have I ruined my chances?cards

frazzled_3

I think I made a big mistake. In October I paid off my balances and applied for a series of new cards to replace my existing 0% cards. I also applied for a personal loan with a few companies. I got turned down for about 4 cards and all of the unsecured loans. I have never had a credit problem. I realise that I probably made a big mistake by applying for a number of cards on the same day and by paying off the balances and leaving the old cards open.

I did manage to get a new Sainsbury 0% card and Citi Bank 0% balance tranfers. I've closed my old Smile visa and Amex Blue cards which didn't have any special offers on there. I'd really like to get a SBT card, but wonder whether it is advisable applying at the moment? I'd also like to apply for a current account with the Alliance & Leicester, but don't want to risk making my credit report worse.

Thanks

Reaper

Yes I think you have damaged your credit rating. You will get rejected if you have too many cards or your total available credit is high compared to your income.

If you had lots of cards already and then applied for lots more it is not surprising that they rejected you. Worse, you now have lots of credit searches on your file which makes it look like you are desperate.

You should either close cards you no longer want or ask for the credit rating to be reduced. Do this some time before applying for new cards to make sure the credit reference agencies have been updated. A month should do it.

You may be able to persuade the existing cards to give you further interest free credit when you phone to cancel. There is a separate thread discussing this. They need to have zero balance on them before you try it. No need to wait, you can give this a go now.

Apart from that all I can suggest is getting your credit reports from Equifax and Experian to make sure they are accurate, and wait for a while before applying for any new credit. Wait 6 months if you can. Then just apply for the ones you really want - the SBT and bank account.

deemy2004

Agree with the previous poster -

reduce your cards, and give it many months before you even think of applying again.

It can be difficult, but for long-term stoozing, you must pace your applications. Sudden surges are a no, no

frazzled_3

Thanks for the advice. Much appreciated.
When you said I should contact Experian about readjusting my credit rating, what would they actually do and what would I need to tell them I have done?

Thanks

deemy2004

Thanks for the advice. Much appreciated.
When you said I should contact Experian about readjusting my credit rating, what would they actually do and what would I need to tell them I have done?

Thanks

Have to be careful when asking for amendments as potential creditors could count the fact that you have asked for a change to be made against you.

Reaper

what would I need to tell them I have done?

It's not a case of doing something to improve your rating and telling them about it. All you can do is look at the reports and see if they are factually acurate. If they have made errors, such as confusing your debts and those of somebody else, you can get them to make corrections.