Increase Credit Limit Or New Card

Harveymt

I declared myself bankrupt in 2018, discharged in 2019. I applied for a Vanquis credit card and got one with a £1,000 limit. I paid one tank of fuel each month on it for the first year and always paid it off in full. The most I've ever used it for was a city break costing £600. I paid it off immediately. I only booked via the credit card for the protection it offered. Credit score improved, great stuff.
One thing I noticed was that my credit score went down when I put that £600 on as I was using more than 30% of my credit utilisation (I think that's what it was called), I had never heard of it. After that I was careful to ensure I didn't put more than £300 on.
Vanquis have just emailed me 'in recognition of how well I am managing my account' offering to raise my credit limit to £1,750.
My question is, do other lenders view Vanquis as a credit building type of card which may negatively influence their view of me? Would I be better having a look at other more mainstream lenders?
Or if a credit card supplier is a credit supplier then I could just accept the raised limit. I don't particularly need it so could turn it down, I'm merely thinking that should I put a larger purchase through in future I can keep below the 30% limit up to £580 odd instead of £300.
Thanks.

grumbler

I don't think that lenders see the name of the card/lender.
And you can safely ignore the 'score' you see, hopefully for free. I think, for such small available credit its utilisation makes no difference, especially if you pay the balance in full.

[Deleted User]

Nobody sees the fake score - make sure you are not paying anything to see that
Their fake score includes concerns about card utilisation but if you are paying off in full every month (assuming you mean after the statement is produced) then that is irrelevant
Lenders see you have a card, not which branding

I would take the limit increase and apply for another card, ideally a Visa if you have a Mastercard or vice versa, maybe AmEx if you can, that means if one system goes down you can still pay

Ebe_Scrooge

As above.  And don't worry about your percentage utilisation.  Much as the CRAs like to harp on about it, it matters not one jot if you're paying in full every month.  It's only if you're carrying a balance from month-to-month that it becomes an issue - and if you're doing that, then that in itself looks less-than-ideal on your credit history anyway.  As well as costing you money.

And in fact, think about it logically - Vanquis have increased your limit as you're running the account responsibly, yet your score has dropped.  Doesn't that just go to prove how meaningless the score is?

MalMonroe

Hi, I'd just accept the increase. Seems like you're doing a good job so far. I know what it's like, I had a DRO a few years ago, similar to bankruptcy, lenders are very cautious - as they should be, I guess. I started off with an Ocean card (Capital One card for those with poor credit) and now I have three 'proper cards' which I manage to handle with aplomb. One or two may be frozen at any one time and then I clear the balance of the one I use regularly.

My credit score goes up and down every time the wind changes, or so it seems. But like others have said, nobody but you will ever see it.

cymruchris

Just to add to the good advice above - accept the increase. None of the financial institutions that search your credit file will be able to see who the accounts are with, they'll only be able to see that you have a credit account, the limit, and how you've managed it in terms of payments. 

It sounds like you're making decent progress since bankruptcy - and are keeping your spending well controlled. If you're comfortable with what you're doing so far, and are happy that you'll stay on the straight and narrow as it were, it might be about the right time to apply for a second card.  (Unless you already have a second card?)

Alex9384

Accept the increase even if you don't need it.

1000 is pretty low limit. Other lenders don't see who the provider it is, they just see a credit card account, limit, opening date, your repayments (dates, amounts, etc.), and whether it's on a promotional rate or not. Having your credit limit increased shows other lenders that your current provider trusts you enough to offer you more credit. You don't need to spend more. Just keep spending on the same level, just have a higher credit limit. There's no harm in doing so, as long as you can trust yourself with more credit.