How do i find out my credit rating?

cherrypie556

FDont know if this is the right place (sorry if it isnt) but was wondering how do i find out my credit score and whats good? Cheers

Rafter

A score in itself is meaningless since all the different credit companies have their scoring methods.

The 'free' way is to register on zopa.co.uk which is a service that bypasses the banks and allows you to lend and borrow money direct.

As part of the registration service they credit score you with experian or equifax and give you the score and also an indication of how 'credit worthy' you are.

If you go to experian or equifax you can also 'buy' your own credit record and for an additional fee get a credit score too.

R.

Clariman

Hi Cherrypie

There are 2 different things which it is easy to get confused by. First of all, there is your "credit history" which is a file of facts and information about the loans and cards you have had for the last 6 years and what your payment record has been (e.g. late payments, missed payments, current balances, credit limits etc etc). This information is used by lenders when they make a decision whether or not to lend to you.

This credit history is maintained by a small number of commercial companies such as experian and equifax. Lenders pay these credit reference agencies to search you credit history and give them the facts. This is where the other key term comes in. The lender will use the facts in your credit history to work out their "credit score" i.e. they work out how good a lending proposition you are. Different lenders will use slightly different criteria so none of us have one and only one credit score.

So what information is available to me ?

The credit reference agencies are legally obliged to provide you with a list of all the information they hold about you in your credit history. They charge only £2 and they must provide it to you within 7 days. This is the best starting point for anyone wanting to find out what their credit record is like.

Be careful, though, because Experian and Equifax would rather you paid a premium and bought their super-duper more expensive reports costing about a tenner, but these have no additional information compared to the statutory reports. Direct links to the statutory reports can be found towards the bottom of this page here http://www.stoozing.com/cra.htm

What about my credit rating then ?
As I said, you don't have one credit rating. However, in an attempt to make a bit of extra money, the credit reference agencies will generate a credit score for you for about a fiver. This is pretty meaningless, because it is just their assessment of your credit history - which might be totally different to how Egg or MBNA might rate you.

The best bet is to get your credit history and you can see if you have a bad track record of late payments. Sometimes you may find some inaccurate information. If this is so, you have a statutory right to get this removed or updated.

HTH
Clariman

mickmg

Read Martins article here http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?newsid1110747660,24962, on how to get your free credit rating. Its very easy and i got my score in a couple of minutes.

isayoldchap

:mad:

Clariman wrote:

Hi Cherrypie

There are 2 different things which it is easy to get confused by. First of all, there is your "credit history" which is a file of facts and information about the loans and cards you have had for the last 6 years and what your payment record has been (e.g. late payments, missed payments, current balances, credit limits etc etc). This information is used by lenders when they make a decision whether or not to lend to you.

This credit history is maintained by a small number of commercial companies such as experian and equifax. Lenders pay these credit reference agencies to search you credit history and give them the facts. This is where the other key term comes in. The lender will use the facts in your credit history to work out their "credit score" i.e. they work out how good a lending proposition you are. Different lenders will use slightly different criteria so none of us have one and only one credit score.

So what information is available to me ?

The credit reference agencies are legally obliged to provide you with a list of all the information they hold about you in your credit history. They charge only £2 and they must provide it to you within 7 days. This is the best starting point for anyone wanting to find out what their credit record is like.

Be careful, though, because Experian and Equifax would rather you paid a premium and bought their super-duper more expensive reports costing about a tenner, but these have no additional information compared to the statutory reports. Direct links to the statutory reports can be found towards the bottom of this page here http://www.stoozing.com/cra.htm

What about my credit rating then ?
As I said, you don't have one credit rating. However, in an attempt to make a bit of extra money, the credit reference agencies will generate a credit score for you for about a fiver. This is pretty meaningless, because it is just their assessment of your credit history - which might be totally different to how Egg or MBNA might rate you.

The best bet is to get your credit history and you can see if you have a bad track record of late payments. Sometimes you may find some inaccurate information. If this is so, you have a statutory right to get this removed or updated.

HTH
Clariman

I'm sure you have researched this well.Just in case https://www.creditexpert.co.uk
and get the 30 day free trial.See your file online TODAY with Experian.Don't forget the cancel it afterwards as there are charges afterwards.

Clariman

isayoldchap wrote:

:mad:

I'm sure you have researched this well.Just in case https://www.creditexpert.co.uk
and get the 30 day free trial.See your file online TODAY with Experian.Don't forget the cancel it afterwards as there are charges afterwards.

I think it is important to point out the difference between 'credit history' and 'credit score' and the fact that there is no single credit score for any one person. Getting your credit history for £2 is well worth doing, because it enables you to correct any errors in it and it may also jog you memory about some late/missed payments that you had made. A credit score is just a number and gives you an indication of how you may be perceived by lenders, but it doesn't give you any information you can actually do anything with.

I've just read Martin's article on Zopa. Looks as if it might be an easy and free way of getting a credit score from Equifax. However, there are down sides. It counts as a credit search on your credit file - and a lot of credit searches in themselves can affect your credit rating. Secondly, I don't like giving my details to websites unless I really need to use their services, so I would be reluctant to register and provide them sufficient information to do a credit check on me, but that is just a reflection of my cautious nature.

Creditexpert is a service offered to consumers by Experian and you are right that they offer a 30 day free trial. You are also right to point out that, as with many free trials, you need to make sure that you cancel it before the end of the 30 days otherwise you get hit with the charge which is in the region of £45 IIRC. The +ve thing about creditexpert is that it gives you online access to you credit history at any time. I signed up for the annual service to help me with my Stoozing. I figure that a cost of £45 per year is a good investment in order to get by £2000 p.a. Stoozing profit.

Clariman