Credit searches, numbers of cards...

KiKi

Hi there.

I have a couple of quick questions. I have three credit cards: Capital One Mastercard (coming to end of 4%), Egg Money and Barclaycard Platinum. I applied for and got them in in the last 4 months or so. I had a Barclaycard prior to that which I've had for 11 years, but cancelled about 3 months ago.

I always pay off in full every month.

My questions are regarding credit searches and the likelhood of another application for another card being successful.

a) If I were going to apply for another card (hypothetically), they will do a credit search. Will they see that I have three cards currently, or just the total amount of credit?

b) Could they see that I had a Barclaycard previously, or is it the case that once you cancel a card, the details of your credit limit and how long you held the card are no longer available? (Obviously the payment history would be there.)

c) In a credit search, does a company just see that you are someone who pays off in full every month, and that you have 3 cards - or would they see that you are someone who applies for a card, uses it for 2 months (to benefit from cashback ), then got rid of it?


Thanks if anyone can help. I'm just curious, as I'm happy to keep my three cards. However, if I want to apply for another credit card in the future to benefit from a good deal like 4% cashback(!), I suppose I'm wondering if it's worth losing one of the cards now so I'm in a better position to apply in the future, or if it makes no difference at all on my credit history, really.

I hardly use cards, anyway, so goodness knows what I'm doing in this forum...

Cheers
KiKi

YorkshireBoy

KiKi wrote: »

a) If I were going to apply for another card (hypothetically), they will do a credit search. Will they see that I have three cards currently, or just the total amount of credit?

They'll see the 3 active credit card accounts (and one closed/settled credit card account), and all details except the provider's name.

b) Could they see that I had a Barclaycard previously, or is it the case that once you cancel a card, the details of your credit limit and how long you held the card are no longer available? (Obviously the payment history would be there.)

All the closed account details will still be there (for 6 years). As above, they will not know the settled account was Barclaycard, and therefore won't know that you've had 2 x Barclaycards.

c) In a credit search, does a company just see that you are someone who pays off in full every month, and that you have 3 cards - or would they see that you are someone who applies for a card, uses it for 2 months (to benefit from cashback ), then got rid of it?

No, and yes...in that order. The amount you pay is not recorded with either Experian or Equifax, but I seem to recall that CallCredit (the smallest, but least used CRA) displays repayment amount information. They will see that you've only had an account for a couple of months and then closed it, but quite what they'll make of that I don't know since it'll be down to their highly secretive credit scoring algorithms.

...I suppose I'm wondering if it's worth losing one of the cards now so I'm in a better position to apply in the future, or if it makes no difference at all on my credit history, really.

Leaving unused cards open has several issues...

1. You could be more exposed to fraud, especially if you don't regularly check (online) the accounts, and

2. The amount of available credit you have could affect acceptances/credit limits granted for other cards, depending on your personal circumstances.

KiKi

Hi there YorkshireBoy

Thank you so much for your comprehensive answers! Much appreciated.

Good point about the unused cards and fraud; think I might close the Capital One account once I've taken the cashback. I have an excellent history with Barclaycard, and I want the Egg one for stoozing.

Thanks again.
KiKi