o2 credit check

piter77

Hi all,

Yesterday I went to O2 store to apply for iPhone 4 on monthly contract. Everything started fine, the sales-lady was nice, helped me to choose a tariff (I agreed to pay 38,5/mth, before was thinking about 35/mth). As she gone through my credit check, the computer said that I should pay a 100 pound deposit. I agreed to that. But then one of her colleagues reminded her about some phone call (as it turned out it was the call to confirm my credibility) and then still having that person on the other side she told me that the deposit gonna be 300 pounds (not 100!). Even she was little surprised about that, but I don't she was in the power to do anything. We put my application on hold as I told her I must think about that. At home I even checked my credit score: Experian gives me 888 points. Could anyone tell me what could be wrong? Thanks!

Regards,
Piter

liubeliu

As others have posted elsewhere here, your Experian score isn't worth the money you paid for it as it is meaningless. Each lender (O2) in this case apply there own interpretation to the data held in your credit file.

The iPhone is a £499/£599 retail value phone. Have you got a current phone? Credit card balance? There is something which is requiring them to ask for a big upfront cost to minimise the risk it takes on releasing this premium priced phone. The fact that they haven't declined may mean what they have seen has only given them a little bit of concern but just want a bit of a guarantee.

boliston

That is quite a hefty deposit on a £500 phone (the cost you would pay for sim free/unlocked)!
There is no way i'd pay that when I'm also locking myself to a single network for 2 years.

Bosie

Just to say 02 actually do the credit check with Equifax and not with Experian, so best check the Equifax credit agency.

Oscar_The_Grouch

Hi there

If you do decide to go for the phone, you need to take the following into account:

1. Credit goes on your account
Whatever deposit you pay, O2 will apply this to your account. 3 months or so after your new contract starts, they begin taking the monthly tariff from the balance on your account rather than your bank. Paying a £300 deposit means that between months 4 and 10, you will pay nothing and on month 11, you will pay £8. Check exactly when they will begin using the credit up as it may differ from phone to phone.

2. Is it cheaper to buy the phone?
I presume that you are looking at the 24 month £40 with a discount to £38.50. Is this correct? If so, in addition to your deposit you will be paying £89 for the phone (16Gb) and your first months tariff making a total of (£300+£89+£38.50) £427.50. An extra £72 would buy you the phone outright, but you would still have to pay £25/month to get the same minutes, texts and internet as you are currently being offered, without the almost 8 month break you will get by getting the contract phone.

3. Tesco do it cheaper
Tesco have their own credit checking and they piggyback the O2 signal. From what I understand from other posters, it even comes up as "O2" on your iPhone. For £35 a month, you could get 750 minutes, unlimited texts and 1Gb internet by buying the phone from Tesco at £229 for the 16Gb or £299 for the 32. This is based on a 12-month contract rather than 24.

To be honest, I'd be going back to O2 and telling them what you can get from Tesco and seeing if they'll reduce back down to the £100 deposit. If not, go to Tesco and in 12 months time, go sim only.