Credit score advice
On the programme on Wednesday 29 May 2024, we featured Emmanuel, who was having problems with his broadband provider, which was taking action against him that could have affected his credit rating.
A credit rating, or credit score, is a key part of your financial identity and if you want to borrow money on a credit card, loan, or mortgage, it’s a simple way for a lender to learn more about the likelihood that you’ll pay them back. In Emmanuel’s case, a negative marker against his score could affect his ability to borrow money.
If you want to know your credit score, look online for credit reference agencies which hold this information and share it with financial companies. Three of the main credit reference agencies in the UK are Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.
Adam French from personal finance website Nerd Wallet UK has this advice if you have an issue with how a company’s actions have affected your credit score:
• Log in and check your score with a credit reference agency – if a negative marker shows up from a particular company and you want to dispute it, tell both the company and the credit reference agency to mark it as disputed.
• Once the issue is resolved it should be removed from your credit score and won’t affect future borrowing.
Consumer expert Martyn James has also worked with Rip Off Britain to produce this video busting myths about credit scoring, and how it works.
