Credit Score and Credit Card Questions

Hi, im a 22 woman, when I was at uni I did something so stupid, I took out credit cards. Anyways, I used to have three credit cards, closed two down as I payed it off. I have one left which I payed off already and I’m thinking to close the account. Is it better to close it down? Or keep it there? And how badly will it affect my credit score if I do close it down? My credit score right now is almost at 400. My limit has increased to £750 but I just wanna get rid of it already. I already pay for a few bills anyway so surely that should help my credit score right? What should I do?

Reply 1

Scotney

20

Why not just cut the card up and then you can still have the account but not use it.

Original post by dezaiyr

Hi, im a 22 woman, when I was at uni I did something so stupid, I took out credit cards. Anyways, I used to have three credit cards, closed two down as I payed it off. I have one left which I payed off already and I’m thinking to close the account. Is it better to close it down? Or keep it there? And how badly will it affect my credit score if I do close it down? My credit score right now is almost at 400. My limit has increased to £750 but I just wanna get rid of it already. I already pay for a few bills anyway so surely that should help my credit score right? What should I do?

Reply 2

Delusion6

13

its not stupid to take out credit cards...

Reply 3

martin7

20

Original post by dezaiyr

Hi, im a 22 woman, when I was at uni I did something so stupid, I took out credit cards. Anyways, I used to have three credit cards, closed two down as I payed it off. I have one left which I payed off already and I’m thinking to close the account. Is it better to close it down? Or keep it there? And how badly will it affect my credit score if I do close it down? My credit score right now is almost at 400. My limit has increased to £750 but I just wanna get rid of it already. I already pay for a few bills anyway so surely that should help my credit score right? What should I do?

There's nothing wrong with having a credit card provided you manage it correctly -- essentially, don't take on debt you can't afford, and make the repayments on time. Ideally, you make sure you pay it off in full when the monthly bill comes in.

I don't know how closing your final account will affect your credit score. Obviously the information will stay on there until the account has been closed for 6 years; but the information will become less and less relevant.

Paying other bills will only help your credit score if the supplier reports the information to the credit reference agencies. The only bill that appears on my credit report is my mobile phone contract. My BT landline and the water/sewage bill for my house are in my name, but don't appear on my credit report; and when the gas and electricity bills were in my name, they didn't appear on the credit report either. If you haven't already, get a copy of your statutory credit report from one of the credit reference agencies to see what appears on it.

The risk you have is that if you have less information on your credit history you may find it harder to get credit in the future, as new lenders will have less information to base a decision on.

A good approach would be to keep the account open and spend a small amount on your card each month and then pay the bill in full. If you're worried about the temptation of having a £750 limit, contact the card company and ask them to reduce it to something you're comfortable with.

Credit Score and Credit Card Questions

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