Credit Score Quiz

Take the credit score test to see how banks and lenders may consider your credit rating:

A. Registered to vote at your current address? YES=10, NO=0
B. Have at least two active credit accounts? YES=10, NO=0
C. Credit account payments up to date? YES=15, NO=0
D. Missed any payments on your credit accounts in the last 2 years? YES=0, NO=10
E. Any County Court Judgments or have been declared bankrupt? YES=0, NO=25
F. Defaulted on a credit agreement before? YES=0, NO=25
G. Applied for more than two items of credit in the last six months? YES=0, NO=5

Scorecard

90-100 - Excellent candidate for credit
70-89 - Good chance of being granted credit
50-69 - Fair - may have some problems obtaining credit
0-49 - Poor - may have considerable difficulties in obtaining credit

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Banks limiting credit cards

Two of Britain's biggest banks are looking to limit new credit cards to existing customers only.

This will potentially further limit available credit since the economic downturn with mortgages and secured/unsecured loans already impacted.

Both RBS and HSBC have credit cards which are only available to current customers. The fear is that banks are effectively holding onto cash and further restricting the economic recovery even though the Bank of England has pumped in more than £175 billion into the banking system.

The RBS group, which is majority owned by the taxpayer, has been imposing strict controls and high profit margins to rebuild it's balance sheet. People are being refused credit if they do not have an absolutely blemish free credit score.

Only time will tell, but this is a worrying trend for the consumers who are also part owners as tax payers in some of these institutions. Will the likes of Barclays, Santander, Halifax, Lloyds, Nationwide, and so on, follow this trend? Should the government intervene as ultimately, this will only impact the fragile economy and potentially any imminent election.