Credit Reference Agencies

If you’re an adult living in the UK, it’s almost certain your name and details are held in the files of the three main credit reference agencies: Experian Ltd, Equifax plc and Callcredit plc.
When you apply for a loan, lenders may ask one of these agencies for a copy of your credit report (also called your credit file), which will tell them:

• public record information about you, such as Electoral Roll details, and any court judgments (such as County Court Judgements (CCJs) in England and Wales, and Decrees in Scotland) or records of bankruptcy against you;
• credit account information – details of your current credit agreements (such as whether you’re up to date with your payments) as well as agreements you have had in the past six years;
• other credit checks several applications in a short space of time may look like someone is over-stretched, or possibly a victim of fraud

Seeking access to your credit report
It’s your legal right to see your credit report and to correct anything in it that you can prove is wrong. The maximum charge for what is called the Statutory Report is £2, which can be paid by cheque, postal order, credit / debit card. The report will be sent to you by mail and should arrive within 7 days from receipt of order. It is also possible to apply, and see instantly, an online copy but costs for this are higher.

Be Credit Aware
With the growing threat of identity fraud it is a wise precaution to check your credit report occasionally for any signs of unusual activity. It is always helpful to be aware of your credit status before applying for a mortgage or other major credit and rectify any incorrect entries on your file.
It can have a negative impact on your credit score if you make multiple credit applications in a short space of time – each search carried out by the lender will leave a record or ‘footprint’. Applying for your report does not leave a footprint.

Credit providers are not obliged to explain why they have declined a credit application – each lender has their own credit scoring process which is closely guarded to avoid manipulative applications. This doesn’t mean that ‘secret’ information is held against your name, everything they can see is visible on credit reports. Be aware that credit providers may submit information to one agency but not the others – this does mean that on occasions a search of all three agency files is necessary to discover a full picture of any adverse recordings.

Adverse information generally stays on a report for six years. It is possible to amend the file to record an updated status, i.e. a County Court Judgement (CCJ) is now satisfied, an outstanding balance is now settled etc.

Be very wary of so called ‘Credit Repair’ companies who claim that credit files can be wiped clean – usually for a hefty fee! The best way forward is to ensure that your credit file is as accurate as possible and then maintain a sustained period of credit repayment.
Contact details for the three main agencies are given below. Application forms for the statutory £2 report can, with some searching, be found on the websites (these are very much geared towards making online applications for the reports).

If the quicker online route appeals, you may wish to take a look at checkmyfile.com. which allows you to obtain your credit report online from the three major credit reference agencies at a lower cost! In addition, there are features that enable you to obtain a quick free guide to your credit score and indications of house prices & credit rating for your neighbourhood.

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Neither Mortgage of Choice nor Home of Choice Ltd is responsible for the accuracy of the information contained within the linked site.

Experian Ltd
Consumer Help Service
PO Box 8000
Nottingham
NG80 7WF
Tel: 0870 241 6212
http://www.experian.co.uk/

Equifax Plc.
Credit File Advice Centre
PO Box 1140
Bradford
BD1 5US
Tel 0870 010 0583
http://www.myequifax.co.uk/

Consumer Services Team
Callcredit Limited
PO Box 491
Leeds
LS3 1WZ
Tel: 0870 060 1414
http://www.mycallcredit.com/

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