Credit file that I didn't know I had

Archi_Bald

Your credit history is important even if you don't want any actual credit but just a credit product, such as a current account.

You may argue that you will never want to apply for another current account, and that is obviously your decision (mainly). But given that there are an increasing number of interesting current accounts with various perks, and that switching is a doddle, you might get tempted eventually.

But whether you like it or not, credit reference agencies (CRAs) are here to stay, and everyone who holds a credit product (current account, credit card etc) has agreed to have their data reported to these agencies. No amount of huffing and puffing on your part will change this.

CRAs are a critical component in the finance world - without them, lending to consumers (loans, overdrafts, mortgages) couldn't function these days.

Torry_Quine

bsms1147 wrote: »

Little or lots, if you want any credit, it's important.

I live my life without credit and when I took out a mortgage it was a very different world. Until MSE I didn't even know there were credit agencies.

gazfocus

Sorry but this has to be a p*** take right?

You've been a member of a money saving website for almost 7 years and you didn't know about credit histories? You've had a mortgage (as you said you've paid it off) and you have credit cards, which would have required you to have a credit history to get, yet you think you are above everyone else so much that you don't require a credit history?

torbrex

gazfocus wrote: »

Sorry but this has to be a p*** take right?

You've been a member of a money saving website for almost 7 years and you didn't know about credit histories? You've had a mortgage (as you said you've paid it off) and you have credit cards, which would have required you to have a credit history to get, yet you think you are above everyone else so much that you don't require a credit history?

Again, more abuse

Why should I know about credit histories?

What you all call credit I call debt and I live my life without debt because I am always in credit.

I don't need to know about credit history when I apply for a credit card because I have always been given one when I applied for it.
I did not need to know about credit history when I applied for my mortgage as it had already been approved even before I found the house I wanted to buy.

I joined this site because I had money to save and wanted to find the best place to put it, not everyone that joins is in debt up to their eyeballs and needing help to get a way out of the hole they are in.

You accuse me of thinking that I am above everyone else, that is your opinion and you are entitled to it.
I have never said that I didn't require a credit history, these companies can obviously do what they like anyway, what I said was that I did not need one to live my life.

Anoneemoose

torbrex wrote: »

Again, more abuse

Why should I know about credit histories?

What you all call credit I call debt and I live my life without debt because I am always in credit.

I don't need to know about credit history when I apply for a credit card because I have always been given one when I applied for it.
I did not need to know about credit history when I applied for my mortgage as it had already been approved even before I found the house I wanted to buy.

I joined this site because I had money to save and wanted to find the best place to put it, not everyone that joins is in debt up to their eyeballs and needing help to get a way out of the hole they are in.

You accuse me of thinking that I am above everyone else, that is your opinion and you are entitled to it.
I have never said that I didn't require a credit history, these companies can obviously do what they like anyway, what I said was that I did not need one to live my life.

You still don't get it do you?

You DO (or maybe DID) need one to live your life in the way you have previously chosen. You have had a mortgage, credit cards and bank accounts, all of which would not have been given to you without a check of some sort.

The only way you wouldn't have 'needed' one is if you had never had any of the above products. No matter what you want to call it, credit/debt, it amounts to the same.

Even if you pay them off in full and only use your cards for rewards etc, you still needed to pass a credit check before getting them.

torbrex

Anoneemoose wrote: »

You still don't get it do you?

You DO (or maybe DID) need one to live your life in the way you have previously chosen. You have had a mortgage, credit cards and bank accounts, all of which would not have been given to you without a check of some sort.

The only way you wouldn't have 'needed' one is if you had never had any of the above products. No matter what you want to call it, credit/debt, it amounts to the same.

Even if you pay them off in full and only use your cards for rewards etc, you still needed to pass a credit check before getting them.

I'm sorry but it's you that doesn't get it.

I don't need a credit file, if one exists and card issuers look at it then it is them that needs the file, not me and as I have never been refused a financial product in my life then why do I need to bother checking what is stored on my file?

purpleshoes_2

Sometimes companies do a credit check on you when you are signing up to items like a mobile phone contract. I do have credit card debt, I do know what my credit score is, I never actually looked at the information that was held on me until recently, but its not just when applying for a credit card that a company will do a check on your credit rating, vodafone did one on me when I took out a phone contract with them as well and so have other companies, it gives them an indication of whether you are likely to pay or whether you are likely to miss payments.

purpleshoes_2

torbrex wrote: »

I'm sorry but it's you that doesn't get it.

I don't need a credit file, if one exists and card issuers look at it then it is them that needs the file, not me and as I have never been refused a financial product in my life then why do I need to bother checking what is stored on my file?

Incase you are ever the victim of fraud, where someone tries to get credit using your details, it happens.

suse*

Some people have burglar alarms and cctv on their houses to protect their homes. Some people have car alarms or trackers to protect their car. Some people (or everyone should) have antivirus and firewall software on their phones / laptops etc to stop malware etc. Some people check their credit file once a year or so for exactly the same reason to protect their identity. We don't always live in a 100% safe world and by taking responsibilty of your own identity and checking your file, which as I've said before you can do for free or very cheaply, then you're protecting yourself against idendity theft or lots of hassle trying to prove those credit cards etc were never yours.

I understand you never asked for a file to be created but it doesn't work that way. There needs to be a way to share between all banks, insurance companies, phone companies etc etc to judge your risk level. You can take all our advice and just check your file for mistakes, or you can ignore it and just hope next time you see a deal you'd like to switch to, eg energy, phone, insurance etc etc that there are no mistakes on your file and you get it ok.

Just saying I didn't ask for it, I don't want it, isn't going to make it go away, or make all these companies that now rely on it assess your risk in any other way.

Hazzinho

Think this is a dead thread, i personally don't mind credit reference agencies I see it like car insurance, I manage credit well and get the best deals. If the op doesn't care then what does it matter? Once you've paid off a mortgage I sort of agree a credit file isn't a big deal unless one day you want credit and haven't managed any the last six years.