Help please - card application denied

DottieM

Hello, I'm brand new to the forum so please be nice to me.

I need a balance transfer card to transfer about £780 of debt from a Tesco credit card to somewhere else with 0% APR for at least 2 years. I have no other credit cards. I am a homeowner but my husband and I just purchased and moved to a new property and have only been in residence for 2 months. Previously, we owned our own home since 2007, and apart from a brief stint in Cambridge from May 2010-Dec 2011, we lived in it continuously. I changed to my new job in March 2015 and earn over £20k.

I used the MSE credit card eligibility checker and got 90% on a lot of different cards. The one that seemed best for my situation was the first one on the list: Virgin - 37mths 0%, 2.69% fee. Again, it was listed on my eligibility as "Very strong chance - 90% approval rate for this card."

I applied and unfortunately got turned down.

What can I do now? Should I contact Virgin and find out why they've said no? Has this harmed my credit rating? What did I do wrong? Do I have any chance at any other cards? Help! I really appreciate any help you guys can give me.

rolls99

If you have only recently moved, bear in mind that might make some lenders more wary - make sure your electoral roll is up to date and so on.


I think Virgin are one of the cards who don't "Down sell" - e.g. some cards offering 36 Months at 0% might not give you that but offer 24 or 12 or whatever - so you still get the 0% but not the headline rate.


If you've only recently applied in the last day or few, it could be worth trying something like Barclaycard where you could get perhaps the same (or a shorter) 0% period (although, don't apply for loads of cards but I don't think one more application will make much difference now).


The application to Virgin will not have "Harmed" your score*, it will only say "Credit search made by blaa blaa" - it does not say whether you are accepted or declined.


Lenders see these searches, so, obviously if you have a dozen searches sitting that will show; one or two won't really be a problem as such.


Even with the MSE eligibility checker, 90% means 1 in 10 are still declined, but you need to look at the write-ups for each card too: i.e. with Virgin not downselling they will only accept or reject - this makes the card harder to get than one which will possibly offer you a different promotion to the "Headline" one.


*although the CRAs give you a "Score/Rating" there is no such thing. All your credit report shows are facts; what credit you have, what you've paid, what searches you've made. Your only concern with your Credit report is keeping things in order and obviously not making barrages of applications too close together.

DottieM

I realised afterwards that I hadn't updated my Electoral Roll, so I've done that just now. I think I'll wait until I get confirmation I'm on the Electoral Roll for my new address before I try anything else, just in case that's one of the things sticking out.

Would the job change from this past March be a barrier? Would credit card companies want me to be in place for at least a year, for example?

rolls99

DottieM wrote: »

I realised afterwards that I hadn't updated my Electoral Roll, so I've done that just now. I think I'll wait until I get confirmation I'm on the Electoral Roll for my new address before I try anything else, just in case that's one of the things sticking out.

Would the job change from this past March be a barrier? Would credit card companies want me to be in place for at least a year, for example?

Sign up for your free report at the likes of "Noddle". Search the forums for posts on Credit reports and you'll get the gist.


In the meantime, if you are not on the electoral roll at your current address that is a problem as this is how lenders check that it is you making the application - it's "proof" of your residence there, without it, you don't "exist" at the address you're applying for.


Length of time in a job will probably be a factor but as with other things precisely what will vary between each lender but obviously the longer the better.