experian score is an absolute con.

Why do I have mine in my sig? Because if it is useful for one thing, it's to see if you are stepping in the right direction. It most certainly is no good to establish which category you fall into, as it will be different with each lender you apply to