More than half of Mancunians who apply for a credit card are rejected, new statistics reveal.
Despite the city having one of the largest economies in the United Kingdom, 60.5% of those from Manchester who apply, find themselves rejected.
What are the reasons for this depressing statistic?
The city had a population of 1,167,402 in Quarter 3 of 2013, and grew 19% between 2001 and 2011 and that population continues to grow, giving it the fastest growing population outside of the capital.
Young people have flocked to Manchester from London, which represents a complete reversal of the historical trend for young people moving from the north to south.
The high rejection rate is not indicative of anything wrong with Manchester’s economy – in fact a greater proportion of UK residents were rejected for credit cards in 2013 (65%), illustrating that perhaps the high number of people rejected for credit cards in the city is merely an indication of just how hard it is to obtain a credit card.
So why do people get rejected for credit cards?
An easy way of checking your eligibility for a credit card, would be to use the Totally Money comparison tools, which does what is known as a ‘soft-search’ to discern your eligibility, meaning that the search will not affect your credit score.
Experts say that using such tools increase the likelihood of your getting accepted by 250%!
You don’t meet the criteria
- You need to find the right card for you. Different lenders have different criteria to define their customer base, so it would be unwise for a student to apply for a black credit card from NatWest, which requires that the successful applicant has a salary of £75,000 or more.
- Apply for a card for which you are most likely to be accepted and that equally suits your needs.
You have access to too much credit
- However high your credit score is, if you owe over a certain amount, certain lenders may be reluctant to give you any more.
You are not on electoral role
- The more evidence there is that you reside at a fixed abode, the more likely you are to receive credit. Being on the electoral roll, as well as having a landline, confirms that you have a permanent residence and that you are unlikely to suddenly vanish.
You’ve applied for loads of cards
- Every applicant leaves what is called a ‘credit footprint’ and so if you are apply for many cards more than one once, this will instantly diminish your credit score.
You have missed payments
- This is known as ‘delinquency’ and will have a negative effect on your credit score. If your last act of delinquency occurred recently, then you are less likely to be accepted for more credit.
Picture courtesy of Sean MacEntee, with thanks.
