Haggling/Switching network on poor credit record

arism74

I've been with Orange for about 10 years but I'm now fed up with them and got very disappointed by the way they dealt with a fault that my phone had developed in July. Looking around, I also saw some better deals for the Samsung S3 so I'm considering leaving them now that my contract is about to end

I'm a bit cautious though, as my credit score is not that good (according to Experian it's 'poor', approaching towards 'good'). If I try to haggle Orange and they refuse to give me the S3 for free, how strong does your credit record have to be to move to start a new contract with another network? (The one I have in mind is O2 and the deal I am interested in is on affordablemobiles - found it on MSE's comparison site for S3s).

Also, if I proceed to try to get a contract with a new network and get declined, can I still get back to Orange and upgrade with them?

Sorry if any of this seems commonsense, I haven't done this before so I'd appreciate any suggestions.

Thanks
A

MrSilk

Don't take any notice of the Experian credit score as it is useless.

You can try O2, they could ask for a deposit or straight out decline you.

Have you missed any payments in the last few years?, are you on the electoral roll? - Do you have credit elsewhere?

If you try O2 before you cancel Orange and they decline you, then you could always upgrade with Orange. If you cancel Orange then re-apply, they will re-credit check you and that may fail.

If they do decline, you could take out a 30 day rolling SIM, then upgrade after 3 months.

arism74

Actually the Experian score is quite similar to the one by Noddle and the quick credit score calculators on here and other relevant sites (moneysupermarket, etc.)

I've missed a couple of payments during the last year, but I am on the electoral roll and have two credit cards

If I can try with O2 before cancelling with Orange and that gives me the option to still upgrade with Orange before the end of the contract, I think I may give that a try.