Is opening a credit card and closing it straight away bad?

[northerngirly]

I’m really confused about something. I’ve opened a Monzo Flex account to pay for something because I was able to get money off for paying that way, but now I want to close the account again. Is that going to negatively impact my credit score?

are you closing it within 14 days cancellation period?

Yes @loveyorkshiredales

Wouldn't you want to keep it for emergencies or if you want credit card protection for a purchase over £100

@dementedpixie ti be honest not really, I don’t like credit cards and have never had one before. I’ve been a bit stupid and didn’t actually realise what this was, I think I thought it was like the PayPal pay in 3 option I used to use. I feel a bit silly.

It did affect my credit rating when I opened another bank account then closed it as I didn't really want to shut down my existing one. Only temporarily though.

Are you looking for credit? Why is your score, which isnt even actually a thing, important at the moment?

We might move house towards the end of the year so they’d credit check me for the new mortgage I guess, I’m not very knowledgeable about these things.

It can be handy to have a credit card. I have one but it's set off to pay the full balance each month so I never get charged interest.

Looking at monzo flex it also let's you pay a larger purchase interest free over 3 months too

You also get section 75 protection on purchases over £100. We always pay part of our holiday with credit card to give extra credit card protection

Isn’t Monzo Flex just a current account with added benefits?

Credit cards can build your credit rating, if used correctly.
If you don't use it, it'll be neutral, but if you use it a bit and then pay it off in full each month, you're building a history of reliably paying off debt, which is positive.

Don't put more on it than you can pay off, but it's not a big deal to just have it available.

No it looks like it's a credit card. You need the current account first to apply for it

This.

I don't carry my card but use it for internet purchases. It's automatically set to pay off the full balance. But I prefer the protection it gives.

It tends to improve your credit to use some and pay it off

Will it not let you adjust the limit so you can make it quite low if that's a worry. You can often just do it online.

Gosh is it really so unusual to never have had a credit card? Neither me or my husband has ever had any form of credit card! I really don’t want one, I’ve never run into any issues without one and I can only see that it would cause me problems.

Anyway my husband got home from work and helped me sort it out. Thanks for the help everyone!

Why don’t you just freeze it

My reason for spending this way online is having seen the headache of people who have had their accounts hacked or card duplicated.

If someone spends on my credit card it's really pretend numbers while the bank sort it out.

If someone empties your bank account and then all your bills bounce it has a much bigger impact and is a significant headache.

It pays off automatically each month and I've never paid any interest. Unless you can't trust yourself with credit then it's daft to give up the extra protection a credit card gives you if say you buy an item of furniture and the supplier goes under before you receive it.