Clearing aqua card balance- does it still improve credit score?

Chris_P_2

I u understand the purpose of these cards to rebuild credit score. If I have £1000 due on one and pay it all off now, will that help the credit score?

Due to the high interest rate I want to clear it but need to up credit score so not sure what to do??

[Deleted User]

Ignore your credit score. It has no meaning.

Clear your card in full each month to demonstrate to lenders that your are in control of your credit.

Never pay interest to improve your credit history.

Kim_13

If you want to pay early, make sure you do so after the statement has been generated, otherwise a zero balance would be reported to the CRA's and it will look as if you were not using the card.

Your credit history will look just fine if you set up a Direct Debit to clear the full statement balance and pay that way (though check that enough time is left for them to set it up before the due date.)

The score is a number invented by the CRA and a lender will score differently, so just take care of the history and don't pay too much attention to the score.

seatbeltnoob

isnt an aqua card itself a negative indicator to lenders?

if you are paying off the cc each month then you should try applying for a proper card.

[Deleted User]

seatbeltnoob wrote: »

isnt an aqua card itself a negative indicator to lenders?

No. It's just a card that lenders don't see the name of.

AllieKat

You don't have just one credit score, you have multiple scores depending on how someone scores you. There have long been rumours that being in debt is a positive in some scoring models (since you're more likely to be in debt again, and thus pay interest). This would be difficult to prove but absolutely *should not* be a consideration. Don't pay 30%, pay it off in full! Your score will still improve from having credit and using it.

Also, for any 'real' need - mortgages, car loans, etc, I'd imagine they'd be very unlikely to consider being in high-priced debt a positive!

[STRIKE]As for Aqua itself being a negative, they can see the lender, but I don't believe they use that in their scoring.[/STRIKE]

[Deleted User]

Agree with all that, but the name of the lender isn't seen by other lenders. Just the type of credit.

AllieKat

Are you sure? I've never seen a lender's report, but I know that I've been asked questions about other accounts as part of identity verification.

And as I write this, I sigh and remind myself I'm not thinking quite straight - that service (ID verification) is offered separately from the report. Questions may be asked about data that doesn't get shown on the final report.

[Deleted User]

I'm sure...

AllieKat

Yeah, as I wrote that I realised that the place I thought they had that info was in a completely separate product the CRAs offer...

2ilent8cho

Aqua will more than likely start increasing your limit a lot if you keep paying off your bill in full (they did with me, jumped me from £900 to £1800 limit in 3 months), bigger limits are good if you don't ever go near the max as it makes your credit utilisation look lower which is a positive factor.