My mum has been refused credit by O2!!!

katangel26

Hi all, I'm new so please be nice lol. My mum has applied for a sim only contract from O2. She got an email today saying that she's been refused credit by equifax (who they do their credit checks with).

She is with O2 already, but on a pay as you go sim card which, as I've explained to her, is costing her more.

My Mum has no debts and has always paid everything on time.

I was wondering, as O2 only asked for her current address and her previous one (no dates were asked for as I filled out the online application form for her), if property is still blacklisted as well as people. The lady that lived there before her commited at least one crime that we know of that was fraudulent with the local council.

My Mum has only lived in her current address for 3 months.

I know she can pay and get a credit check done through Equifax but I am really annoyed for her as she shouldn't have to as she's done nothing wrong!

Can anyone shed any light on anything please.

Thanks, Kate x

matrix999

katangel26 wrote: »

Hi all, I'm new so please be nice lol. My mum has applied for a sim only contract from O2. She got an email today saying that she's been refused credit by equifax (who they do their credit checks with).

She is with O2 already, but on a pay as you go sim card which, as I've explained to her, is costing her more.

My Mum has no debts and has always paid everything on time.

I was wondering, as O2 only asked for her current address and her previous one (no dates were asked for as I filled out the online application form for her), if property is still blacklisted as well as people. The lady that lived there before her commited at least one crime that we know of that was fraudulent with the local council.

My Mum has only lived in her current address for 3 months.

I know she can pay and get a credit check done through Equifax but I am really annoyed for her as she shouldn't have to as she's done nothing wrong!

Can anyone shed any light on anything please.

Thanks, Kate x

Hi Kate,

You talk about the previous occupier commiting at least one crime you know about... This doesn't matter as addresses are no longer blacklisted so as your mum has only just moved into her new house in the last 3 months O2 will normally ask for a previous address to match her to the electoral role register and to cross reference her old addresses with her creditors to see if she has any bad debts, but as you say she hasn't so i personally think its unusual for O2 to refuse your mum.

There must be some minor detail thats making her fail the credit check..Normally O2 are very good for accepting new customers, they usually ask for a £75-£100 deposit if you have a less than perfect credit history that can be refunded if you maintain your account correctly.

You could contact Equifax for a copy of your credit report just to double check it and call O2 to appeal their decison.

System

matrix999 wrote: »

Hi Kate,

You talk about the previous occupier commiting at least one crime you know about... This doesn't matter as addresses are no longer blacklisted so as your mum has only just moved into her new house in the last 3 months O2 will normally ask for a previous address to match her to the electoral role register and to cross reference her old addresses with her creditors to see if she has any bad debts, but as you say she hasn't so i personally think its unusual for O2 to refuse your mum.

There must be some minor detail thats making her fail the credit check..Normally O2 are very good for accepting new customers, they usually ask for a £75-£100 deposit if you have a less than perfect credit history that can be refunded if you maintain your account correctly.

You could contact Equifax for a copy of your credit report just to double check it and call O2 to appeal their decison.

Or you could go to phones4u where some spotty salesman in a really bad suit will force the application through because he's desperate for his commission!!

UNDERGROUND

matrix999

UNDERGROUND wrote: »

Or you could go to phones4u where some spotty salesman in a really bad suit will force the application through because he's desperate for his commission!!

UNDERGROUND

Made me laugh!! :rotfl:

katangel26

Thanks for your replies.

I understand what you're saying, but the last building and address that I gave on my Mum's applicatiion form was a previous building that she ran from when the building was made (my Mum is a Housing Manager at a retirement home) so we know that the bad credit cannot be from then as the property was brand new (although in a different county) but it was a registered new address when she moved in and had no bad credit there!

She is applying for a 'sim only contract', no phone, only £20 a month direct debited and considering she pays more a month than that now and they take it off her by her debit card, she's annoyed and puzzled and I'm confused!

Kate x

Alec_Eiffel_2

Hi kate. I def recommend your mum gets a copy of her credit files from all three agencies. I've got mine three times in the last four years and on two occasions there were mistakes. It is def worth the six quid it costs in total. Or she can just get the experian one for two quid if that's what o2 use.

Woby_Tide

katangel26 wrote: »

She is applying for a 'sim only contract', no phone, only £20 a month direct debited and considering she pays more a month than that now and they take it off her by her debit card, she's annoyed and puzzled and I'm confused!

Kate x

The difference is on PAYG she only can spend what she has in credit, whilst the contract is 'only £20 a month', thats the upfront charges, the extra call charges she 'could' make is unlimited and the risk that O2 are calculating.

System

katangel26 wrote: »

Thanks for your replies.

I understand what you're saying, but the last building and address that I gave on my Mum's applicatiion form was a previous building that she ran from when the building was made (my Mum is a Housing Manager at a retirement home) so we know that the bad credit cannot be from then as the property was brand new (although in a different county) but it was a registered new address when she moved in and had no bad credit there!

She is applying for a 'sim only contract', no phone, only £20 a month direct debited and considering she pays more a month than that now and they take it off her by her debit card, she's annoyed and puzzled and I'm confused!

Kate x

Hi Kate

Sorry about the jokey reply, I realise it wasn't very helpful!!

Credit searches go by name as well as address. They don't search one without the other, so you don't have to worry about someone elses bad credit record is affecting your mum's application. There is no such thing as a 'blacklist' just a personal history of credit accounts held at all addresses over the last six years. The only thing that goes by address alone is CIFAS fraud warnings, these could be from anyone that lives at the address, but if it isn't in the searched persons name, it shouldn't prevent an application going through.

Although it's only a £20/mth contract there is potential for people to run up massive bills on top of the basic contract cost, so networks do have to be careful who they take on.

Like someone else said, O2 are usually pretty good and will offer a contract even if they do ask for a deposit. If your sure your mum's credit record is good I would double check that the application was completely accurate (ie addresses, timesclales etc).

And as the last poster said it'd be a good idea to check credit files, there could be inaccuracies lurking about on them which has caused the application to fail.

Or you could go to phones4u!!

Regards
UNDERGROUND

thesaint

It is possible that she doesn't appear on the electoral role at her new address yet.

katangel26

Thanks for all your replies. the saint - we've worked out that she isn't yet on the electoral role where she is yet. Her bill gets paid by the company she works for so she didn't have any need yet to inform them as such.

I've made her phone up the council and tell them that she's living there. She's ending up topping up her pay as you go phone again now so she'll reapply for the sim only contract from o2 again after another month.

Thanks for all your help, you've been stars x

lolarentt

Little story to show often these people just don't know what they're doing anyway! Early last year I applied for a T Mobile contract phone having been mailed with some irresistable offer (I was about to lose my company mobile, on a job change, which I'd had for 20+ years).

My online application was rejected with the rider that I could apply for a pay-as-you go mobile instead, but they couldn't offer me credit. This puzzled me a I have never had any debt, am reasonably well off with a stack of credit cards all of which are paid of monthly, up to date mortgage payments etc etc. So I went online to check my credit rating and...all looked perfect!

I duly wrote officially to T Mobile somewhere in Hertfordshire with a copy of their email rejection asking them to explain the reason for refusing me credit. I received a reply about 2 weeks later, thanking me for my letter and saying that they had no record of ever refusing me credit and no record of a request for a monthly contract - would I provide more details. What more detail they might expect than the email they sent me refusing the application, complete with their reference, I can't imagine. Needless to say I didn't bother any further with T Mobile (I applied for an O2 deal online the same evening as the T rejection and was immediately accepted).