Credit reference agencies (Scotland)

Use this fact sheet to:

• understand credit scoring;
• deal with being turned down for credit;
• work out how debts will affect your credit report; and
• challenge incorrect information on your report.

What is a credit reference agency?

Credit reference agencies hold information about your credit agreements (including any arrears), rent agreements, sheriff court decrees, insolvency action (such as bankruptcy and trust deeds) and electoral roll information. A lender or landlord can only pass on information about your agreements with your consent. You usually give this consent when you sign the agreement. Failure to obtain your consent is a breach of the Data Protection Act 2018.

Sheriff court decrees will automatically be registered and are kept on record for a period of six years. The information a credit reference agency holds about you is known as your credit report (or file).

Limited companies

Limited companies have their own credit report in the same way as an individual. If a director of a company asks to borrow money on behalf of the company, the lender is likely to check the director's personal credit report as well as the company's.

Credit scoring

If you apply for credit, a lender may take into account several factors, such as your age, occupation and whether you are a homeowner (from the information you give them on your credit application). If you are an existing or previous customer, a lender may also look at information they already hold about you in their records. Lenders often use a process known as ‘credit scoring’ to assess this information together with the information shown on your credit report.

For credit scoring, a lender may give points to certain pieces of information and then add them up to give you a credit score. If you do not score above a particular lender’s pass level, your application for credit may be turned down. Each lender has their own policy guidelines that they follow when making lending decisions.

Ask the lender if they are using a credit score to decide whether to give you credit. If the company uses a computerised system you should be given broad information about how credit scoring works and the type of things they have taken into account in the scoring system for that company. If you are turned down they should tell you if you didn’t pass. They should also tell you if you were turned down for any other reason, for example, because of the information held on your credit report.

If the decision was made solely using a computerised scoring system you can ask the lender to look at your application again. This review should be done manually and not using an automated system. You may have to supply extra information to support your application.

Every time you apply for credit, a ‘search’ by the lender is marked on your credit report. Searches stay on your file for different times depending upon which credit reference agency was used. Experian and Equifax hold search entries for 12 months and TransUnion for up to 24 months.

Guarantors

When you guarantee a credit agreement, this means that if the person whose name the agreement is in does not pay, the creditor can ask you to pay. Credit reference agencies would not normally record a credit agreement on a guarantor's credit report if payments are up to date. If payments are missed, any default or decree could be recorded on the guarantor's credit report.

What do I do if I have been refused credit?

• If you have been refused credit, then you should ask the lender which credit reference agency was consulted and whether the credit reference agency’s information was the reason for the decision.
• Contact the agency and ask for a copy of your credit report under the Data Protection Act 2018. They will need your full name, current address, date of birth and any previous addresses that you have lived at for the past six years.
• This is free.
• You can go on the credit agency website and choose to fill in a form to have your report sent to you in the post.
• Your report should be sent to you within seven working days unless the agency needs you to send proof of your identity and address, for example, if you have moved home recently.
• You can also choose to ask to see your report online.
• If the information is incorrect, you have a right to ask the agency to remove or correct the information.

There are three main credit reference agencies, Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. You should check the information held with all of these agencies. This is because the details held by individual agencies may differ. See Useful contacts at the end of this fact sheet.

Can I appeal against a lender refusing me credit?

Unfortunately, there is no automatic right to credit. Some companies are starting to provide details as to why you have been turned down, which can help you establish the reasons.

If credit scoring was used then the company should give you broad reasons for refusing you credit.

Also, you may be able to ask for a manual decision if the initial decision was made by computer. See the earlier section Credit scoring. However, you are still only legally entitled to receive the name of the specific credit reference agency the lender consulted.

You can always contact the company again if information on your credit report has changed and ask them to look at your application again. Otherwise it may be a case of shopping around for credit, making sure you are very careful to check the interest rates and terms of any loan you are offered.

How long is information kept on my credit report?

The credit reference agency will leave most information on your report for at least six years. Information held by agencies includes the following.

Missed payments (arrears)

If you do not make a payment on time or pay less than your credit agreement says you should, your lender may report this to one or more of the credit reference agencies. The credit reference agency will update your credit report to show that your account is in arrears. This information stays on your credit report for six years.

Arrears can continue to be recorded on your credit report even if your lender has temporarily agreed that you can pay less than your credit agreement says you should. Although, your lender can tell the credit reference agency to add a marker to your report to show that there is an agreed payment arrangement in place.

If you are in arrears for several months, your lender may take further action and tell one or more of the credit reference agencies that your account is in ‘default’. Usually, this will not happen if you:

• have agreed a temporary payment arrangement with your lender; and
• are maintaining the payments under that arrangement.

For more information, see Defaults.

Defaults

A default can be added to your credit report to show that you have broken the terms and conditions of your agreement. A default is usually reported by a lender because:

• you have missed payments under your credit agreement; and
• your lender has decided to close your account.

