[MK Chris]

Also (sorry for the double post), this is Newport Pagnell and there are 12 pubs - which is quite a lot for the size of the town. It's a cracking town for a pub crawl.

[ladbroke]

The credit check kind of depends on the agent. My other halfs brother failed his credit check, and she had to take the flat on his behalf. Having said that his credit history is shocking, he doesn't have any CCJ's but owes the equivilant of 3 years salary all told.

[Boboff]

That looks really good Toph, I hope it all goes well for you.

[Yudster]

if I get turned down for my credit rating (which I'm actually a bit worried about)

Unless you have managed to revert back to how things were a year and a half ago, your credit rating should look fine by now.

[MK Chris]

Haha - no, but don't things stay on there for six years or something?

[Yudster]

The negative score attached to them starts to decrease after six months.

[Vivienne]

Good luck, Tophs.

Making me smile is the fact I got £12.00 off a perfume today. It cost £22.00 and I got it for £9.95.

I'm in your hometown, Foot-loose.. be afraid, be very afraid

[Vivienne]

Out of interest, does it annoy you (Viv) that I don't have a job?

No, not at all.

[rustybike]

The negative score attached to them starts to decrease after six months.

Although from experience, if you re-apply for a credit card that you recently got rejected for within 12 months you'll still get rejected. I applied for a card once, got rejected, reapplied 6 months later (thinking that applications got wiped after 6 months) and I got rejected again, so I found why and it turns out that applications for things get wiped after 12 months which is bit of a bitch.

If you're worried about your credit I'd go here: http://www.experian.co.uk/

Sign up, get your free credit check and then cancel your registration within 30 days it's fantastic and completely free - you find out so much about your financial status which is always good to know (this is especially good as this is what financial companies see as they also use Experian to check you - so at least then you can see what they see).

[MK Chris]

Yeah, I know about Experian, I've just never had the balls to look..!

[foot-loose]

I'm in your hometown, Foot-loose.. be afraid, be very afraid

Im up in Wick so life is safe.


Also, I second what Yudster says about experian - we use it at work. As a side note, while you may be declined for a card by one company, you might be accepted by another.

[foot-loose]

or what rustybike says.

[ladbroke]

Also, I second what Yudster says about experian - we use it at work. As a side note, while you may be declined for a card by one company, you might be accepted by another.

I second that, I was turned down for a credit card by Virgin (which is part of Bank of Scotland I believe) and then accepted two weeks later by Natwest. They work on different parameters I guess. My biggest problem is forgetting to pay stuff on time, then I get stung with late payment charges. Quite why in this day and age it still takes 4 days for an electronic payment to clear is beyond me. It should be instant in the same way an email is more or less instant. Quicker payment systems are in the pipe line but why it's taking so long is a mystery.....

[foot-loose]

virgin money is financed by RBS, it's credit card is issued by MBNA. Natwest is owned by the RBS Group.

[ladbroke]

virgin money is financed by RBS, it's credit card is issued by MBNA. Natwest is owned by the RBS Group.

Well thats a mystery, maybe Natwest liked my application style better then! i.e. grovelling

[foot-loose]

RBS also do Tesco credit and Mint cards. Just cos you get declined by one doesn't mean you wont get somewhere with another.

[ladbroke]

RBS also do Tesco credit and Mint cards. Just cos you get declined by one doesn't mean you wont get somewhere with another.

You're a man in the know, any credit questions will be PM'd to you from now on!

[Sunny So Cal]

Yeah, I know about Experian, I've just never had the balls to look..!

You should look, though. It's always good to keep an eye on your credit profile to make sure that all the accounts/debts on there are yours and valid. I've found mistakes on mine before. Go on. You can do it. You know it makes sense.

[rustybike]

Yeah, I know about Experian, I've just never had the balls to look..!

You should look, though. It's always good to keep an eye on your credit profile to make sure that all the accounts/debts on there are yours and valid. I've found mistakes on mine before. Go on. You can do it. You know it makes sense.

Exactly. My friend had the same problem. I believe he had a loan against his credit report (although paid off, it was still a loan) even though he had never had a loan out in his life!

You should really do it.

[S4B]

I've now been shortlisted for the Retail Business of the Year in Peterborough! I am soooooo proud!

[foot-loose]

Yeah, I know about Experian, I've just never had the balls to look..!

I've told you before - burying your head in the sand is never a good call. Knowledge is power, etc.

