Do mobile phone contracts go on your credit raring? Or help it?

Jlawson118

I've always seen my mum or step dad pay for a contract and the phone shops always run a credit check. But I recently signed up for my first contract last week, £40 a month and they did run the credit check and I completely forgot that they do it, but it went through and cleared straight away.

But I saw somebody on MSE the other day, writing about their daughter couldn't get credit despite earning a lot of money, and stated that she was unable to get a phone contract because of this. She's around the same age as me, 20 and it made me wonder in what way is credit scoring used on phone contracts? Like why would she be rejected?

sourcrates

Hi,


Any number of reasons, she may have defaults, late payments, may not be on the electoral role, she may have a sketchy address history, the list goes on.


All networks credit check you for a contract, however a credit check is only one element to opening a mobile contract, the easiest network to get a contract with is EE, as they have the least qualifying criteria.

Fergie76

sourcrates wrote: »

Hi,


Any number of reasons, she may have defaults, late payments, may not be on the electoral role, she may have a sketchy address history, the list goes on.

I believe the OP is talking about thread I started about my daughter. She has never had any credit, so no defaults or late payments. She has been on electoral since she was old enough to be and we have lived at our current address for nearly 10 years.

I think it is the lack of credit history that is counting against her, but then she is stuck in the cycle of not getting credit because she has no history and and can't get a history as she can't get credit.

Noddle says they can't produce a credit report for her as they don't hold enough information.

sourcrates

Fergie76 wrote: »

I think it is the lack of credit history that is counting against her, but then she is stuck in the cycle of not getting credit because she has no history and and can't get a history as she can't get credit.
.

Try EE, online from there website, or one of there associate websites, as far as I know all you need is a valid debt card and your accepted.


She may have to put down a refundable deposit though.

Kim_13

It does go on it, but is one of the easier forms of credit to get.

I got a contract for £35 a month at 18, with nothing else except one bank account. The untouched £500 student overdraft might have helped though. The credit check was via a debit card. They must have a way of checking how much goes into your account, so as to decide if the contract is affordable for the customer.

I was on the electoral roll and this can lead to rejections if you are not on it. Sounds like she is not if Noddle can't produce a report. I was put down on the form as soon as I was old enough but the council ignored it the first time and it had to be done again.

Fergie76

Kim_13 wrote: »

It does go on it, but is one of the easier forms of credit to get.

I got a contract for £35 a month at 18, with nothing else except one bank account. The untouched £500 student overdraft might have helped though. The credit check was via a debit card. They must have a way of checking how much goes into your account, so as to decide if the contract is affordable for the customer.

I was on the electoral roll and this can lead to rejections if you are not on it. Sounds like she is not if Noddle can't produce a report. I was put down on the form as soon as I was old enough but the council ignored it the first time and it had to be done again.

Like I have said in earlier posts, my daughter has been on the electoral roll since she was old enough to be and has received voting cards for every election since then. Whether it's been reported to the CRA's I don't know?

What's the best way of checking?

DCFC79

Fergie76 wrote: »

Like I have said in earlier posts, my daughter has been on the electoral roll since she was old enough to be and has received voting cards for every election since then. Whether it's been reported to the CRA's I don't know?

What's the best way of checking?

Best way of checking what ?

If shes on the ER, it will be on her reports, if there's no address listed for her then she might not be on it. She can check with the council.

Regarding phone contracts, buy a phone outright and go sim only.

GingerBob_3

To answer the question posed by the OP, specifically the 'Or help it?' bit:


Bear in mind that one negative on a credit file equates to about 10,000 positives, so it makes sense to minimise non-credit accounts that can easily result in negatives. Mobile phone accounts are of that type. However, we've all got mobiles, so all you can do is try and find one that reports you to the fewest agencies, or even go PAYG. The problem: complicated contracts and T&Cs result in confusion and errors. The companies take no prisoners - one mistake and you're blacklisted. Be on the lookout for what your mobile provider is reporting about you.

20aday

I've been a Vodafone customer for the last three years (not for much longer mind) and they report to my credit files.

Don't know if it's ever helped me obtain credit products elsewhere though.

takman

GingerBob wrote: »

To answer the question posed by the OP, specifically the 'Or help it?' bit:


Bear in mind that one negative on a credit file equates to about 10,000 positives, so it makes sense to minimise non-credit accounts that can easily result in negatives. Mobile phone accounts are of that type. However, we've all got mobiles, so all you can do is try and find one that reports you to the fewest agencies, or even go PAYG. The problem: complicated contracts and T&Cs result in confusion and errors. The companies take no prisoners - one mistake and you're blacklisted. Be on the lookout for what your mobile provider is reporting about you.

What a load of uniformed rubbish!.

Where is your evidence that 1 negative equals about 10,000 positives?.

If this is true then how can you explain that someone I know who has defaulted on 5 mobile phone contracts and a credit card that have all gone to debt collectors took out a new phone contract about 6 months ago for a £700 phone?. Which funnily enough they are already hundreds of pounds behind in payments.
This is all listed on their credit report and they phone company also carried out a credit search which is listed on the same report when giving the contract.

So how did they get this contract if what you say about credit reports and "blacklists" are true?.

greengrass1234

Oddly BT choose not to put anything on your credit report for most of the their services including BT mobile but 02 and EE are very quick to update it.