In a data-obsessed age when our lives are subject to scrutiny and each of us has a financial profile, it is easy to suffer discrimination when one’s credit score drops into the red. A ‘Good’ credit score starting (optimistically) at around 650 is a prize not everyone can easily achieve.
The bad credit holder and also – particularly unfairly – the person just embarking on adult life with its various financial commitments, and hence no credit history, are both either denied some goods and services, or else are charged more. Conversely, those with a rosy credit history often pay less!
This applies as much to the search for a phone carrier as to anything else. At its worst, the negative effects of a bad credit score include a higher monthly fee, a limited selection of services and a poorer range of phones to choose from. In some instances, the customer has to pay an application fee, not normally applied where the credit score is a healthy one.
Things, though, have improved on the mobile phone front. There was once a minefield to cross if you were determined to obtain a contract from your carrier. Increasingly these days, however, carriers operate plans without a contract and no credit check. So there is hope for those with bad credit ratings.
Some providers, such as Vodafone and Orange, have shown leniency towards prospective clients who have this problem, going so far as to relax credit checks. These and other major carriers are easily tracked down on the internet, some even offering a full monthly plan without a contract.
It is financial flexibility of this kind that is needed by those struggling with financial commitments.
Nevertheless, the long-term solution is to do all you can – although easier said than done – to build a good credit history.
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