Been to hire a car today and the computer said no. In spite of having every kind of ID and proof of address, I failed the address validation. I have lived there for 26 years! How on earth do I get round this? I don’t possess a credit card - everything is done on a debit card.
Do an Experian check on yourself. I had this problem once and even though I’m on the electoral role, and always have been, the credit rating companies didn’t have it logged and the company was using them. I contacted them and it was sorted quickly. Failing that, not knowing what you have already tried, you could use: P60/pay slip Water/electric/gas bill/council tax Bank statement Mortgage statement Home insurance policy
Had all of that stuff with me but not accepted. Absolutely bonkers. It would appear that I am being penalised for not ever being in any kind of debt at my current property.
I had the same thing when applying for mortgage, annoyed me no end! Initially told no despite having a 25% deposit and above income stress tests levels as credit rating was too low. Had to switch utility bills to my bank for 6 months and took out a phone contract. Sailed through after that.
Did you fail address validation or the card check? Car hire companies tend not to like debit cards, particularly if they need to charge a chunky deposit.
Get a credit card but don't use it. Have had a problem hiring cars without using a credit card before.
It was the address validation - where i have lived for 26 years. Had i passed that they were happy to take the debit card payment. The total cost of the car hire was £109
Appreciate that may be the answer, but why is anyone being penalised for not having one - for living within their means?!
We had to get a (thankfully free) passport for my wife's 98-year-old aunt because without one she was really struggling to prove her identity. At that point she'd lived in the same house for 60 years.
Credit card usage doesn't necessarily equate to being in debt. I have one, use it regularly, and pay the whole bill in full once a month when my statement arrives. I've had a credit card for decades and never paid a penny in interest - in fact, it's worked to my advantage. I have a Marks & Spencer card and recieve a percentage of my spending back as vouchers every quarter. I agree, though, that its galling when stuff like this happens. Not everyone wants a credit card and no-one should be pushed into having one. In fact, there are probably plenty of people who would be much better off without one. You do need to have some financial self-discipline when out and about with a credit card.
I live within my means but buy everything on credit card. Absolutely everything. And pay off the full amount by direct debit at the end of the month. It is by far the safest way to spend your money because you're not spending your money, you're spending someone else's money. If there's ever a problem, it's a problem for your credit card provider not for you. No one gets the details of your bank account, no one has access to your money. The only business who knows your details is the credit card company. You get a full list of transactions at the end of the month and then have a month, interest free, to pay them. You can check everything is in order and, only if it is, pay it off. Any problem, you just message/ring the credit card company and it's sorted. I would urge everyone to use this method of payment for everything. It's built in protection that you simply do not have with any other payment method.
Try checkmyfile.co.uk you can get a full report from Experian, Equifax and Call Credit that will show everything in your credit file, addresses etc. you get a month for free and it’s straightforward to cancel before the month expires. I found out that there was still a record of me being financially associated with my ex wife so I’ve had that updated with all 3 credit agencies.
