Been declined loan at lowest rate. Can't work out why

[cardboardboxe]

Tried to take a loan out in August for a car but the lowest rate was declined. Spoke to my bank account manager who said don't worry take pcp out and the loan should be fine soon. Phoned bank a few weeks later and they said they don't know why I'm not eligible for the lowest rate but their computers are saying no.
Last week phoned account manager again and same thing. I can get a loan but not for the lowest rate which is what I need to reduce my monthly repayment.
Today I phoned the customer services at the bank. They've said they too can't see why I can't have the low rate loan but maybe phone a Credit check company to see what's happened.

I'm worried now. I have nothing at all ever outstanding and even when I run an online check it's all coming out clear.
I can't speak to a credit score company until Monday. Anyone any ideas? I've taken the car Loan out in August and also moved house in last couple of weeks but not in August when I originally requested the loan so I'm not sure if that's made any difference.

They just want to make more money out of you - the lowest advertised rates are very rarely available.

What is your credit score? What is the loan amount and time you want to borrow over? How much borrowing do you already have? How much do you earn?

You can get a free score from creditexpert, you may have soft checks showing, hard checks, you may already have too much owed. COVID-19 means banks want safe bets or they charge more to cover their arses.

I'm not sure it's something you can work it, it's possibly a case of computer says no based on whatever factors it's taking into account for that particular lender. I'd guess it's probably a complex risk based sort of thing.

@VanGoghsDog

They just want to make more money out of you - the lowest advertised rates are very rarely available.

They are usually available to low leverage high scoring safe bets...

Can’t you log in to Experian online? It gives your score a rating out of 999.

Thanks, my score has always been the highest possible. Ive never been refused any credit or loan. I have to have perfect credit for my job so I am quite worried.

I think it could be they are insisting i take the higher rate loan out to make more money out of me but I've declined the other loan for two months which is why I'm now wondering what's going on. And also if the bank managers had me when I asked him if I can definitely get the loan as I wouldn't have taken the pcp out if I'd known I wouldn't (yes that bit is stupid but this is my personal bank manager who I've had for years and trusted as nothings ever been wrong before)

And today's call to a general number at the bank hasn't reassured me.
My credit score on Experian is 996

Would 996 mean something's not quite right if it's not 999?

Credit score means nothing. It's a worthless number.

You need to check all 3 credit reference agencies too, not just one. And then you need to look at your payment history, credit to income % and make sure there aren't any discrepancies. If you're actually going through with the loan applications, these will be hard searches which negatively impact your credit worthiness. Does the PCP show on there? I honestly don't know about PCP, but if so, you'll be doubling your debt (even if you're going to pay off the PCP, they don't know that) which will impact whether you'll be accepted or not. Money Saving Expert site is your friend on this one, they explain things really well.

@ThankfullyPresent that is very helpful I am going to do all of what you've said and see if I can get to the bottom of it. I hadn't thought about the pcp doubling my debt.

the lowest advertised rates are very rarely available.

Not true.

Legally, lenders have to offer the advertised rate to a minimum of 51% of applicants.

OP, no one can tell you why you haven’t been offered the advertised rate. It’s based on a unique algorithm devised by the lender, chances are, even they won’t know.

Try not to pay attention to your credit “score”. No one sees it but you. It can be a general reflection of your credit history (which is what lenders see), but not always. It’s basically just a marketing tool for credit referencing agencies.

This happened to me years ago which was a total surprise to me as my credit file was impeccable and I always got the best rates available when applying for any form of credit.

I did some research at the time and according to people on an MSE forum, they will only allocate a certain number of people the lowest amount, and once they have hit that they won't offer it to anyone else.

No idea if it's true, but it sounds fairly realistic. That being said, I will never apply to Sainsbury's bank again!!