Bankruptcy woes - discharged 3 years ago but still unable to do anything!

Question

Hi there, I went bankrupt in 2004 and was under the impression that i would be discharged after a year under the uk rules, although I am still unable to get any form of normal bank account or any sort of credit, I only have a simple nationwide flex account! It's getting really annoying as I would like to start living my life again and I've had a constant stream of income coming into my account for a good couple of years now! Any advice on how to get back into the loop? cheers :)

Answer 1

I'm in the US, but, I'm sure you could probably get a secured credit card, which you would have to put your own money on like 200.00 to 300.00 and use it and pay it back and start that way with re-establishing your credit. They report to the credit agencies like a normal credit card, but knowing you filed bankruptcy, make sure you make your payments on time and go from there. Have you tried a small auto loan? Most will still finance even though you filed. Good Luck!

Answer 2

I'm not familiar with UK rules, but here in the US, a bankruptcy will stay on your credit report for 10 years from the date of discharge.

A discharge is only the point at which your creditors can no longer come after you.  But that doesn't exactly make new creditors think that you're a good credit risk, and many institutions just flat out refuse to do business with a person once they see a bankruptcy on their credit report.