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Can I get a credit card without a job?

I'm currently on Incapacity Benefit and unable to work at the present time. Unfortunately, the events that led up to me becoming sick included my resigning from my job due to extreme stress/depression and ludicrous amounts of overwork/unpaid overtime being forced upon me by my bosses, and falling into debt again on my credit card in the months afterwards.

I'm therefore only receiving basic state Incapacity Benefit at present, and as you would imagine, am finding it difficult to pay off my credit card debt at this moment in time, which is not helping my stress or my return to good health. I'd like to take out a new credit card with an interest-free period so that all of my payments go to reducing my debt, rather than, as at present, 25% of my payment coming back at me the next month in interest applied (I simply can't increase the amount I'm paying back at present).

Am I likely to be accepted for a credit card with no job at present, or will I be turned down straight away? At some point within the next few months I should be in a position to look for work again, but at the present time, that's not an option, unfortunately.

Thanks for any advice.

Reply to
Donnie Murdo
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Sorry if I sound condascending but surely most people will say if you have no job why are you applying for a card anyway. However this is what I have gleamed from experiences I've had in the past and friends as well.

Most credit card companies (such as HSBC, Egg and Barclcaycard to name three) wil turn you down straight away. Capital One may not - they allowed a friend of mine to get a card despite being only on Income Support and not stating any income on his form - it was only after the card had arrived that they asked him "by the way what is your income" when he attempted to validate the card by phone - they still allowed him to keep the card tho.

Regards, Far

Reply to
Far

Donnie Murdo wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@pepper.viewport.lan:

Go to your local Co-op and ask for a Co-op dividend card application.

They also do a credit card (Visa) for which you could be eligible if you have an annual income (from whatever source) of 5,000 or more, and a clean credit record (i.e. no outstanding CCJs etc.). This credit card can be combined with your dividend card, so that you get dividend points on all your purchases.

Worth investigating.

Reply to
Robin T Cox

Far wrote in uk.finance: about: Re: Can I get a credit card without a job?

..so that I can transfer the balance from my existing credit card to a card with an interest-free period, and therefore pay it off more quickly. I am able to pay off my debt (slowly) at present, but each month, a fair chunk of it comes back at me again the next month in interest. This is obviously not good :-(

I don't want to get into extra debt, that's for sure..

Thanks, that may be worth looking into..

Reply to
Donnie Murdo

I think the tone of my original reply may have been a bit too strong - my apologies if it was. There are two other options I can think of - a Smile card and possibly coming to some form of agreement with creditors.

As someone mentioned the Co-Operative visa card, Smile also seem to be able to offer a card as long as you can provide details of your income - they certainly never asked me about my work details when I applied (jusy my gross income annually and monthly I believe) and they currently allow balance transfers at 0% for a period of 6 months - this may help matters.

I cannot comment on reaching an agreement with creditors as I have never gone down this route personally but it has been alleged that due to the Consumer Credit Act 1974 you can request that they freeze interest and you can make your own (reasonable) plan of repayment - again I don't know what the consequences of doing this would be or whether it would affect how/if you could get future credit or even keep your existing cards - someone like the Citizen's Advice Bureau seem to be best placed for giving advice on this kind of thing (if you can find one these days that is....).

Regards, Far

Reply to
Far

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