Credit Score 999 Declines Conundrum - Help!

Carter1984

Hello,
I need help, i have 3 credit cards, all pretty much maxed out bar about £100 on each. The repayments are stupidly high (minimum only) and i need a loan to get them paid off. My credit rating is the best it can be at 999, i've never missed payments, no CCJ's etc, homeowner and all that jazz, but i was declined by my bank HSBC for a loan which would have saved me over £300 a month on credit card repayments and helped me get out debt! The computer said NO because i went over my overdraft limit twice in the last few months due to the credit card repayments shooting up.
If my own bank wont help me, is there anyone who will? I desperately want to get the cards paid off and save all that money per month - i've also just applied for another credit card which also got declined even though i fulfilled all of their criteria.

Can anyone shed any light on why I am being declined when i have a perfect score and also are there any loan lenders out there who will help me clear these cards?

Thank you!
Carter

ILW

It is likeley you are being declined because you already have a lot of credit compared to your income.
The credit scores are a waste of money as they take no account of any income.

katsu

Credit scores are a thing made up to make money from you. Lenders look at your credit record and see your borrowing and conduct, they don't look at a number created by the Credit Reference Agency. Getting your score seems to be a waste of money from what I can tell.

The fact you have gone over your overdraft limit twice is probably a key factor and depending on how your debt compares to your income you might have too much credit already.

Look at Martin's articles and if the interest rates on the cards have risen recently see if you can reject the rate rises. This would mean you can't spend any more money on the cards but as they are nearly full that doesn't seem a problem.

Hax

The score you have paid money for is worthless as all banks, etc will have their own scoring mechanisms.

You say all your credit cards are up to their limits - this is a very bad sign for any potential lender as it shows that you have been using your credit cards to extend your wages and have not been able to control your spending very well.

It could also be that you are being declined on affordability. What is your salary? What are the limits on your cards?

If your own bank has said "no" then it's unlikely that other mainstream lenders will say "yes".

As for exceeding your overdraft - that too is a bad sign and it's not the fault of the cards, it's because you haven't got your spending under control. It might be worthwhile posting an SOA on the Debt Free Wannabe board. Have a read of this post to help you get started: click me!

FWIW: You can reject a rate rise on a card. This results in the account being closed to new transactions and you being able to pay off the balance at the "old" interest rate.

Carter1984

Thanks, can let me know which articles? Looks like i'll be cancelling my credit expert account then ( Such a false sense of security, i was thrilled when i saw my score, ho hum!

opinions4u

Carter1984 wrote: »

Can anyone shed any light on why I am being declined when i have a perfect score and also are there any loan lenders out there who will help me clear these cards

You have answered your own question.

I need help, i have 3 credit cards, all pretty much maxed out bar about £100 on each. The repayments are stupidly high (minimum only) and i need a loan to get them paid off. My credit rating is the best it can be at 999, i've never missed payments, no CCJ's etc, homeowner and all that jazz, but i was declined by my bank HSBC for a loan which would have saved me over £300 a month on credit card repayments and helped me get out debt! The computer said NO because i went over my overdraft limit twice in the last few months due to the credit card repayments shooting up. If my own bank wont help me, is there anyone who will? I desperately want to get the cards paid off and save all that money per month - i've also just applied for another credit card which also got declined even though i fulfilled all of their criteria.

Why would any lender want to take on debts that it appears you are struggling to afford?

As Hax posted: It might be worthwhile posting an SOA on the Debt Free Wannabe board.

GeorgeUK

The credit card company that declined you - did they give a reason? If not, call to enquire as to why. Not to argue about the decision but to see why you were declined. It may be possible to appeal the decision.

I would not get any more credit right now. You can have about 3 credit checks in a 6 month period before your credit score is affected. Paying to see what your credit score is from the credit reference agencies isn't really worth it - they don't take into account little details such as your wage. Each company has a different way of calculating this.

I would put together a statement of affairs in the first instance. You may be able to find areas to make savings or cut back on certain things that you don't need right now. You can post it up here for others to try to look at.
https://www.makesenseofcards.com/soacalc.html

Have you checked your credit file (free at experian if you cancel within 30 days) to ensure that everything in there is in order. Are you registered on the electoral roll at that address, and check that there is no discrepency with previous addresses. Also check to see if you have any accounts that you do not use, but are not closed - you may be able to make use of them.

Have the cards been increasing the interest rates? Sometimes they increase them by 10% or more, but you can write to them to close the account. This would mean that you would not be able to use the cards but would be paying it off at the previous interest rate.

katsu

Cancel the account and if you want to check your credit record, order the statutory report instead for just £2!

Click on cards and loans at the top of the site tabs and it should explain about rate-jacking and refusing rate increases.

ILW

Carter1984 wrote: »

Thanks, can let me know which articles? Looks like i'll be cancelling my credit expert account then ( Such a false sense of security, i was thrilled when i saw my score, ho hum!

The CreditExpert account is OK for keeping an eye on any dodgy items or searches that may turn up. The credit score they charge extra for is money down the drain.

industryinsider2

The three digit number you mention is a Fair Isaac score or a FICO and it should be a great little tool for making some quick judgements about an applicant's credit worthiness. The problem is that they are not reliable and no-one (not even the representatives that I've spoken to at the three credit reference agencies) know how the number is formulated. I have seen files of people with really bad credit still show scores of 800+ and likewise people with no blemishes at all show a sub 600 number so it's no indication on what lending decision to make.

As others have mentioned it's more likely that you've been turned down because of your balance to limit ratio.

ILW

industryinsider2 wrote: »

The three digit number you mention is a Fair Isaac score or a FICO and it should be a great little tool for making some quick judgements about an applicant's credit worthiness. The problem is that they are not reliable and no-one (not even the representatives that I've spoken to at the three credit reference agencies) know how the number is formulated. I have seen files of people with really bad credit still show scores of 800+ and likewise people with no blemishes at all show a sub 600 number so it's no indication on what lending decision to make.

As others have mentioned it's more likely that you've been turned down because of your balance to limit ratio.

The fact that it takes no account of income, makes it worthless to a consumer.