company credit card HELP

[trixie]

My boss told me today that he wants me to be THE name on the company credit card. I am 3 1/2 years into my IVA and obviously I cannot get one. I DO NOT WANT ONE!!

I am really, really scared about telling him why I cannot get one as my job is to manage all of the company finances. I have had this job nearly 10 years and am experienced and qualified and do a very good job of it. I went into an IVA instead of bankruptcy so I could keep my job. But now this situation has come up and he wants me to start organising this TOMORROW! HELP!!!!!!!!!!! What do I say? How can I get out this? What is a reasonable excuse I can give without raising suspicion?

I am very scared I will lose my job if I confess my credit rating is bad and will prevent me getting the credit card. [V][:(][:(][:(][:(][:(]

[12 months to go]

Hi trixie

I'm sure I've read posts similar to this in the past and if the company credit card is in the name of the company ie the co is whom the credit check is done on and you are purely a named user

Yes your name may be embossed on the card, but the card will be the responsibility of the company and will also have the co name on as we'll as yours

Hope this makes sense and I'm sure one of the experts will confirmm my info

[trixie]

Ooh really?! I have to say I am sat here fearing for my job, position...everything so this is amazing news. How can I get advice from one of the experts tonight? I need to discuss this matter with my boss tomorrow morning at work!! He was absolutely firm in his instruction. I tried to tell him it should be just him but he wasn't having any of it.

[coupleplus1]

Hi Trixie, I have a company credit card and have had for the duration - I told my HR department (because I had to) and they are fine with me having it. It has my name on it and I spend on it regularly and have no problem - you should be fine

Andrea

57 months completed, only 3 months plus the extra year to go yipee!

[trixie]

But will the bank not run a credit check on ME? Seems extraordinary they would not. But I have been a signatory on the bank account for years before I started my IVA so maybe they think I will be fine. (And I will be of course. I actually believe my IVA discipline has made me better at managing a company's finances). But if the bank do not ask me about it are they allowed to do so (i.e. run a credit check) without telling me they will? Or do I have an obligation to tell them if they do not ask?

THANK YOU for your advice fellow forum-ers.

[coupleplus1]

I'm positive one never got run on me otherwise I wouldn't still have the card - I did worry once when the card kept getting rejected but apparently it was a company problem and not me! Not sure if the bank have to ask you or not or about the obligation to.

Good luck, I'm sure it will all be fine

A

[trixie]

I will let you know how it goes but THANK YOU so much for reassuring me. I am sure I would not have slept a wink tonight without this hope. I have done all these years without anyone finding out it would be awful if it was discovered now!

[MelanieGiles]

The bank may run a credit check on you trixie, but this is unlikely - as your company is the ultimate payer. I have company credit cards in my group, and we are careful who we allow to access them - but it I had a trusted employee who had historic financial difficulties, there is no way I would have a problem in allowing them use of the cards if there was a business case.

If you are at all worried, you could explain to your boss that you don't want your name to be on the card, but you are happy to be named user. This would then not involve any form of credit check, unless the bank had a specific policy on this.

[GilliB]

Hi trixie. Welcome to the forum. I had a company credit card c/o Barclays. I was not made aware of any background checks on me & there was nothing in the P & P to say it would be required. Regarding your boss, I'd say sharing information about your IVA should be on a 'need to know basis'. If you aren't required to declare it for your job, don't worry too much about it; see what happens today and what information they ask from you - if any. Good luck. x

[Sebastian29]

Which card issuer does your company use?

[Tina Shortland]

Hi Trixie - hopefully the "named user" approach will sole the matter. If he presses to know why or refuses then you can either tell him or let any potential credit check happen (if it does) and deal with it then. If you are at all worried check over your contract of employment again so you know exactly where you stand on an IVA - there are many roles where bankruptcy would be a problem but an IVA wouldn't so you may be worying unecessarily anyway.

Fingers crossed one way or the other it will all turn out to be fine. If you have queires (or panics) in the evenings you can pretty much guarantee Melanie will be on at some point during the evening/night!

[trixie]

Thank you all for your experienced advice.

There was no mention at all in the forms about undergoing a credit check. I filled in the forms today as the person to be named on the card. The bank (Coutts) require a specific person to be named on it even though it is solely for the business and my boss insisted it was to be me! The business will pay off any expenditure on it at the end of every month with an automatic payment. There will be no facility to withdraw cash, it will be solely for business purposes such as booking travel. I really didn't want this 'honour' but we'll see if I experience any issues. The bank manager should receive the paperwork tomorrow so I should know perhaps early next week. I have known our bank manager for many years so I am sure if there are issues he will contact me first confidentially.

I have checked my employment contract and there is nothing there about having to declare IVAs. I am also the company secretary and as I say I put myself into an IVA rather than bankruptcy so I could keep my job and position and stand a chance of paying off my debts as honourably as I could. It's quite difficult not telling anyone at work about this but I am concerned it would ruin my reputation and destroy the trust people have in me. So fingers crossed!!

[trixie]

So! I have the company card in my name and they didn't credit check me. Phew!! I have to say if it hadn't been for the fantastic advice I received on this forum I might have panicked, confessed all and possibly lost my job (okay okay that is worst case scenario but it was going through my mind). And this past few weeks while it was all being sorted out I was certainly A LOT calmer than I would have been than if I had just sweated it out not knowing how it would work. So I was saved untold stress and I feel great that I did enter an IVA and not go bankrupt as was my choice all those years ago. I am managing (somehow) to struggle through week by week, with hardly anyone knowing anything but that I am paying off a debt, but at least I have my job and that keeps me going.
So THANK YOU forum people!!!

[mazbrown]

[MelanieGiles]

Another great success story for the forum! So glad that this worked out well for you.