Although it will depend on the terms and conditions of your credit agreement, a default usually happens after you have missed between three and six months’ payments.

A default may be recorded on your credit report for other reasons, for example where:

• your supplier has taken steps to cut off a service;
• your account has been included in a form of insolvency, such as bankruptcy; or
• action has been taken to recover the amount in court.

Credit accounts in default will stay on your credit report for six years from the date of default.

A default reported on your credit report is not the same as a default notice issued under the Consumer Credit Act 1974.

Settled accounts

These are deleted six years from the date the account is settled or when the last payment was made unless a 'default' was registered.

Bankruptcy orders

Bankruptcy orders are normally deleted six years from the date of the bankruptcy order, unless you are subject to a bankruptcy restriction order (BRO) or undertaking (BRU) which lasts longer than six years. In this case the bankruptcy order will be removed once the BRO/BRU ends. If you have not been discharged from your bankruptcy, the bankruptcy order will remain on your credit report until it has been discharged, even if this is longer than six years.

Sheriff court decrees

These are deleted after six years from the date of the decree, whether or not they have been paid.

Trust deeds

Trust deeds are normally deleted after six years from the date the trust deed was set up.

Student loans

Old 'mortgage style' student loan details are passed onto credit reference agencies. This can happen even if you have deferred the loan or made an arrangement to pay the loan back.

Mortgage debts and secured loans

You may be in arrears with your payments but have made an arrangement to pay or have had a possession order suspended by the court. In these cases the details may not show up as a ‘default’ on your credit report as long as you keep up with the payments.

Otherwise a ‘default’ may be registered by your lender.

Details will stay on the credit reference agency’s files for six years from the date the ‘default’ was registered which could be the date of a repossession order or when you handed the keys in to your lender. In some cases, details of how much you still owe will also appear on the file. This may affect your ability to get a new mortgage, especially if you still owe money to your previous lender.

Since July 2010, UK Finance no longer keeps information on people who have been repossessed or handed the keys in on their home. This information used to be kept in a mortgage possessions register and passed on to credit reference agencies. Existing information will stay on credit reference agency files.

Information on your mortgage or secured loan may still show up on your credit report. You can check your file in the usual way.

Your file should be marked as ‘satisfied’ if you pay the mortgage arrears off or if the sale of your house covers the outstanding debt. If you clear any mortgage shortfall, your file should also be marked as ‘satisfied’.

Notice of correction

You can ask the credit reference agency to put a notice on your report of up to 200 words, explaining why you got into debt or why you think information on your report is misleading. You may want to explain your financial circumstances at the time and why your situation is now different. This notice will then be seen by anyone reading your report such as a lender making a search of your credit report when you apply for credit.

Most credit decisions are made by automatic means (for instance, computer). If there is a ‘notice of correction’ on your report, your application must be referred for a manual decision (for example, a person will decide whether or not you can get credit).

Can details of other people’s credit be included in my report?

Credit reference agencies should not include information about other people who happen to live with you in your credit report, even if you share a surname, unless a financial connection has been created. This means other people’s credit details should not affect your credit rating.

Your credit report should only include:

• financial information about you;
• the name of anyone you have a financial connection with at your address (but not any financial information about that person); and
• the date and source of the financial connection.

This means that your financial details will not appear on anyone else’s credit report unless you have a financial connection. Your report will continue to show you who has accessed your details and when this happened.

You will be treated as having a financial connection to someone else where a lender tells the credit reference agency:

• you have made an application for credit in joint names;
• a bank account or other credit product has been opened in joint names; or
• you tell the credit reference agency that you are financially linked to someone else.

This will continue until you file a notice of disassociation to end the financial connection between you.

Linked addresses

Credit reports will also include a ‘linked addresses’ section with details of any previous addresses that you provided when applying for a copy of your report and other addresses you have been connected to.

Disassociation notices

There may be information on your report about people who you have no financial connection with or who no longer share a financial connection with you (for example, an ex-partner). You can write to the agency to ‘disassociate’ yourself from them explaining your reasons. You will need to fill in a form giving details about the people you want removed from your report. If any agency refuses to accept your notice you can ask the Information Commissioner's Office for help. The address is in the Useful contacts section at the end of this fact sheet.

Complaints about credit reference agencies

You have the right to complain to the Financial Ombudsman Service about how a credit reference agency has dealt with your credit file. You will have to follow the agency’s complaints procedure first. The address for the Financial Ombudsman Service is in Useful contacts at the end of this fact sheet.

You can also complain to the Information Commissioner's Office under the Data Protection Act 2018. They can look at issues such as why a lender or credit reference agency has not corrected information on your file, or where a credit reference agency has refused to add a notice of correction. The address for the Information Commissioner's Office is in Useful contacts at the end of this fact sheet.

The Scottish Register

Almost all sheriff court decrees are recorded on the Scottish Register and kept on the register for six years.

