Barclaycard initial 11 February 2013 at 1:44PM in Stoozing: free cash from credit cards 33 replies 7.4K views

pixypup

Hi all, new to the forum and my question relates to the above card. I've gone through the soft check service they offer for this card and cam back saying I had an 70/80 per cent chance of being succesful, so I applied and it came back saying I would get a decision in 5 days. Can anyone tell me what the chances are of me being successful? I don't care howsmall a limit they gave me as I am just using it to build up my credit which currently sits at "fair" with experience.

Thanks

stephane_2

Your application is gone to an underwriter to be looked at manually....you've got 50/50 chance of being accepted...could go either way.

GoonerGregg

There are many factors too whether you will be accepted or not.
You can have a good credit rating, but still be declined.
Your acceptance rate depends on whether you have credit already and you are running this credit with payments made on time etc, or whether you have defaults or CCJ's on your credit file in which case, it's highly unlikely you'll be accepted by any credit card lender.

But as you describe you have a fair credit file history, I would say the criteria to become succesful on getting a Barclaycard Initial would be whether you've made any other applications for credit in the last 3 months? If so, how many? If you have made too many, then your chances are lowered significantly.

If your clear of defaults etc, and you have mantained your payments on other agreements too date, and you have not applied for more than say 2 or 3 different types of credit, then I'd say you have a very good chance of getting your card.

Bare in mind the Initial card is a high APR rate, and my advice to you would be if in theory your limit is £250, then I would not go beyond £200. Treat the limit as £200. This way you'll always be in credit, and not over your limit, and of course make your regular monthly payments on time.

I hope this helps.

Best of luck.

droiderm

Just closed mine. Had it open for 3-4 months , never used it.
Rang to close it, they said they could try and increase the limit, or open a "Freedom" account with 21.9% APR.
I decided to close it anyway, might be worth a try at a later date.

pixypup

Thanks goonergregg! The only credit I have is my contract mobile phone which I've had for a year with no missed payments, I have two standard bank accounts with no poor history, the purpose of me getting a card is to build my score as I said earlier as I want to increase my chances of getting say a mortgage or car finance in the future, I have a very well paying job and am in steady employment, if my application fails, any suggestions??? Many thanks

Pixypup

izools

If your application fails there is the Capital One Classic, Aqua Mastercard, and Vanquis Visa, all designed for those with no or poor credit history.

Hopefully Barclaycard will give you a chance though, good luck!

GoonerGregg

I'd say you've got a great chance! 70-80% chance is about right.

Bearing in mind you want to possibly obtain a mortgage, I'd would of opted for a more established credit card like say MBNA, ok you'd end up with a bigger credit limit, but if you treat all credit with care, and pay regular, it really does bode well with your rating.

Don't apply for credit once your granted the initial for at least 6 months to a year. You'll gain a fantastic credit reputation on that basis.

pixypup

Much thanks I will keep posted on whether I'm successful or not, another question! My wife has a single ccj on her file that is due to come off in March, this is the only blemish on her file, once it is gone, will her rating improve immediately or will it take some time? Once again, many thanks, I've so many more questions!!! Lol

pixypup

Stephanie, can you explain more? Thanks so much!

stephane_2

With the information you've provided....and the search they've made on your credit report, the system has referred your application to be looked at in more details by an underwriter to be assessed manually. They may decide then to either accept your application or decline it, they may also ask you to provide more details to backup your application like payslips, bank statement, proof of address...etc....

pixypup

So is this then a case of person says no as opposed to computer says no!? The fact it flat out hasn't been declined is good right? Thanks a bunch for your help, any more advice would be grrrrrreat!!!