Credit Card Companies

If you are unsuccessful in getting the credit card you have applied for and you have checked your credit file to see that there are no errors, the best thing to do is to wait a few months and apply again to a different credit card issuer.

Remember that many credit card companies operate using similar methods and will use similar systems to evaluate applications - in fact, some are inter-related to the point of offering the same product: the Accucard credit card (owned by Lloyds TSB), is offered under several different names, including the Lloyds TSB Create card, the easyMoney credit card and the More Th>n credit card from Royal and Sun Alliance. If say, you were rejected for Accucard credit card, then the odds are that you will be rejected if you apply for one of the Accucard-related credit cards.

Depending on the number of enquiries which have been recorded on your file (known as 'footprints'), you may feel it is suitable to apply straightaway, or you may wish to wait before applying for a credit card, possibly for 6-9 months. You may also wish to look to see if you have existing credit arrangements which you can settle or get down to a zero balance, as your credit file will inform potential lenders of any outstanding debt you currently have.

Once you have checked your credit file is accurate, you may want to think about how your credit score compares with other borrowers in the country. There are a number of websites which will give you guidelines as to whether your credit score can be regarded as good, average, or poor (such as Check My File). Remember that these are very general in the way they operate; some may place more weighting on your gross salary, whereas others are more interested in how long you have lived at your current address.

Personally, we feel that the best online credit check is through Experian, one of the largest credit scoring company in the world, and used by most UK lenders. Credit Expert from Experian, an online credit monitoring service, is a monthly subscription site with lots of useful credit scroing information. However, you can try it out for free for 30 days, and as part of the deal, you get a free credit score report.