How credit in the UK works?

hello everyone,
just wondered here, how does uk credit work? How long can me and my uk hubby expect to wait b4 we cn apply and be accepted for credit cards etc? home loans? I am 22 he is 21, so does this help? thanks,
Joni

I was offered my first mail order account about two months after being here, my first store card about a year after being here (and six months of employment), and my first credit card after about a year and three months after moving here. 

Your UK hubby might be offered credit sooner than you -- some cards have residency requirements of two years, so you might have to wait for those.

He looks on paper the same as he did when he moved from the uk 2 years ago to come here. He has same Natwest bank acct with the same address as he has always kept,( his parents). So after a while of provable employment, he like u said would probably have more offers. He said something like, where you live can affect credit, like if the people who lived there before you had bad credit it affected you, and the vice versa with good credit.? He has never opened a credit card acct in the uk, but said he was always getting mail offers,.  what is a mail-order acct? Isnt it true that you dont have your credit history or score follow u when u move from us to uk?
thanks so much!!
joni

He said something like, where you live can affect credit, like if the people who lived there before you had bad credit it affected you, and the vice versa with good credit.?

Thats right... because credit isnt based on a 'social security' number like it is in the US... it's based on your address.

what is a mail-order acct?

The closest thing i can think of is like if you have a JC Penney or Sears or Spiegel catalogue?  You order by phone from the catalogue, and the stuff comes in the post.  You would have an account set up with them for this.
My very first credit ever in the UK was a Freeman's catalogue account.

Isnt it true that you dont have your credit history or score follow u when u move from us to uk?

Thats right.

I've been here a year and a half and am only just now starting to get approvals (but still a lot of rejections as well) - I think like Lola said, the 6 months employment thing is a big one, but I also think a bank account for 6 months or more is a biggie - my bank account is still quite new and doesn't have an overdraft and I think that's been an issue.

I've been here a year and a half and am only just now starting to get approvals (but still a lot of rejections as well) - I think like Lola said, the 6 months employment thing is a big one, but I also think a bank account for 6 months or more is a biggie - my bank account is still quite new and doesn't have an overdraft and I think that's been an issue.

I agree - getting a bank account is a major plus.  If you have one and you can prove to the bank that you have money going in and out and no unauthorised overdrafts then the bank where you account is held will probably be your best bet for a credit card as they take your account performance into account when approving you.

The address problem for bad credit isn't a major issue anymore as it also is looked up on your surname and title. 

At the end of the day its the ame old story in that until you get credit you have a bad credit score, so its a catch 22, so the best advice is start slow and within a year of you managing credit with store cards and mailorder you should be OK.

Hope that helps

Steve

P.S. If you goto the experian or Equifax web site you can see your credit file on-line and if some old debt from a previous occupant is present you can apply to have it removed.

P.S. If you goto the experian or Equifax web site you can see your credit file on-line and if some old debt from a previous occupant is present you can apply to have it removed.

Is this as daunting as trying to have something removed from your US credit report? Giving birth was easier than trying to get something off our credit reprt.

is there anyway to get a free credit report... all the credit agencies here in the UK want money to do a check... guess i'll pay up if theres no other way.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?newsid1101485056,23650,

Try this article for tips on how to look at some of the credit reference agencies reports for free.