What do CRAs really know about you?

HarryIb

Just read this statement in an article in The Times:

HMRC is looking at working with credit reference agencies to obtain data about taxpayer income and expenditure to assess how much someone can afford to pay each month. HMRC has previously said that it was considering a rule that no more than 50 per cent of a customer’s disposable income could go towards repaying the debt.

The article (paywalled) is here:

https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/hmrc-bank-account-tax-debt-budget-jw0zbq86x

So what, precisely, do the CRAs know about a person's income? And I do wish those chumps at HMRC would stop referring to TAXPAYERS as customers!!

Woodstok2000

CRAs may know your income if you share it with them, e.g. if you've used Experian WorkReport...

flaneurs_lobster

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82178930#Comment_82178930

..or if you've used CRAs to search for credit products then your income is one of the input requirements.

Unless you've volunteered the number then I don't think the CRAs could know your income from the standard credit agreement data supplied to them, although you might be able to make a ballpark guess from your available credit limit.

Woodstok2000

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82179437#Comment_82179437

Yeah, I don't know if they'd differentiate between a self reported number and the verified payroll info through workreport but those are the only ways I can see they'd have that info.