Refused mobile contract

boredwho · 18 May 2018 at 5:06PM

Afternoon all,

Been meaning to jump on MSE at some point as I always end up here when looking for info online!

Apologies in advance for the essay below!

Ok so I'm late 20's and up until recently I've not once had a problem with credit.
- None of the bad stuff (CCJs etc).
- I've got a loan for my car which has never missed a payment and is a sizeable amount each month.
- Never failed on a phone contract payments.

I've been looking to get a new phone contract so have been doing my research on the current deals etc. Always been a bit of an Apple fan so was always going that way. Found a decent deal with Virgin Mobile for the iPhone X and went in for it.
Unfortunately I was declined. Like I say, first time ever so it was a bit of a shock if I'm honest.
In the past I'd checked out my credit report via Noddle, so I checked that again and I was ranked between poor and fair. I couldn't really understand why so feeling a bit dejected I started doing my due diligence on credit ratings / reports etc. I signed up for a free month of Experian and my score was 851/999 (top end of fair). I'm aware that these scores / ratings aren't the be all and end all.
Found another (better) deal through Carphone Warehouse (using Vodafone) and was also declined, this time in-store. They said it was a malfunction on their system - although I saw it say declined on the screen. Saving themselves the conversation I guess...

Basically after that I decided that I'd just stick it out and carry on with my battered phone a bit longer as I know constantly applying for these things is a bad thing for your credit report.

Anyway, checked my Experian rating today as it was nearly the end of the trial and it says I've gone up by 55 points and am now 906/999 sitting just below the middle of good. Good stuff

I checked the credit checks on my report etc but noticed that there had been no mobile checks for over 6 months.

I don't know enough about all this but surely Virgin and Vodaphone (or Carphone) would have shown up on there???

I changed my address back in December 2017 and have realised that my main bank account is still listed at my old address. Is it possible that could have been messing up identity checks or something, thus leading to a decline? Or did I just straight up not meet their requirements?

Once again, sorry for the essay. Any guidance would be greatly appreciated!

Cheers.

[Deleted User] · 18 May 2018 at 5:20PM

Ignore the scores and ratings.

How much was the total worth of the contract, airtime and phone?

It could be more of the cost of the phone - I would get a SIM Only plan and then save up for a phone, or, not go for the current most expensive thing when something a 5th (or more) of the price can do the same job

It is also likely to your bank account not being registered to the address you are quoting and you are failing on identity checks.

sourcrates · 18 May 2018 at 5:28PM

boredwho wrote: »

Anyway, checked my Experian rating today as it was nearly the end of the trial and it says I've gone up by 55 points and am now 906/999 sitting just below the middle of good. Good stuff

As you have just found out, your credit score is meaningless.

You can speculate on why you were declined until the cows come home, it could be for any combination of reasons, they use there own credit scoring system, and on this occasion, you did not quite match up to what they were looking for.

The incorrect address on the bank account will not help either.

[Deleted User] · 18 May 2018 at 5:46PM

Remember to also check all three of your files, not just the 999 boys.

T-G-C · 18 May 2018 at 7:58PM

boredwho wrote: »

Afternoon all,

Been meaning to jump on MSE at some point as I always end up here when looking for info online!

Apologies in advance for the essay below!

Ok so I'm late 20's and up until recently I've not once had a problem with credit.
- None of the bad stuff (CCJs etc).
- I've got a loan for my car which has never missed a payment and is a sizeable amount each month.
- Never failed on a phone contract payments.

I've been looking to get a new phone contract so have been doing my research on the current deals etc. Always been a bit of an Apple fan so was always going that way. Found a decent deal with Virgin Mobile for the iPhone X and went in for it.
Unfortunately I was declined. Like I say, first time ever so it was a bit of a shock if I'm honest.
In the past I'd checked out my credit report via Noddle, so I checked that again and I was ranked between poor and fair. I couldn't really understand why so feeling a bit dejected I started doing my due diligence on credit ratings / reports etc. I signed up for a free month of Experian and my score was 851/999 (top end of fair). I'm aware that these scores / ratings aren't the be all and end all.
Found another (better) deal through Carphone Warehouse (using Vodafone) and was also declined, this time in-store. They said it was a malfunction on their system - although I saw it say declined on the screen. Saving themselves the conversation I guess...

Basically after that I decided that I'd just stick it out and carry on with my battered phone a bit longer as I know constantly applying for these things is a bad thing for your credit report.

Anyway, checked my Experian rating today as it was nearly the end of the trial and it says I've gone up by 55 points and am now 906/999 sitting just below the middle of good. Good stuff

I checked the credit checks on my report etc but noticed that there had been no mobile checks for over 6 months.

I don't know enough about all this but surely Virgin and Vodaphone (or Carphone) would have shown up on there???

I changed my address back in December 2017 and have realised that my main bank account is still listed at my old address. Is it possible that could have been messing up identity checks or something, thus leading to a decline? Or did I just straight up not meet their requirements?

Once again, sorry for the essay. Any guidance would be greatly appreciated!

Cheers.

If you made an application for credit, the lender would have left a footprint. If there was no footprint left across all three agencies, perhaps the initial check for your identity had failed.

If your credit file still has the incorrect address assigned and your current address was entered on the mobile provider's application instead, this would have resulted in a credit file mismatch.

You should check each agency, ensure the address showing on your credit report is accurate. The next thing to do is, update your bank account with your current address.

Normally, lenders will perform their own independent checks against the electoral register, therefore your identity could have been authenticated but not your credit file.

