Credit Reports

[Saxondale]

Hello.  Advice please.

Im trying to get a new mortgage, Coventry have turned us down implying its my credit record (the wife has come back as 'excellent' on her report.  Smartarse).

Has anyone got a really decent credit report provider.  Clearly the fucking building society can get my credit report but they cant tell me what it is and the ones Ive tried to use have made it difficult for me and i've really not got the sodding patience with it at the moment.

[Nemo]

Clearscore is free so start there, if it doesn't show anything up then pay for Experian/Equifax (the building society should be happy enough to tell you which one they use)

It might be worth noting that Coventry BS turned me down for a current account and my credit is fine so I think they might be more picky than most.

[manc_red]

Clearscore uses the Equifax data. The majority of lenders search experian (or did), some googling may tell you what Coventry use. Although there's only 3 in total anyway - the other one is call credit - so might as well get clear score and a free trial on the other two, which gets you instant access.

[manc_red]

Ah here it is - http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/credit-reference

Coventry use Equifax so head for clearscore.

[Saxondale]

Thanks both.  Coventry certainly are over picky.  Nowt wrong with my accounts really.

[Saxondale]

Noddle, whatever that is, have given me 5/5.  639.

[Quagmire]

If you sign up with Experian, the first month is free, you should be able to get what you need and then be sure to cancel before the free month is up.

[Saxondale]

Problem is they ask you questions about something you did to do with a bank account 16 years ago.  I dont bloody know.

Anyway, noddle and clear score both have me with a better credit rating than in my area and nationally.  Clearscore giving me 8 positives and one negative.  The negative being I dont have a credit card. 

So all in all I can only conclude that the whole system is fucked, the coventry are cunts (I will be leading a chant of 'your building societies method of deciding on mortgage application is flawed' in a couple of weeks - join me) and that capitalism is fatally flawed so the revolution must surely come.

[manc_red]

Noddle, whatever that is, have given me 5/5.  639.

Noddle = Call Credit

[Red Frog]

capitalism is fatally flawed so the revolution must surely come.

I think I might have spotted what's pulling down your rating. That'll be £49.99. PM me for bank details.

hth

[Saxondale]

Noddle = Call Credit

Right so its all the same. 

[RobertT]

Your credit "score" doesn't really tell much of the story - that's just a moment in time assessment of how good a risk you are in general (based on paying things).

You can have a good "score" but be close to being over extended on credit - as an example, say you have 2 credit cards with 20k in total credit but you've been clearing them both off every month.  Great for payment reliability but 20k in credit is already available to you from those providers - so any new credit search will consider that when wondering if they should extend you total credit exposure.

[Samdy Gray]

If there are no defaults or late/missed payments showing on your report, you need to find out from Coventry exactly why they've declined it based on the credit report because there could be a discrepancy you need to resolve.

It may be as simple as a name or address error that doesn't match up between the application and what Experian/Equifax says.

As Rob has said, unlike in the US where scoring is widely used by most lenders, credit "score" is meaningless in the UK. Lenders do their own assessment of credit worthiness based on what's on the report, not some arbitrary score a third party has given. The likes of Equifax, Experian and Noddle will all give you a "score" which is aimed at them selling you a service to improve that meaningless score.

[jayohaitchenn]

Are you on the electoral roll at your current address? That will hammer your score if not.

[pauld]

As others have said you shd definitely check with the lender. I had a similar situation with the Clydesdale, turned down our mortgage because Experian had told them (wrongly) I had defaulted on several loans. Took me two years to finally get my record cleared with all the credit ratings agencies, as soon as I'd got it wiped from one, it would pop up again. It was a complete nightmare, never got even so much as an apology from Experian. But I did get the best part of a grand in three separate compensation payments from Lloyds (twice) and HFC as it was they who kept re-inserting it into my credit record. Hopefully this is nowhere near as bad as that, and just Coventry being picky but definitely worth checking, if you do have anything bad on your record the longer an error's there the harder it is to get it shifted.