Credit Card Decilned even though excellent credit score...What gives?

Woolie32

Sorry this is a bit long but could do with some advice...

I was recently been declined for a Platinum 24 credit card with Lloyds. I wanted a balance transfer to an interest free card as my current 0% is about to end.

I have an above average credit rating, own my own home and only have 1 current credit card in use and 1 interest free loan for a sofa, so I wrote to them asking for further information and for them to reconsider the application, they told me I didnt pass their credit scoring (and no other info) but eventually they agreed to give me a card, but I had to go into the branch with the letter they sent and re-apply.

Once again the application was automatically declined and the guy at the bank had to have the decision overturned by someone on the phone, however I was only accepted for a stand card which was of no use to me at all, however he had managed to get that decision overturned and upgraded me to the Platinum 24... all was well and a balance transfer was set up and I would get the details through the post (although I may end up with 2 cards, the standard credit card and the upgraded card) Great... or so I thought!!!

The following friday I got the pin number for the standard card, which I was expecting and the next day I got the card along with a letter saying that the transfer to the platinum card had been declined... furious I phoned the number on the letter, they had no record of the application for the plat card and they could not shed any light on the situation, I had to go back into branch and speak to the person I applied with, he wasnt there but the woman I did speak to also said there was no info about the plat card which was odd as I had the credit agreement in my hand, she would chase it up on monday.

Monday, the guy at the branch couldnt understand what had happened and put me though to the complaints department and I went through the whole story AGAIN, and the woman said she would look into it and get back to me... to cut an already long story short the plat card was declined for reasons she could not tell me other than my credit score is not high enough (i thought 837 is pretty good myself) after ALOT of complaining they had agreed to give me the plat 13 card (for a pitiful amount of £1500) aparently the plat 24 is only available online (duh thats where i applied for it in the first place) so i agreed to take the card and not tell them to shove it because of the !!!!!! service as I didnt want to damage my credit further than Lloyds had probably already done. Im still waiting for the card to come through...

My questions are this..
1. has anyone else had any similar issues and what was the result
2. who the hell can tell you why a card has been declined and whats with all the secrecy when its my information they are looking at?
3. has the limit for credit cards been drastically reduced? (my current card has a limit of over £8k) as I was only offered £1500

Im very confused, I've never been declined for anything and no one can give me any answers for all the hassle ive been through to save some money.

YorkshireBoy

Woolie32 wrote: »

...my credit score is not high enough (i thought 837 is pretty good myself)

So do I. Why not see if the people who gave you the "score" will give you a card? Oh hang on...they don't issue cards do they. Ergo, the number is meaningless.

2. who the hell can tell you why a card has been declined and whats with all the secrecy when its my information they are looking at?

If they told you why they'd declined you, you may be tempted to embellish your details on the next application. You know, £5K on the salary, an extra 6 years time at address, etc, etc. That's why they won't tell you specifically.

3. has the limit for credit cards been drastically reduced? (my current card has a limit of over £8k) as I was only offered £1500

Have you thought that they may consider you have ample available credit already, in relation to your salary and other financial circumstances? Just because you have a decent limit on this card doesn't mean they'll give you the same. For example, I've amassed a near £25 limit on my MBNA card over the years. I don't expect other lenders to match it. After all, they've no guarantee I'll close it down...and if I don't I'll have £50K of available credit across these two cards - plus the other £40K+ I have on my other cards.

The_Boss

The "credit score" that you consider to be good is a big steaming pile of dung with very little worth. It doesn't exist in the real world, only in the world of the CRA it was purchased from.

Woolie32

Thanks YorkshireBoy, you've made some interesting points that I hadn't though of, I actually wasn't expecting them to match anywhere near my current card, only the amount of the transfer I wanted to do.

So are you also saying that the credit scoring system is a waste of time and not worth the pixels its displayed in, so why do they bother with it at all? where does this leave the consumer? they say that when you get declined... check your credit score but whats the point if it means !!!!!! all?

so where does that leave me? My current credit card is about to start charging me 18% ish and the new Lloys card im getting isnt enough to cover the whole transfer of £1800. Do I just transfer what I can and suck it up and pay a few months interest on the remaing amount?

PeacefulWaters

(i thought 837 is pretty good myself)

If your score isn't 999 you need to be looking at your credit file and looking for the weaknesses.

As others have said, the number is meaningless. Many would describe it as a random number. While there is a bit more science behind it than that, different lenders do things in different ways at different times. So a number from a company that doesn't issue credit cards doesn't help.

So what are the weaknesses?

Are you a Lloyds customer?

If so, how complete is your relationship with them?

Are you registered to vote?

Are your other debts increasing or declining?

How long have you been at your address?

How long have you been in your job?

Are there any potentially negative markers on the credit file (as you're way short of 900 let alone 999)?

Nice_Weather_For_Ducks

I guess the bank feels that they wont make money out of you be issuing a balance transfer card, and that they may actually lose money.

You could have a credit score of 1,000,000 but if you never pay interest who would want to lend to you?

YorkshireBoy

PeacefulWaters wrote: »

If your score isn't 999 you need to be looking at your credit file and looking for the weaknesses.

Many people with no, or very little, credit history are given a score of 999 by Experian*, providing there are no 'black marks' and they're on the ER. So having a 999 Experian credit score can be as bad as having a 700 Experian score to some lenders. Witness the many grumbles on these forums by such people..."My score is 999 and I was declined!"




* Source: Martin Lewis and James Jones (from Experian) on TV last year.

YorkshireBoy

Woolie32 wrote: »

...so why do they bother with it at all?

By "they" you mean Experian et al? Well that's easy...it's a money generator (for anything other than if you get it free with the 30 day trials)!

they say that when you get declined... check your credit score but whats the point if it means !!!!!! all?

They don't say "check your credit score". They say "We based our decision on information obtained from Experian. Here are there contact details should you wish to check the data they hold", or words to that effect.


Whilst it's true that some lenders (around 150 in the UK) take 'a' credit scorecard from Experian, this is most definitely not the score that Experian sell to Joe Public.

so where does that leave me? My current credit card is about to start charging me 18% ish and the new Lloys card im getting isnt enough to cover the whole transfer of £1800. Do I just transfer what I can and suck it up and pay a few months interest on the remaing amount?

Yes you do. Then you apply elsewhere for the rest. Lloyds always used to be picky if you didn't bank with them. I've no reason to believe that stance has changed.

CherlokHomes

If your score isn't 999 you need to be looking at your credit file and looking for the weaknesses.

Complete wrong information.

Woolie32

Nice_Weather_For_Ducks wrote: »

I guess the bank feels that they wont make money out of you be issuing a balance transfer card, and that they may actually lose money.

You could have a credit score of 1,000,000 but if you never pay interest who would want to lend to you?

This is what im starting to think.... I have been thinking of this from my point of view and not the banks... I probably wouldn't want me as a customer either from that point of view hahaha

Woolie32

YorkshireBoy wrote: »

Lloyds always used to be picky if you didn't bank with them. I've no reason to believe that stance has changed.

Funny you should say that as he looked VERY suprised that I didnt have a bank account with them im sure I heard him mutter something along the lines of 'you normally have to have an account' but he didnt stop the application..
I didnt really think it would matter people dont have a bank account with every credit card they have, in fact my own bank has nothing to do with the credit cards they have their name on, they are treated as completely different businesses...