Trust Online holds the Scottish Register. If you are unsure whether you have any sheriff court decrees or whether the decrees are on the register, you can make a search against your name and address. You can do this online or by filling in a form and sending it to Trust Online. You will need to give Trust Online your correct name and address details and pay a fee.

Trust Online divides the register into several sections. Section three covers the Scottish Register. It costs £6 to search the Scottish Register for your name and address.

If you need to search for more than one name or address, you can add further details to the search. You will need to pay a further fee for each additional search. The cost for each additional search is the standard fee less 10%.

The register will tell you the name of the court, the date of the decree, the amount of the decree and who the decree is against. It may also list the case number. It will not show the name of the creditor or pursuer. You would need to ask the sheriff court for this information.

The contact details for Trust Online are in Useful contacts at the end of this fact sheet.

Paying the order off

If your decree has been fully paid, you can ask Trust Online to mark your entry on the register as satisfied. There is a fee of £6 for this which you must send to Trust Online with evidence from the pursuer that the debt has been paid in full. You will also need to provide other details, such as the name of the court, the case number, the date of the decree, the amount of the decree and the date that it was paid in full. Trust Online will then pass the updated information on to the credit reference agencies. The credit reference agencies should then update their records.

The entry will only be removed if:

• you pay off the debt within one month of it being entered on the register; or
• the decree is 'set aside' or recalled by the court. This is only possible in very limited circumstances, such as if you did not know about the decree because you did not receive the court papers and you have a valid defence to the claim. See our Recall of a decree fact sheet.

How long will a decree stay on the register?

The decree will stay on the register for six years from the date of the decree. If, in the meantime, you have satisfied (fully paid) the decree, this will be shown on the register.

Victims of fraud and identity theft

If you feel you have been a victim of fraud it is important to act quickly to prevent further fraudulent transactions.

• Report the loss or theft of any documents, cheques, plastic cards and online fraud to the card issuer or lender immediately. The card issuer or lender should investigate any fraud for you and freeze your account.
• Report the fraudulent activity to the police by calling 101. If you feel threatened or unsafe, call 999.
• Contact one of the credit reference agencies to notify them of any items on your credit report you believe to be the result of fraudulent activity. The agency you contact should inform the other agencies for you.
• The credit reference agencies should then cooperate and send you copies of your credit reports, advice on protecting yourself from identity theft and tell you who is managing your case and how to contact them.
• The agencies will also need to contact lenders if fraudulent applications for credit have been made in your name.
• Consider registering your details with CIFAS, the UK’s Fraud Prevention Service. For a fee, a fraud warning can be placed against your address and will be flagged up if applications are made using your address. The CIFAS marker will mean additional checks are made to ensure any application for credit is genuine. This may result in delays in your credit applications. Contact CIFAS for further information. You can download the online application at www.cifas.org.uk.
• For more information about dealing with and protecting yourself from fraud, see our Dealing with fraud fact sheet.

Can credit repair companies help me?

You may have heard of companies that offer to clear your credit records with credit reference agencies to allow you to apply for more credit.

Credit repair companies may charge you a fee and often send you an information pack telling you how to get your copy of your credit report and clear sheriff court decrees.

Be careful, you may be paying a company for something that you can do yourself.

You also need to be very careful before paying a fee to a commercial company who suggests it can remove decrees for you. If you apply to the sheriff court to set aside a decree and you do not have a real reason to do so, then you could be charged costs by the court.

Credit repair companies must be authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Check if the company is authorised with the FCA before using their services.

If you have a complaint about something a credit repair company has done from October 2008 onwards, you can ask the Financial Ombudsman Service for help.

If you are not happy with a credit repair company, complain to the local trading standards department by contacting consumeradvice.scot.

Useful contacts

consumeradvice.scot Phone: 0808 164 6000 www.consumeradvice.scot

Equifax Ltd Customer Service Centre PO Box 10036 Leicester LE3 4FS Phone: 0800 014 2955 www.equifax.co.uk

Experian Ltd Consumer Help Service PO Box 9000 Nottingham NG80 7WF Phone: 0800 013 8888 www.experian.co.uk

Financial Conduct Authority Phone: 0800 111 6768 Email: consumer.queries@fca.org.uk www.fca.org.uk

Financial Ombudsman Service Phone: 0800 023 4567 or 0300 123 9123 www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk

Information Commissioner's Office Phone: 0303 123 1113 www.ico.org.uk

TransUnion Consumer Services Team PO Box 491 Leeds LS3 1WZ Phone: 0330 024 7574 www.transunion.co.uk

Trust Online Phone: 020 7380 0133 Email: info@trustonline.org.uk www.trustonline.org.uk

Other fact sheets that may help you

The following fact sheets may also help you to understand some of the information in this fact sheet.

Dealing with fraud fact sheet

Mortgage shortfalls fact sheet

Recall of a decree fact sheet