Refused credit card, difficulty accessing credit rating

EmmaJ_3

I applied for a Natwest credit card quite a few weeks ago now for a 0% interest BT. It said instant online decision, but when I got to the final page it said they needed to make further checks and would be in touch.

Finally got a letter saying they've rejected my application. I've been straight onto the equifax website to use the loophole to see my credit rating, but I can't register for it - my last address (where I moved from just over a month ago) isn't listed. I've come up against this time and time again whilst living there, that it wasn't listed on automatic address finding services. It was a converted barn adjoining my landlord's property that we rented for 12 months during my final year at university.

Does anyone have any idea what I can do next? I'll see if I have the same problem with experian and callcredit but I suspect I will. I'm wondering if this is why I was refused the credit card - otherwise I think I'm a pretty good bet (professional on £25k salary, had credit card for 6 years as a student with my own bank, often run up a 3-4 figure sum, paid a few months minimum payment before paying off in full each student loan time). My other worry is that just before I moved, a credit card statement was sent to our old house addressed to someone with a very similar name to mine, which I opened by mistake thinking it was me, it was a credit card that had £5k run up on it that they were missing payments on. I know they haven't lived at that address for the 12 months I was there and the previous 18 months as I knew the previous tenants. I rang the company that card was with an informed them though.

What should I do next? I need to sort a graduate account asap (I've been caught out by the horrendous HSBC changes and will no longer automatically get an interest-free overdraft, which I need right now) so want to make sure my credit rating is ok. The 0% interest free BT credit card would really help out right now too!

EmmaJ_3

Yup experian also has address issues, I haven't tried callcredit as Natwest uses the other two according to the article.

this is quite upsetting really.

EmmaJ_3

Panic over!!

After reading another thread here I rang Natwest (I'd thought there was no point as the letter said they couldn't discuss it). Turns out there was some address confusion because I'm not on the electoral roll here yet and my current credit card is registered at my old address not this one (it's not anymore). They just want proof of address so I'll pop into a branch, which I need to anyway to check out graduate accounts!

Phew.

EmmaJ_3

Been into a branch and faxed off appropriate documents.

Apparently they're only going to give me a £400 limit though - which is a bit pants, the HSBC card I want to transfer from has a £4000 limit and the balance I want to transfer is nearly £1400.

I have to wait until it comes through for confirmation of the £400 - will it be worth ringing them afterwards to ask for an increase? Or applying for a second 0% bt card?

And 2nd question - the card also has 0% on new purchases for 3 months. Does this mean that any new purchases made in the first 3 months are interest free full stop, or they will start charging interest on new purchases after the 3 months is up? If I then paid new purchases off, would the amount I paid off come off the new purchases (so no interest) or off the balance transfer so they still charge interest on the new purchase amount?

Obviously I probably won't have any spare limit anyway but I like to try and understand these things.

CLAPTON

The 3 months 0% means they will start charging interest on all your purchases after the 3 months (i.e. purchases made in the 3 month period and those afterwards).. so not much of a deal really unless you clear the card in 3 months.

now will the payments come off the 'purchases' that will incur charges after 3 months or off the BT which has no interest ? well be real now what do you think.
Hence it is said NEVER purchase anything on a card used for a BT. (OK there are exceptions but its a good general rule).

Have two cards , one for the BT and one for purchases and don't mix the two.

EmmaJ_3

Right, it's taken them long enough, but yesterday I finally received a letter saying they've refused me as my credit score was too low.

I'm pretty peeved, if they'd told me this two weeks ago I could have already started applying for another card. I was told in the branch, that they just needed proof of my address to approve me, which I gave them. Nothing about credit score.

I've applied to equifax and experian for the free trial credit scoring just waiting for confirmation of that.

Is it worth at all ringing NatWest again to enquire about it? I've just opened a graduate account with RBS, as soon as I've sorted the credit score thing I'll apply to them for the same deal, I asked them about it when I was there sorting the account (they gave me a £2k overdraft with no problems and said I could extend it after the account is finalized if I wanted) and they said they could do me a balance transfer cc no problem, that was the graduate services person though don't know if he's allowed to approve that!!

I had to laugh at the wording of the NatWest letter. "As responsible lenders" - by refusing me a balance transfer they're costing me more in interest and my debt is growing. Hmph.

Dylanwing

"As responsible lenders"

Very much the Corporate B******s of the moment. The stock phrase if they are declining you, or reducing your limit. Once the wheel has turned back round, will we all get letters raising our limits with the phrase 'As irresponsible lenders'?

Regarding the decline, credit card Companies are being 'ultra-responsible' at present and declining rather a lot of applications for no obvious reason. Don't take it personally.

EmmaJ_3

I'm getting a bit panicky now.

RBS turned me down too, which I'm even more surprised about, as I've just taken out a graduate account with them with a £2k overdraft, and was told at the branch I could transfer my credit card no problem.

I've requested credit reports from both Equifax and Experian, who both requested further documents from me to prove who I am. Experian hasn't come through yet as they requested things via post. Equifax I faxed things to, and got an email saying membership approved, however when I log into the site, all I get is them trying to sell me credit reports, I can't find where the info I *thought* I signed up for is (the 30 days free trial of the creditwatch gold), if I go to sign up for that again, it's asking me to set up ANOTHER account with them. Needless to say, I'm very very confused now, and very worried that the £2k debt I have on my credit card is just going to grow as I can't pay it off at the moment and everything will spiral

jay78

RBS and Natwest are the same company.

EmmaJ_3

Yes, but there are obviously 2 different credit cards, and when I explained that NatWest were being funny about giving me a credit card, the person dealing with opening my account at RBS said they could give me a credit card with no problem, which was why I thought it would be ok.

I still don't know what to do, when I go to do the credit reference thing I have to start from scratch again and it doesn't like my old address. I'll have to ring customer services but have to wait until next thursday for another day off when I can phone during office hours

jay78

EmmaJ wrote: »

Yes, but there are obviously 2 different credit cards, and when I explained that NatWest were being funny about giving me a credit card, the person dealing with opening my account at RBS said they could give me a credit card with no problem, which was why I thought it would be ok.

I still don't know what to do, when I go to do the credit reference thing I have to start from scratch again and it doesn't like my old address. I'll have to ring customer services but have to wait until next thursday for another day off when I can phone during office hours

Yes but they are still the same company! Same scoring processes etc. The best thing to do is sought out the address issue with Experian/Equifax before you proceed any further. Btw not being on the electoral register can be an automatic decline with some lenders.