Getting a Better Credit Card but 'Too Much Credit'

Catmaspudding

Hi all,


I am a student on a 4 year masters course. Unfortunately due to various reasons (including health) I started in 2010 and will not be finishing in till 2017. Obliviously my personal income is very low (student finance) and for the first 5 years my student overdraft and then credit card was maxed out. I never missed a payment and had phone contracts etc. My credit rating on clearscore is 439 out of 700. It seems there scores are always low as my last proper report though experian was almost max.

My partner has graduated, so I have slowly been in a better financial position, however his credit rating is non-existent due to various reasons (forgetfulness + no credit card + I had his phone contract + multiple address history + I had better bank), so I have all the 'credit' products.

I have a 'student issued' credit card with limit £3500, a student overdraft £2000 and a next card which always gives £5000 or something silly.

About two years ago I tried to apply for a tesco card as it was 0% on purchases and offers tesco points. I temporarily paid of my HSBC card so I didn't need a balance transfer, but I was declined as I had 'too much credit'. I wanted to close my HSBC card in favor of the tesco one, but I couldnt tell them that ofc.

Right now I need a credit card so I cant just close my old one and wait. The high credit limit is useful, but last year I spend almost £300 on interest. and in the past much more. I dont want to close my HSBC card without getting a new card, I am still a student, but I do have 5 years of borrowing history etc.

I was looking at the 'Virgin Money all round credit card' but would I get declined for the same reason (too much credit)? If I put a balance transfer does it show I want to close my other card and how much should I transfer? Will being a student still count against me that much? What kind of credit limit can I expect?

If I use clearscore to 'check eligibility' will that count against me?

It seems silly paying so much interest when there are free cards.

One more quick question: The maximum I can apply for in my HSBC student overdraft is £3000. But they auto increased my HSBC student credit card and not my overdraft. I am worried if I try to increase my overdraft (even if I had to decrease my credit card) I would get declined for the same reason? It seems silly they are forcing me to pay interest when they offer a free overdraft.

[Deleted User]

Why not close the Next account? A large amount of available credit on a low income will always be a problem.

Ignore the scores any CRA give you - they mean little and don't reflect how a lender will view you. As a student, your income is likely to be an critical important factor in being accepted/declined.

tomxlisa

Use one of the credit card eligible checkers and see what it says for you, if it gives you a good percentage for the card you want, go for it, if it declines you and they say too much available credit, reduce it and then you should be accepted.

Catmaspudding

Why not close the Next account?

Mostly because it is necessary to buy online. Being petite 6 I buy most of my clothes there in clearance (even though I really don't spend much). I have a hard time finding clothes that fit, but their jeans and short tops fit perfectly. My local store doesn't stock petite or clearance, and I love the free returns even on clearance items.

reduce it

Like I said I don't really want to reduce anything until I have an alternate source. My bf uses my credit card as well as me (he would panic if I reduced it as he worries about money too much), and on an income of £6000 I don't know how much I would need to reduce it to?

SuperHan

I'd suggest your boyfriend going to his bank and applying for a credit card there, or getting a credit-building card with Vanquis, Aqua etc.

With an income of £6k, you're going to be hard pressed to get many good CC deals (as how will you pay it back?), especially with our level of available credit, so maybe pursuing his options will be more fruitful.

However, on your points on the Next account, I shop there regularly both in store and online and although I know they did an ID check and gave me a customer number when I purchased from there, I've never purchased anything on account (I pay upfront by card) and I can't see any mention of a credit limit on either the My Account section of their website or on my credit report. So I don't think the credit account is necessary (and I get free returns on Clearance Items by returning them to store if I don't want them). Closing/reducing this will be your best bet, and if you aren't willing to do that, it's unlikely you'll get very far on your quest for more credit.

Catmaspudding

I'd suggest your boyfriend going to his bank and applying for a credit card there, or getting a credit-building card with Vanquis, Aqua etc.

Unfortunately he always gets rejected. He went abroad for a year in 2013 and went overdrawn by 50p on his UK account without realising (I assume that's why). I will get him to do a new credit check this weekend.

I will look at the next account though, thanks . It wont be so easy to order lots of clothes just to try on :P.

CLAPTON

Nixia wrote: »

I'd suggest your boyfriend going to his bank and applying for a credit card there, or getting a credit-building card with Vanquis, Aqua etc.

Unfortunately he always gets rejected. He went abroad for a year in 2013 and went overdrawn by 50p on his UK account without realising (I assume that's why). I will get him to do a new credit check this weekend.

I will look at the next account though, thanks . It wont be so easy to order lots of clothes just to try on :P.

I would be careful about trying to alter the next a/c: they might review your circumstances and decide to reduce it too much


you are most unlikely as a student with high debt levels to get a 0% CC

Your BF ought to get copies of all three of his credit files are see exactly what they say (ignore scores as being meaningless)
he is of course on the electoral roll.

Catmaspudding

The credit card checker here suggests 90% for the Halifax - Up to 24 mths 0% spending.

Should I go for it or does my amount of credit still look to high realistically?

Looks like next are really sneaky with opening credit accounts even if you don't directly ask and auto change your credit limit all the time (I didnt see anyone else with a limit as high as £5000 though! I think they run a credit check without looking at income?). Do companies take into account the fact that it is only a store card? I also understand that in some ways it is helping me as it makes my credit usage look lower?

I should mention my bf puts his money in my account and only ever uses my cards (dont ask why, hes just unorganized). Could I just add his income to mine? Or would it not count as it is not from a personal wage? My history clearly shows me paying off way more than £6000.

Thanks!

Catmaspudding

you are most unlikely as a student with high debt levels to get a 0% CC

Annoyingly my student card did originally come with a year interest free . I dont know of any other student cc. You are probably right.

I didnt go into detail at first but my bf has a 31k grant (paid in month ins) but he is still technically a post-grad student... HSBC student dosent seem to come with the year free now - maybe I made that up, I didnt use it until my third year as I was just offered it to get a credit rating

Candyapple

Your available credit limit is £10.5k and you earn £6k. I highly doubt you would be able to get another card, let alone a 0% one. However, you could apply and see, stranger things have happened. At best you can shift your debt to 0%, at worst you'll have a credit search on your files.

As you're a student your best bet is to try and increase your overdraft or open another student account with a different bank.

SuperHan

CLAPTON wrote: »

I would be careful about trying to alter the next a/c: they might review your circumstances and decide to reduce it too much

I was actually suggesting getting rid of it altogether, but yes, do bear this in mind if you are wanting to keep some of it.

I pay with a credit card on Next online though and then return before the month is up, so I can still buy lots and take it back without it actually hitting my actual funds.

And get your boyfriend to check his credit reports and try for a sub prime card as mentioned above. A 50p overdraft shouldn't be causing this issue (unless it was registered as a default).