If you’re one of the UK’s 14 million renters, you’ll probably have heard that renting can now improve your Credit Score, potentially making it easier to get a mortgage and onto the housing ladder.
You may be able to find all the information about your rental history on your Credit Report, including your payments and addresses.
Checking your rental payments
In addition to recording your credit account repayment history, court records, financial associations, and so much more, your Credit Report can also show you a detailed breakdown of your monthly rental payments.
As part of the Rental Exchange Initiative, your landlord (if you are a private tenant) or local council (if you are a social housing tenant) can share your monthly rental payments with the Credit Reference Agencies via The Rental Exchange.
All payments that are made in full and on time should be reported as positive markers on your Credit Report, which contribute to your overall Credit Score, potentially improving your creditworthiness in the eyes of lenders and landlords.
The reverse is also true, however. Any missed payments will be reported as negative entries that can harm your Credit Rating, potentially making it more difficult and more expensive to obtain credit.
What if my rental payments aren’t on my Credit Report?
You may find that your rental payments are already being shared with the Credit Reference Agencies; the only way to see the information for yourself is to check your Credit Report.
If they’re not already being reported, and you think you’d benefit from having your rental payments included on your Credit Report, you can ask your landlord or local council to share your payment information with the Credit Reference Agencies.
Alternatively, you can self-report your rental payments through services such as Credit Ladder and Canopy, who will share your payments with the Credit Reference Agencies for you.
It’s important to remember that, while payments made on time can help your Credit Rating, any missed payments can damage your creditworthiness.
What if my rental payments are incorrect?
Mistakes on your Credit Report are rare, but they can happen. When they do, it’s worth knowing how to fix them.
If you find that your landlord or council has incorrectly reported your rental payments, it’s best to contact them directly in the first instance. As the source of the information, they should be able to correct any mistakes they’ve made and report the correct data instead. It’s worth noting that it usually takes them up to six weeks to make changes such as these. You can then check for changes by refreshing your Credit Report.
If after contacting your landlord/council, they agree that the information is incorrect but are unable to amend the data for any reason, you can raise a dispute with the relevant Credit Reference Agency directly. This method can often take longer than contacting the source directly, but where that fails, raising a dispute with the appropriate agency can be helpful.
The Credit Reference Agency will contact the source of the information directly to request permission to change the data. As long as the source approves the change, the dispute will be successful and your Credit Report will be amended as requested.
checkmyfile gives you access to the UK’s most detailed Credit Report, and can raise disputes on your behalf with the Credit Reference Agencies when necessary, making it a valuable tool for monitoring and correcting your information.
Finding your previous addresses
One of the many benefits of your Credit Report is how it can act as a record of important information that you may have long forgotten. We’ve previously written about finding your former residences on your Credit Report but, in short, any addresses that have been shared with the Credit Reference Agencies will appear on your Credit Report as Linked Addresses.
The ‘Linked Addresses’ section of your Credit Report will show any addresses that you have had a financial link to, as reported by your lenders or local council. You’ll be able to see the full address, any Electoral Roll listings that you held over the years, and which Credit Reference Agencies are holding the record.
Address links aren’t like closed credit accounts, which are removed after six years – instead, Linked Addresses remain on your Credit Report indefinitely (providing they are reported correctly). Addresses themselves also have no direct impact on your Credit Rating, good or bad.
How to check your Credit Report
You can easily check your Credit Report online with checkmyfile, letting you see exactly what a lender or landlord would see during a credit check.
Our Multi Agency Credit Report is the most detailed in the UK, gathering your Credit Report information from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion all on the same, easy-to-use platform.
If you have any questions about your Multi Agency Credit Report, our Expert Help can be contacted at any time online through your account.
You can try checkmyfile free for 30 days, then for just £14.99 per month. Cancel online at any time, without fuss.