Beware REDUCING your Overdraft with Natwest they'll do a credit check against you!

mazy_m

So I was trying to be sensible today. I decided to reduce my Overdraft from £1,000 which I haven't used in ages to £100 just in case. When taken through to lending too do this she informed me i'd have a credit check against me for this. I was appalled.. I'm trying to be sensible and they want to do a search on my file!!

To make matters worse a few months ago I rang up and reduced this from £2,000 to £1,000 and wasn't informed then there would be a credit check against me or I wouldn't have bothered reducing it.

It just seems wrong that they need to do a credit check to REDUCE it surely if I want to give you back the £900 you have practically sitting in my bank account doing nothing then you should penalise me for it!

Sorry RANT over!! grrrrr!!

Maz

Gromitt

Natwest consider an increase OR decrease in overdraft as a "Remove existing overdraft and create a new overdraft". And of course the last requires a credit check.

Lots of other banks treat it the same way. So unless your need the additional credit (perhaps you are applying for a new CC), there's no reason to request a reduction.

mazy_m

Thanks. Well as soon as I was informed of this I told them not to bother I'm not about to apply for anything. I just didn't want the temptation in my way!

I do wish they had told me this when I originally reduced it from £2,000 to £1,000 as I wouldn't have done this either.

CLAPTON

why is it so awful to have a credit search on your file?

however, although, it's not always the received wisdom on these boards, I'm a great believe of letting sleeping dogs lie or if it isn't broken don't fix it.

Gromitt

Perhaps if you want to apply for a credit card then having an overdraft request just days earlier (even if it was a reduction, as in this case) could be seen as someone in financial difficulty?