Your Credit Report

When you apply for a credit card, mortgage, loan, or any other type of credit, lenders typically check your credit report to help them make their decision. Checking your own credit report won't affect your credit score, so it's worth reviewing regularly to stay on top of your credit health.

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What is a credit report?

A credit report is a detailed record of your borrowing history, including credit cards, personal loans, overdrafts, and mortgages. If you're over 18 and have a bank account, chances are you have a credit report. When you apply for credit, lenders review the information on your report to help make their decision.

Who can see your credit report?

Those with a legal reason or your permission can access your credit report, including you, banks, mortgage providers, lenders, utilities companies, mobile phone contractors, letting agents and landlords, debt collection agencies, and insurance companies. In some cases, a potential employer may also request to see your credit report – for example, if the role you’re applying for involves handling large sums of money.

How long does information stay on your credit report?

Information typically stays on your credit report for six years, but there’s a variety of data on your credit report, and the retention time depends on what it is.

How to check your credit report

You can check your information from the UK’s three main credit reference agencies in one place with Checkmyfile.

We break down your credit history in a way that makes sense. Here, you can understand your habits, pinpoint patterns and correct any errors that could be impacting your overall credit health, without affecting your score.

What’s on your credit report?

A UK credit report holds information about your last six years of credit history, as well as personal information, like your name and addresses, and your credit accounts – cards, loans, mortgages, and overdrafts. It'll also show your payment history, whether payments were made on time, arrived late, or were missed altogether.

Then there are public records, including CCJs, bankruptcies, and insolvencies, plus any previous credit searches and details of other people or accounts you're financially linked with.