credit limit

noggs

hi all
this is my first post so be gentle with me,I have a halifax visa card my statement arrived today and they have reduced my credit limit from £14,800 to £8,750 with no notice (first i knew about it),so i phoned them to ask why they they had and for what reason the man on the phone said they were having problems getting the letters out and it was out of their control and apoligised but one was sent out on the 5/6/08 the same date as my statement + it was reduced on the advice of the CRA experian i can't understand why my curcumstances as not changed for years and always made all my payments ontime or before the due date,am i part of this credit crunch syndrome.
many thanks
nogs

Volcane

noggs wrote: »

,am i part of this credit crunch syndrome.

Yes!

Along with the rest of us! :eek:

Dave_the_Ginger_Cat

I'd suggest you get a copy of your CRA file from Experian as there could be someone else you've inadvertently missed a payment with that could affect their decision. The reason they gave you implies that it's to do with your other credit records rather than how you've run your Halifax Card.

If I can find it, I'll post a link to how to do this - there's lots of info on one of the boards

noggs

many thanks for your help, i did make a late payment by DD to someone else co's i upgraded my bank account and it did not get put through in time during processing so i had to make a debit card payment over the phone to them to bring it up to date it was 5 days late,could this be why. so what about any notice they should give to reduce it

benf90

noggs wrote: »

many thanks for your help, i did make a late payment by DD to someone else co's i upgraded my bank account and it did not get put through in time during processing so i had to make a debit card payment over the phone to them to bring it up to date it was 5 days late,could this be why. so what about any notice they should give to reduce it

Possibly. I think Experian have a system in place whereby creditors can be notified of adverse changes to a credit file such as missed or late payments that have occured with a persons other accounts.

This allows companies to spot the early signs of what could be financial difficulty.

Or it could just be financial decision in terms of profitability or risk. Maybe you've never really used anywhere near the limit and they'd rather reallocate it to a number of other customers, either to spread the risk or because those customers are likely to generate more profit.

As Halifax have mentioned Experian it's probably something to do with your credit file. However, the person you spoke to may be reading from a script or it could just be generic information given to anybody that calls about a reduced credit limit; so don't be surprised if your credit file doesn't immediately offer an explanation as to why the limit was reduced.

This guide has a vaste amount of information ranging from what's on a credit file to how you can check your credit file for free:

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/credit-rating-credit-score

In regards to them having to give notice about reducing the limit. In short, they don't have to give any.

The reason why they don't give any notice is so that if a person is in financial difficulty they're not given the opportunity to go out and run up a bigger balance before the card company reduces the limit.

DestroyingAngel_2

I agree with Dave the Ginger Cat. Get a copy of your Credit Report and go through it with a fine tooth-comb. Query any movements you're not sure of. What I'm trying to say without frightening you, is to check and double-check that your identity hasn't been "stolen" by a fraudster, who's made applications for loans or other credit in your name and left your reputation in the mud. Check your cc statements each month diligently also, and query with your cc company any transactions you don't recognise, as these could be "test purchases" done by fraudsters who may have cloned your card...if you don't catch these early enough, the "test purchases" will increase in value and frequency, and before you know it, your Credit Report is in tatters.

Most cc companies and banks have a special division that looks at your spending patterns, and if there's any transaction outside of what you'd normally use your card for, they'll flag it up and clear it with you first before allowing the transaction. This is for your own security and benefit. It's the cc company/bank doing their job. Your card could have had its limit decreased because you're not using it enough, or it could be that your credit history has been compromised and is showing that you have too many cards/loans etc.

You should give serious thought to getting your identity protected. Google "Identity Protection" and you'll see how many cc companies/banks are offering it to their customers; be aware that ID fraud is the fastest-growing crime in the UK and don't for one moment think "it'll never happen to me"...because when it happens to you, it's too late to do anything about it! No Identity Protection policy will let you claim for pre-existing cases of ID theft - that would be like shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted.

h8jka

Hi I have just had the same problem with Halifax. They have just reduced my limit to within £10 of my outstanding balance and as I have always paid more than the minimum ontime and by direct debit I contacted them. The guy I spoke to asked me if I had defaulted on any other cards and I said no and he said there was no reason. Then he began to tell me that this was connected with a goverment initiative to reduce the amount of credit people where given due to the current climate. He then told me that ifI had other cards that Had a limit and balance that Halifax would check this and reduce my limit based on the total amount of credit I had? He then proceeded to tell me I should cancel these other cards or reduce my limit on them to reduce my total available limit and they would revue it in the future.

Personally I think its the banks running scared! They dont mind lending you money at crazy rates when the times are good but as soon as the market looks gloomy caused by the fact that they have been greedy and irresposible they want to cover thier own back sides!

Unfortunately it seems that the people who they have been bleeding for all these years now are the ones who have to pay for thier greed and mistakes!:mad:

Any

Hi,
I keep having the opposite problem with Halifax and they are realy getting on my nerves.
a/ my card 0% period is about to expire so I stopped spending on it and applied for new 0% card. To get as high limit as possible I lowered limit on Halifax via internet, only for them to send me even higher limit letter then before! I need to get my limits down not up! I lowered it again and they sent me another letter.
b/ my husband also has one. They charged him fee for going over limit (thanks to the PPI which I now made him cancel) in last months statement, they charged him another fee for the first day of this months - I don't know whether they even can charge you for being overdrawn on the beginning of the month, how were you supposed to know??? Now we paid big chunk off, like £880 and they sent him huge limit increase!! A month and 2 charges late!

Any

h8jka wrote: »

Then he began to tell me that this was connected with a goverment initiative to reduce the amount of credit people where given due to the current climate. He then told me that ifI had other cards that Had a limit and balance that Halifax would check this and reduce my limit based on the total amount of credit I had? He then proceeded to tell me I should cancel these other cards or reduce my limit on them to reduce my total available limit and they would revue it in the future.:mad:

Well, as for my post above that is a bit of a rubbish isn't it? .
The bloke on the phone obviously made it up as he went along as I didn't want out limits increased!

Double_Trouble

Halifax may be reducing limits they have also reduced mine slightly but they are also reducing minimum payments to 1% from next month so that the minimum payment is often less than most people's interest payment and they are therefore encouraging those at particular risk ie those only paying minimum payment to increase their debt month on month. Call that responsible lending? HBOS have a lot to answer for.

Mandy

markre_2

Same as Noggs.
I've had a Halifax Visa credit line of £11,500 cut without advice to £1,850.
First sign was refusal of card at Tesco garage, followed next day by a
letter saying I'm £75 over credit and would therefore incur charges.
Thought it was a scam so phoned the nr from the statement.
Halifax agreed to waive the charges - generous eh! - and increase the limit
by £110 to allow me to have limited use of the card until I've paid them.
No allowance made for fact I've got several business accounts and personal
accounts with HBOS - " a friend for life" !!

I've paid my balances faithfully on time..... OK may have missed the odd one
but always paid once I'm advised of my error.

I'm therefore not a good customer to them .. so they try to bring me into
a charging regime by reducing the limit to trap me.

Be warned ....