Just finshed IVA - Can i get mobile phone contract?

billsbills79

Hi all,

Just finished my IVA (August 2009) - debt free!!! - and I would like to get a mobile phone contract, nothing silly I just know I could get more for my money than I do on PAYG. I've tried Orange and Vodaphone but both turned me down....

Is it a case of waiting for my credit file to repair itself or are some network providers stricter than others??

Any help would be great?!!

P.S - Oh any tips for getting my credit rating back on the appealing side?

Jon_01

From what I understand the IVA stays on your file for 6 years and will have an effect on any kind of contract.
Some networks will give you a contract if you leave a deposit of £150 which you get back at the end of your minimum term.

happychappy74

I finished my IVA (by Full and Final offer) in July 09.

Since then I have made sure all my Credit reports are accurate (has been a long time and a pain in the a***. Deal with this part first as I was amazed how companies recorded info against my file that bore no resemblance to reality. Still chasing Egg up after 4 months now, but nearly there.

I have green 0's on my credit report from the following:

- my Nationwide account (nofrills/no credit facility).
- £4.95 per month loan payment (running for 12 months) via CashPlus prepayment card, with CreditBuilder facility after a month or so. This is a bog standard pre-payment card which cost £4.95 per month (Guaranteed acceptance). You then apply for the CreditBuilder which effectively Loans the full years payemnts, but you just pay off each month as you would anyway. Details are here on the site.
- Vanquis Credit Card (others are listed on the Sub Prime Credit thread here on the site). My £250 limit went up to £500 after 4 months. High interest rate, but I just pop petrol on and pay it off in full each month.

I tried for a phone contract through shops and internet sites. No chance. I tried the pay monthly SIM only deals. Rejected for all the main ones, but was accepted by 3 (they have a reputation for wanting customers). This is costing £10 per month and I can then upgrade to a full contract after 3 months or so.

Hope this has helped you a little.

:beer:

Exemplar

There are a few deals for people with less than perfect credit scores out there on the interweb..... also some of the networks will occasionally drop their credit score benchmarks to attract new customers. I believe that T-Mobile are usually the easiest to get onto as they specialise in the BME markets.

mobilejunkie

I know of one case where O2 accepted someone in this situation (with a substantial deposit amounting to about half the contract value); a year or two later (without any subsequent adverse credit file events) the person was refused a contract (but that was at the height of the credit crunch when no-one was prepared to take any risk at all). However, during that period the person successfully obtained a T-Mobile contract without a deposit - so might well be worth ordering one with them (the successful contract went through a dealer rather than direct, though direct might offer a higher percentage of success).

greyster

try a sim only contract with t-mobile, especially the SOLO FIXED plans. Once you've been on that for a while, you can upgrade to a phone based contract. The sim only plans are better value anyway because you don't have to pay towards a handset.

Exemplar

Agree with junkie and grey. Get a sim only and NORMALLY after 3 x months you can upgrade to a full contract. I did this to get SWMBO an iPhone on O2.

kendalls_cave

I don't have an IVA but very bad credit rating. I got a contract with T-mobile. Now into my second contract with them.

banger9365

i have to wait for the 6 years to be up before i could get a contract and 6years one month later was offered 2 on each network ,put it was 6 years ago ,i only got one ,it was enough

happychappy74

Without wanting to sound too cynical, but it is hard, I have seen various posts on different threads in which people are saying along the lines of 'I know of a case/lad/mate/relative who was in a similar position but still got a contract with a large deposit' yet there never seem to be any tangible advice or info attached e.g. The brokers/shops/internet sites details, the actual deposit, confirmation of return of the deposit, or more importantly a post by anyone who has actually done this themselves and can vouch for the process.

I am in a similar position to billsbills79 who started this thread and having read as many threads on this subject I saw many such posts so I kept trying to locate this mythical contract. No such luck. Instead I do now have a andful of searches on my file which now need to drop off, as everybody knows.

I am not saying such contracts dont exist, but after an IVA it appears lucky to be offered a sim only deal. Take what you can get.

And if anyone see's a unicorn or a little chap dressed in green with a pot of gold, let me know.

Cheers. :rotfl:

banger9365

i got a IVA back in 2000 payed it up early ,3years early (2003) ,
tried for a contracted and got turned down because it was still on my credit report ,never got offered pay a deposit to get one,
so waited anther 3 years(jan 2006) and tried again ,got turned down ,still showing on my report ,
waited 4 to 6weeks later ,got my credit report ,it was not showing ,
so i went to cpw to try for a contract (holding no illusion that i will get turned down and told them that ),
i did not have a credit card ,only passport,driving licence and gas bill with me ,
they did a credit cheque on all net works ,to see which one came back has ok ,
they all came back saying i could take 2 phone each network ??baffles me even now,when i think about it .
got one on t-mobile (only one)and still got it today
and wife was the same got offered two per net work
and my credit score is still 999 would you beleave looked 4th jan 2010

this is what happend to me and wife after a IVA trying for a mobile phone contracted