It's free and it will only tell you what you need to improve on.

My biggest problem is forgetting to pay stuff on time, then I get stung with late payment charges. Quite why in this day and age it still takes 4 days for an electronic payment to clear is beyond me. It should be instant in the same way an email is more or less instant. Quicker payment systems are in the pipe line but why it's taking so long is a mystery.....

Call your bank and ask what their refund policy is (they will have one). Get them to refund as many of the charges as they can based on their policy. If they tell you that you need to set up a direct debit to get more charges refunded, do it. There is a clause in the DD guarantee that says you can cancel at any time, so get it set up, get the charges back, cancel the DD and they can't touch you. (Although, the benefit of a direct debit is that it will prevent you from getting charges again in the future)

Faster payments are already set up for inter-bank transfers but they are still getting sorted for bank-credit card transfers. Last official line was that they would be out by the end of the year, last unofficial line was that the launch date was set for the beginning of september but had to be put back for some reason.

Chances are, they wont advertise it that heavily.

I didn't tell you any of the above.

I've now been shortlisted for the Retail Business of the Year in Peterborough! I am soooooo proud!

Congratulations. Good luck!

[ladbroke]

My biggest problem is forgetting to pay stuff on time, then I get stung with late payment charges. Quite why in this day and age it still takes 4 days for an electronic payment to clear is beyond me. It should be instant in the same way an email is more or less instant. Quicker payment systems are in the pipe line but why it's taking so long is a mystery.....

Call your bank and ask what their refund policy is (they will have one). Get them to refund as many of the charges as they can based on their policy. If they tell you that you need to set up a direct debit to get more charges refunded, do it. There is a clause in the DD guarantee that says you can cancel at any time, so get it set up, get the charges back, cancel the DD and they can't touch you. (Although, the benefit of a direct debit is that it will prevent you from getting charges again in the future)

Faster payments are already set up for inter-bank transfers but they are still getting sorted for bank-credit card transfers. Last official line was that they would be out by the end of the year, last unofficial line was that the launch date was set for the beginning of september but had to be put back for some reason.

Chances are, they wont advertise it that heavily.

I didn't tell you any of the above.

Thanks indeed Mr Loose, thats helpful to say the least. I've had quite a bit refunded, usually when they've charged me £25 for going 3 pence over my overdraft. Thankfully they can see that that is just plain nonsense to penalise someone in those circumstances. I was unaware of the refund/direct debit scenario and will look into that. As for the speedier payments for online banking/bill payments, I just can't see what the problem is. I mean if the money is in my account, why can it not be transferred almost straight away. It's just data in reality being sent from one server to another surely. When I asked before I was given some old cobblers about it having to go through an online clearing house.

[ladbroke]

Sorry, * up the quoting!

[foot-loose]

I mean if the money is in my account, why can it not be transferred almost straight away. It's just data in reality being sent from one server to another surely. When I asked before I was given some old cobblers about it having to go through an online clearing house.

The honest answer is that I don't know why it cant be done quicker - no-one seems to know.

However, I do know that most credit card companies are set up as separate from the bank. Not as far as marketing goes, but your bank that you walk into and your credit card are two separate entities so from a payment side of things, it's exactly the same as if you tried to pay your phone bill from your bank account - it would still take a couple of days. I think the new faster payments method will make all these 'bill payments' go faster, not just credit cards.

While I agree that it is harsh to be charged £25 for going overdrawn, I can see why that charge exists. I can also see why it charges you the same figure for going £0.03 overdrawn as it would for £500. If it wasn't a definite cut off, how would they be able to draw a line - they need to treat everyone the same.

It's also worthwhile finding out what the policy is on the overdraft and on your credit cards - they will have the idea that once you have had a refund and been told of the policy, you wont get any more - however, some of the morons that answer the phone wont bother telling you that. Also, you can apparently claim back all charges from your bank by filling out forms available at moneysavingexpert.com. I didn't tell you that either!

[ladbroke]

Agree entirely, whether I'm 3p over the agreed limit or £500 it's the same thing. There is no human element attached to the charges, it's an automated system that kicks in when you're over your limit. If say I was charged £5 for being 3p overdrawn, then I could live with that as it's a fair and it's my fault. Thankfully, as with most things, if I remain calm on the phone they always get waived. On the whole I'm very happy with my bank, and the daily mini statement by text is a god send.