My husband and I are moving to the UK in 6 weeks and I was wondering if anyone knows how you go about getting credit in a new country, particularly the UK? For example, if we wanted to get credit cards or a loan to assist with buying a car.
We have savings for when we first get there, but I’m thinking a bit further down the track.
Has anyone had an experience in this?
I recently had a related question in GQ
Sounds like you’ll need to open a bank account and get a credit card (which you then need to keep warm but paid up).
sandra_nz, I’m a returning UK citizen and I have had a bloody nightmare getting credit. The banks appear now to be entirely run by computers and thresholds, and there’s almost no human intervention or override allowed by the system - even if the person helping you is on your side. Nor will they import credit histories from overseas.
You get a credit check on everything you do (utilities, insurance, etc.), and each one hurts you a little bit more. Minimise the credit checks and you should fare better than me. The best advice is - get one bank account with one bank (HSBC has been recommended on ex-pat boards I’ve been on) and stick with it for a while. Get a regular income/outgoing routine, and their systems will start automatically to increase your credit allowance - after a year, I can now get a £10 overdraft! Hurrah!
The big mistake I made was allowing Barclays to sell me a multi-product bank account, which involved several concurrent credit checks, each of which hurt me more. Then Barclays itself wouldn’t grant me a second bank account because of the credit checks that they themselves had done. Grrr.
But, whatever happens, you’re going to be screwed for a while.
By bold. Unless you’re very unlucky, you are highly unlikely to be able to get a credit card at first.
Probably the easiest way initially will be to get credit cards/loans through the bank that you open a current account with. High street banks don’t necessarily offer the best interest rates compared to, say, online lenders, but they have more info on your personal finances so tend to be a bit more flexible about lending to you.
For this reason, I’d choose your bank carefully. NatWest seem to have high charges from what I can see, for instance. I bank with Lloyds TSB who have reasonable interest rates on credit items (and they also have the biggest branch network - so you’re never far away from them).
If you want to do a bit of research on bank comparisons, I use this webiste for finding the best deals on everything from car insurance to current accounts to mortgages:
Yup. With zero credit history, you might be stuck with an Electron or Solo debit card, at least until you’ve been operating the account for a few months and proven your regular income.
Thanks for your responses - some really useful information there! As I suspected, getting credit (and a good credit rating) in the UK is very different to New Zealand.
May I correct this. It is meant to say:
GorillaMan, well predicted. I have precisely one Electron and one Solo debit card, from Barclays and NatWest respectively. They only gave me a chequebook a few months ago. I’m waiting a good few months before I try to upgrade, as each upgrade attempt whacks my credit rating again.
That’s the meaning I took from it. 
I will be keeping my NZ bank account and credit cards open and using those credit cards to begin with, but will eventually want to swap them for UK ones.
sandra_na, definitely keep your NZ CC. I have my old Irish one still, and it’s invaluable - with the rubbish debit cards I’ve been granted here, I can’t rent a car, reserve a hotel, make certain online or store purchases. And of course you’ll need to keep your NZ bank account in order to pay off the credit card.
And speaking as a returning long-term expat, never close your home accounts. When you eventually want to go back home, you don’t want to end up in the same situation that I am now, having to start again from scratch. It’s really been such a nightmare.
I really am typo knig tonight, aren’t I? I don’t mean that you’re n/a, but that you’re nz.
Been in the pub since finishing work or summat, jiiimmm?
Heheheheh!
Wish. I had a very busy day is my only excuse. I’ve had one glass of Merlot with my dinner. Either that or I’ve got a migraine on the way.
There are a couple of prepay credit-type cards available if you need to book a hotel or a flight or something online, but since I’ve had more than one glass after dinner I’m totally blanking on the name. Blue-something? Anyway, they are for kids and people with no bank accounts at all, so I guess lacking a credit history is no problem.
Oh, and there’s a good forum (UK-Yankee) which has loads of info about emigration to the UK. I just lurk there and occasionaly post to offer local information, but they are a friendly bunch. Most American expats obviously, but most of the advice stuff is universally applicable.
Struan, do you know if such a card contributes to one’s credit history? If so, I’d be very grateful if you could drink some strong coffee and remember it. Or open another bottle of vino - might loosen the old cogs up a bit too… ::slurps third glass::
Here is the one I was thinking about. Backed by Mastercard, fillable at the Post Office, and no credit check.
God knows where I got the Blue thing from, must be free-associating already. Better stay out of GD tonight…
:: opens a beer, in the hope it’ll help 
::
I just applied for one myself - they need further proof of address, even although I’ve been here for years. This will be due to the Electoral Roll, and my ticking the privacy box. They only need a couple of bills or whatnot, still useful for you jjimm, but less of an aid to Sandra, I think. Twenty quid needs paid at the Post Office for a startup fee too. Not a bad deal overall. I’ll follow through on this application I think - at least it will remove temptation if I just load this card when going about.