Jasmine Birtles
Your money-making expert. Financial journalist, TV and radio personality.
Need something for the house, but have poor credit? This lender can help
Jasmine Birtles
1st Jul 2019
What happens in your home if the boiler suddenly breaks down or the fridge starts to make a funny noise?
If you’re up against it financially it can be yet another headache. How are you going to find the cash to buy a new one, particularly if you’ve got poor credit?
We know it’s tough for lots of people in the UK, so we’re really pleased to hear that charity-backed lender, Fair For You, is now doing credit checks that don’t harm your credit rating. Read on to find out more
Who’s having problems with their credit file? It’s not just you!
In 2018 the Office for National Statistics reported 10.3m of the UK population is suffering from high anxiety about their finances and this equates to a fifth of the UK population.
A poor credit file is often made worse by using high cost credit providers like payday loans companies or the appliances lenders like BrightHouse. That means that people with poor credit keep having to go back to the high cost lenders because no one else will have them.
how can Fair For You help?
Fair for You provides an alternative way to buy the essential items without having to turn to high cost credit.
They have introduced an eligibility check, that doesn’t leave a footprint on the customer’s credit file, and allows them to check if they would be likely to get credit for an essential item.
So this means that your credit report won’t show that a lender has been looking into you and your credit score won’t be worse because of it.
When it comes to credit checks they are two options available to lenders: a soft and hard option.
- A soft search options allows lenders and consumers to run an eligibility check without affecting a consumer’s credit rating,
- A hard search like the name suggests provides lenders an in-depth look into a customer’s credit history and this is tracked onto a consumers credit file.
CEO Angela Clements says: ‘It isn’t a guarantee of a loan, just a good indicator that Fair for You hopes we can help. Our customers can choose the repayments they want to pay to suit their budget, weekly, fortnightly, monthly or even four weekly.
“It’s a safe way of being able to check us out securely, and then to tuck us away for when they might need us. Where we can’t help, we will continue to route towards the grant search option at Turn2Us; a national charity that is fighting UK poverty…this is another step in reducing anxiety for people that are lying awake at night worrying about a leaky washing machine that is on its last legs.”
She adds that “many people will not try us out thinking they would not be eligible. All we are looking to see is that they are managing their credit ok, and that they can afford to take out the new credit.”
clean up your credit report
We have loads of information on how to clean up your credit report and how to build a credit score (for people who have never borrowed so don’t have one).
Take a look at this article, for example, for 15 ways to improve your credit score.
Or find out why have I been refused credit here.
There are some nice easy ways to clean up your credit record here.
And find out how to build a credit score fast here.
An interesting article.