Hi Everyone,
Size5 gave me a nudge as would have posted earlier. Nevertheless here is my input – sorry it is so long.. more of a life story!
One thing I would suggest in the first instance is seeing if coop will let you keep the account but remove the DD facility as this seems to be where the problem lies.
If not, then absolutely you will qualify for a ClearCash prepaid MasterCard, or Secure Trust etc. Both of these accounts work as an alternative to a bank account at the same time as having the functionality of one. A few posters on this forum are proof of these accounts such as MerlinL14.
Heretoday – to answer your question, no, prepaid cards cannot harm your credit rating – there is no form of credit at all (unlike Vanquish) and only money that you put in the account / card whether it be salary / benefit, cash at post office etc is all that can be used. If you have £10 in the account, you cannot do a transaction for £10.01…
HOWEVER with ClearCash, we have a credit building facility called Creditbuilder and this is where there may be some confusion.
Creditbuilder gives a “loan” to anyone that applies for it. This “loan” is a year’s worth of monthly fees and gets deposited in your account. The monies from the loan cannot then be used, so clients can’t go to an ATM or use online / in store… it is “virtual”. In all honesty should be called a Virtual Loan.
What cardholders need to do in order to utilise Creditbuilder is ensure that they pay the monthly fee each month, so in our case, £9.95.
If used properly, Creditbuilder is reported to Call Credit, Experian and Equifax and is reported once per month (usually at the end of the month). It would begin to show on a client’s credit file after approximately 1-2 months of the agreement beginning.
If cardholders that have opted for Creditbuilder and don’t keep to the agreement, then yes, it is reported to the credit ref agencies.
If you DO NOT apply for Creditbuilder, and miss the monthly fee, it will not affect your credit rating, and this is the same with other providers as there is no form of credit or credit check done.
I hope this explains things clearly.
Best wishes,
Managing Director of ClearCash Limited, a general purpose and reloadable prepaid MasterCard facility. Campaigner for the unbanked sector believing that no one should be financially excluded. "Intelligent Money Management"
www.clearcash.co.uk
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