so turned 18 a few months, was curious to see my credit score so signed up to experian and equifax. Experian still dont recognise that i exist and when i try to sign in it says “we cant verify your identity”. I know i have an experian report because i could access it through credit club but they’ve since switched to transunion (works through monzo and credit karma). Equifax ask me to call them when i try to sign in which i havent done yet. i tried to see if i was eligible for cards from barclaycard and a few others and i still get 0% approval chances. Could this be the reason that i dont get accepted for cards (i currently earn 7k a year part time). nationwide also said no even though i meet the income requirement and i also have had an account with them for ~7 years)
(I have a flex card and im also an authorized user on another card.)
You’re realistically not going to have a full credit report or be eligible for many credit card as soon as you turn 18. I would advise not rushing into it. Meeting an income requirement alone won’t guarantee acceptance and £7k is a very low income when it comes to credit card lending, you would get into the realm of potentially not being able to repay it very quickly. Realistically you’d probably only get a limit of about £250 anyway.
Take out a SIM contract, use Flex and the card you’re currently added to, and be patient. The credit cards won’t go anywhere and you’ll have more chance of being approved in time.
For context, I got my first credit card in 2011 at 19 (nearly 20), earning £10k working full time. So being younger, earning less and also part time, you’ll have limited options right now. They can only responsibly lend you what they feel you can afford to pay back and it’ll also take time to build a credit report.
I’d enjoy not existing for a long as you can.