How to get a clean credit file uk

For example, all of them try hard to sell you an estimated credit score but this is worthless because it's not how these agencies interpret your data - it's how a potential lender does. A far cheaper option it's free is for you to estimate your own credit score which takes less than 5 minutes.

It's excellent and really quick. I have classed the information below as either high importance, medium importance or low importance in relation to the effect they have on your credit file. Of course, just because you're not registered to vote doesn't mean you're a bad risk and vice versa. However, in the black and white world of credit scoring you can only obtain a good rating, or improve one, if you're registered to vote. For example if you were a lender would you rather lend to someone where you can see their last 10 years of borrowing history or someone where you can only see the last 12 months?

In order to work out the age of your credit file the computer will look at all your accounts listed on your credit file and find the one that has the oldest date.

So if you've had a Barclaycard since and the year is your credit rating is 20 years old. However, if you also have another credit card, say a Natwest Visa opened 10 years ago, the 2 dates will be averaged so making your credit rating 15 years old. As the age of your credit file is important you shouldn't close an old but good account which is listed on your file.

Sadly most financial commentators miss this point, as they all blindly suggest it's important to close unused accounts. And all you do by closing old accounts is to reduce your credit file's date of birth and that in turn will lead to a drop in your rating. My advice is therefore simple - Always try to keep old financial accounts open, even if you don't use them. Again, they all state that this step is guaranteed to improve your credit rating.

I prove this below. So here's the proof of why cancelling unused lines of credit will seriously knock your credit rating. It's all to do with what's called your credit capacity -. Lenders take these percentages seriously as a high percentage usually means there's a strong possibility the person is struggling with debt. Who would you rather lend to if you were a bank officer? Would you not think that Sally looks a little desperate if she comes asking to borrow more money? However, sadly for John he's read the usual rubbish that says ' if you want a better credit rating you must cancel any unused Credit Cards '.

So he does, cancelling the 2 that are not being used. But then look what happens -. Summary - Having unused and untapped credit is one of the foundations to getting a great credit rating, so ignore anyone who tells you otherwise. What is interesting though is a high percentage doesn't matter too much if you're not looking to obtain any more credit.

For example -. A simple way to instantly reduce your percentage capacity. Credit Card companies are ever greedy to lend more money and in my experience, assuming your credit rating is fine, they'll normally oblige should you ask for more.

What this will do is instantly reduce your capacity percentage, for example -. All this has been achieved without ever borrowing another penny. However, you must be financially disciplined and plan not to use the cards otherwise the whole exercise will have been a disaster as you take on more debt. Everyone turned him down and now he approaches you. Would you lend him the money or would you think there's perhaps a clue about his potential credit worthiness because everyone else has turned him down?

It's no different in the credit scoring world. Whenever you apply for credit, regardless of whether you're accepted or declined, a small mark is entered on your credit file, which will look like this -. These are called ' credit searches ' or a ' credit inquiry ' and too many over a short period of time is not good news.

This is because the probabilities suggest the person is desperate and is not only applying everywhere for new credit but seems to be turned down wherever he goes. This is how their credit file might look -. These companies themselves are not finance firms so when a customer signs an loan agreement it will be with a separate finance company. Finance firms also specialise in offering small loans to the less well off, and many people view them as legal loan sharks often charging interest rates into the hundreds of percent.

Having an account with a finance firm is usually negative for your credit rating. If your credit rating is currently OK and you're looking to improve it I wouldn't advise you open an account with a finance company.

Yes, it might make financial sense spreading the payments over months but realise this also comes with a hidden price - negatively effecting your credit rating. But if your credit rating is currently dreadful I would advise you try to get credit via a finance firm. They offer the CapitalOne Classic Platinum credit card at a typical They also offer a transfer rate — theirs is Marbles offers a simple credit rebuilder card with a typical APR of You can pay online or through the app to help keep track of your spending, too.

There are some simple things you can do to start rebuilding trust in your credit score. Most banks now offer a basic bank account. These have no overdraft facility or monthly account fees. The Money Advice Service has great information about basic bank accounts to get you started. LoqBox is essentially a loan to help you rebuild your credit. CreditLadder lets you use your monthly rent payments to boost your credit score.

Your rent is the biggest chunk of your monthly expenditure — so put it to good use! This service is free for tenants to use. It acts like an intermediary between you and the credit reference agencies.

Using Open Banking technology, it updates your rent payments to the Experian Rental Exchange every month. These reports help boost your credit rating, as you can be seen to be making large deposits without fail on a regular basis.

I was a bit sceptical at first, having wasted money on credit repair services. But your instructions have enabled to clean up my credit file and become credit worthy again. And at such little cost. Thanks again. When looking how to get a default removed from your credit file you become aware that bankruptcy and county court judgements will be removed automatically after 6 years however this is not always the last of it.

A lender is still able to chase you for the debt as unless this is statute barred. A debt which is statute barred cannot be pursued by the lender once it has outside of the specific period although this debt will still be listed on the credit file. If an account that does not belong to you appears on your credit record system then the first step will be to contact the lender to dispute. If this does appear on the file they should remove this as soon as possible.

If you are working to remove items from a credit report legally, it can often be very time-consuming. Speaking to an agency can speed up the process and allow you to ask for advice on the matter. Certain debts can stay on your debt account for 6 years however they become less of an issue, the longer they are on the system.

Find out more about credit scores first if you are unsure on how they work. The best way of getting a debt cleared from the credit file would be to contact the lender and agree that it was not justified in the first place. If you cannot agree that the debt was unjustified, the lender will have had a duty of care to report this and it will remain on your account information for the 6 years.