What does ‘credit rating’ mean? 

There are three primary credit reference agencies operating in the UK: Experian, CallCredit and Equifax. These companies have detailed information on about 44 million Britons, including information on credit cards, mortgages, bank accounts, specific information on unpaid bills, and failure to pay hire-purchase debts and County Court Judgments. If it sounds like a lot of personal information, it is--and every time you apply for a credit card, personal loan, or a mortgage, prospective lenders run this type of a credit check on your financial history.

Each lender's preferences and tolerances determine the credit scores that will be acceptable for that particular lending agency. It all depends on the target market. A lender targeting students will not care if an applicant is married. Another lending institution might view marriage as a sign of stability, and scores high in this area will increase an applicant's chances of meeting the desired rating. Other similar personal information may increase or decrease your score for a particular lender.

One factor that nearly all lending institutions review is the number of credit applications you've completed. If you have applied for multiple lines of credit in a short period of time, this will work against you. To this end, consider asking a lending institution why you were turned down rather than moving on to the next lender. You may still be able to work with the lender.

You can find out what information each of the credit reference agencies hold on you by contacting them at the addresses shown at the bottom of this page, however, to get the 'complete' picture, you should use a COMBINED report, available by clicking HERE.

You can contact each of the above named credit reference agencies separately at the following addresses: 

Equifax Credit File Advice Centre
P.O. Box 1140
Bradford
BD1 5US 

Experian
Talbot House
Talbot Street
Nottingham
NG80 1TH
United Kingdom

Consumer Services
Callcredit Limited
PO Box 491
Leeds
LS3 1WZ

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