If your credit file's address is correct, it could have been simply down to not meeting their criteria for a contract. Consider obtaining a credit card for general expenses, fulfill the statement in full each month and this could allow for a more established record. A car loan in itself could be insufficient data to make you creditworthy.

boredwho · 24 May 2018 at 7:00PM

Thanks for the replies all.

Deleted_User wrote: »

Remember to also check all three of your files, not just the 999 boys.

Righto, so by this you mean check Experian, Equifax & CallCredit?

sourcrates wrote: »

As you have just found out, your credit score is meaningless.
You can speculate on why you were declined until the cows come home, it could be for any combination of reasons, they use there own credit scoring system, and on this occasion, you did not quite match up to what they were looking for.
The incorrect address on the bank account will not help either.

Yup I knew the scores were meaningless... it was more the missing searches that intrigued me.

boredwho · 24 May 2018 at 7:11PM

!!! wrote: »

Ignore the scores and ratings.
How much was the total worth of the contract, airtime and phone?
It could be more of the cost of the phone - I would get a SIM Only plan and then save up for a phone, or, not go for the current most expensive thing when something a 5th (or more) of the price can do the same job
It is also likely to your bank account not being registered to the address you are quoting and you are failing on identity checks.

The total was around £1350 I think. I know I could go for a cheaper phone etc but that wasn't really the point...

T-G-C wrote: »

If you made an application for credit, the lender would have left a footprint. If there was no footprint left across all three agencies, perhaps the initial check for your identity had failed.
If your credit file still has the incorrect address assigned and your current address was entered on the mobile provider's application instead, this would have resulted in a credit file mismatch.
You should check each agency, ensure the address showing on your credit report is accurate. The next thing to do is, update your bank account with your current address.
Normally, lenders will perform their own independent checks against the electoral register, therefore your identity could have been authenticated but not your credit file.
If your credit file's address is correct, it could have been simply down to not meeting their criteria for a contract. Consider obtaining a credit card for general expenses, fulfill the statement in full each month and this could allow for a more established record. A car loan in itself could be insufficient data to make you creditworthy.

Well this is what I was thinking... surely it would show up?
I've been in touch with the bank to change my address so that should help I hope. I've had a credit card for a while now and have kept it up to date etc. I've also been offered a credit limit increase on that card. I initially had decided to decline that offer but I've since found out that having a higher limit and thus a lower utilisation will help.

I'll probably hold off for a bit now anyway. I've found a way to repair some of the faults with my phone so will do that and make do for a while longer. :rotfl:

DCFC79 · 24 May 2018 at 7:53PM

boredwho wrote: »

Thanks for the replies all.

Righto, so by this you mean check Experian, Equifax & CallCredit?

Yes but use the free options to check them.

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/creditclub

That gets you experian for free, also explains about credit scores, well the 1 provided by the credit club.

The address issue could be the problem, this is something that should have been changed when you moved.

Buy a phone outright and get a sim only plan.

Not saying they are the cheapest but Argos have iPhones, other alternatives.

mark3530 · 24 May 2018 at 9:46PM

I have a near perfect credit history and credit score. I applied today for a Vodafone contract via money saving expert link on their website with gift cloud etc valid until end of May 2018.
The deal was 20GB of data, unlimited texts and calls with the promise of a redeemable £100 amazon voucher in due course. I applied for the deal via the link and was refused on grounds of the credit check. I immediately logged onto the Equifax site suspecting a problem with my credit history but there was none. A mass of green entries with no red entries, all credit cards paid up to date, no missed payments, no ccjs or any other problems and I've never been refused credit in the past. Credit score measured by Experian 998/989 and also a high score with clear score so in truth there is no issue with my credit file. My wife already has a contract with Vodafone so she tried to apply and was also refused on grounds of failing her credit check. At this point, things did not add up so we contacted Vodafone by online chat and telephone. They were shifty and tried to put the blame on MSE and tried to convince me that the credit check was done by them not Vodafone. This didnt wash because message that the credit check had failed came from the Vodafone official website. They suggested that my wifes failure to pass the credit check was due to her being an existing customer whereas the offer was for new customers only. If this were true, the reason for declining the application would have reflected this and not attributed it to a failure to pass a credit check. My wife too has an excellent credit history and was accepted for a Vodafone contact only 2 months ago. They said they would investigate the matter and get back to me but the offer expires this coming Sunday. The moral of the story seems to be if a deal seems to good to be true, then it probably is. Pity Vodafone cant admit the offer is over subscribed and pull it rather than making spurious claims that the reason new customers cant get the deal is because they have failed a credit check.

[Deleted User] · 24 May 2018 at 11:19PM

Ignore your fictitious score and rating.

Vodafone just didn't want you as a customer.

Try another provider

OceanSound · 25 May 2018 at 7:26AM

boredwho wrote: »

I signed up for a free month of Experian....

Virgin Mobile uses Equifax and Carphone Warehouse uses Equifax and Experian (see: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/credit-reference). So best to check your Equifax file, maybe it has incorrect details.

Aparently, you can access Equifax file free through CLearscore (https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=5847182&highlight=experian#4 )

Maybe it's a blessing in disguse that your were refused by Virgin. I used to be a broadband customer about 10 years ago. Couldn't wait for the 1yr contract to finish for switching to another provider. They still keep sending me junk mail marketing material several times a month.

I've tried navigating the virgin website to contact them about this. Expect to spend at least half hour on this then find that you are non the wiser from when you started.

Refused mobile contract

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