Credit Report and Defaults

themoneyking

Good Morning - I'm new to MSE Forums!

I have a number of Defaulted Accounts on my Experian Credit Report.

My question is around obviously as time passes since these accounts defaulted I expect that the negative impact on my credit report will become less?

How long after a default has been issued should I start to see them having less of an impact on my credit report (aware they drop off after 6 years), but will it be better after a year?
I also discovered that Experian are not reporting me as being on the Electoral Roll (even though I verified with my local council that I am since Feb 2014). I checked also with EquiFax and CallCredit and confirmed that they DO report me as being on the Electoral Roll. I have obviously reported this to Experian and awaiting the Electoral Services team to verify and amend my Credit Report appropriately.

One final question, when you are looking to rent a property and they undertake Credit Referencing does this just show Public Records Information such as Bankruptcy/IVA, Electoral Roll and CCJ? I presume they have no access to information around my defaulted accounts due to them not offering credit facility as I presume they won’t have access to this information.

Am I likely to be accepted for a rental property in this scenario?

Thanks for your help in advance.

Tixy

Hi and welcome

Defaults will continue to have a big impact for a number of years. Some subprime lenders are willing to offer credit to people with older defaults. E.g. Some subprime credit card providers will consider applicants whose defaults are older than 2 or 3 years. Paid off defaults will look better to these lenders than unpaid defaults.

You are correct, a credit reference for rental purposes won't show any defaults / credit account history, so these won't impact on your chance of being accepted as a tenant.

themoneyking

So they for rental purposes they can not refuse, unless you have CCJ/Bankruptcy?

Tixy

For rental purposes they are unable to make a decision based on information they don't know about.

So if they say you have failed their credit checking procedures then it won't actually be because of any defaults on your credit reference agency file.

themoneyking

How quickly can your credit score increase if you begin to manage your affairs better, even with unsettled defaults. I am now making appropriate payments to all creditors but still have defaults.

Once I have he electoral roll issue sorted, how quickly and by how much can I expect my credit score to increase (1 month =100 points?)

GingerBob_3

Tixy wrote: »

For rental purposes they are unable to make a decision based on information they don't know about.

So if they say you have failed their credit checking procedures then it won't actually be because of any defaults on your credit reference agency file.

I seem to recall seeing somewhere that Experian are trying to persuade the private rental sector to report tenant payment history to them. I think they said something about how in this respect tenants are at a disadvantage compared to people with a mortgage - the phrase "level playing field" was used. Of course they would say that, wouldn't they? The current discussion would suggest the opposite.

Tixy

Don't worry about the credit score credit reference agencies will sell to you. Nobody ever sees that score except you, if you choose to buy it.

Potential lenders don't see it, they assess the raw data from your credit file.

For most lenders not being on the electoral roll is considered a negative factor, so getting that corrected should remove that negative from any future lending decisions.

themoneyking

Thanks Tixy - whats your background, you seem very knowledgeable!