Credit Rating: How it works and How to improve it discussion area

Exile

As far as I'm aware- and as it has been stated about 100 times in this thread alone. Your address is irrelevant. Your address didn't acquire a credit history. You did.

Unfortunately it's not like you let off a stinky fart and can walk away and you won't stink.

izools

Exile wrote: »

As far as I'm aware- and as it has been stated about 100 times in this thread alone. Your address is irrelevant. Your address didn't acquire a credit history. You did.

Unfortunately it's not like you let off a stinky fart and can walk away and you won't stink.

PMSL ROFL That has to be the funniest thing I've heard all week!!

Brilliant :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

empressmb

Hello,

I've just checked my credit report and it seems to only list credit accounts registered to the addresses I lived at for the last 3 years. Is this normal?
Sorry if this seems like a daft question, I'm trying to learn more about everything credit / debt related and I don't know a lot yet!
Some credit accounts that were on my report in Oct 2009 aren't there at all on the Jan 2010 report. They are recently closed accounts I couldn't update with my new address as the account provider insisted they couldn't let me do this to a closed account.

izools

Have you given Experian all of your last addresses over the prior six years?

empressmb

I'm pretty sure they have them all, have copies of my credit report in 2010, 2009, and 2008. But the 2008 one also only listed credit accounts linked to addresses I had lived at from 2005.

My 2008 and 2009 Equifax reports included 4 defaulted closed accounts (passed on to debt collection agencies, I make payments to them). Mysteriously my 2010 report only includes 1 of those 4 accounts. Of course I don't know exactly how Equifax handles this data, they could suddenly add the missing 3 accounts back!

Funnily enough my 2008 and 2009 Callcredit reports made no mention of 1 defaulted closed account I knew of, but it appeared on the 2010 one!

What I'm trying to figure out is whether this is likely to keep happening if I move addresses 1ce a year, which I've done for the last 8 years (neither my parents or myself own property in the UK, so I've always rented). I'ld be delighted if the closed accounts kept falling off each time I moved - it might improve my credit score!

I haven't missed a single payment to the debt collection agencies and have no intention of doing so. Making sure I don't get new defaults / missed payments on ANYTHING, so it's the past defaults and the total amount of borrowings that's giving me a poor credit score.

izools

They don't go anywhere when you move but the CRAs may not have all your addresses linked in with your membership - so you may not have visibility to see what other lenders do until you make sure the CRAs are checking all prior addresses.

RE: Linking.

Equifax will only show a creditor data for your address and the one before.

I've moved three times since I was declared bankrupt, so despite my being honest on application forms, length of stay, current and previous address, etc, Equifax based lenders don't see my BR or Defaults.

Experian are much better at linking addresses however.

But like Exile so aptly pointed out, whilst your old accounts may be recorded at a previous addesses any lender will still see them as Experian will have all the addresses you've ever moved between all linked in, so you only need to give the lender one addy - they'll see EVERYTHING.

rictus123

Is there any free sites out there for this?

izools

You can get your Equifax and Experian reports for free if you sign up for the 30 day trial and call to cancel before the trial is up.

Just go direct to the CRA's website

https://www.equifax.co.uk
https://www.creditexpert.co.uk

Don't bother with things like annual credit report as they search Call Credit - no creditor does however, so it's a pointless exercise.

incesticde

(Sorry if this question has been asked before , I did do a search but nothing came up)

I'm re-building my credit record up using a Barclaycard initial, my limit is £400 and I'm re-paying it in full monthly.

Should I be keeping my monthly balance to a certain percentage of the credit limit? Should I be maxing or just a small amount each month? which one is better?

izools

I think the closer to the limit you take the card whilst still repaying it in full each month, the more likely Barclaycard are to increase (or allow an increase) your limit in six months time.