Building a good credit score, also known as a credit rating, can affect your ability to borrow money or get products such as credit cards, mobile phone contracts and even car insurance. You should make the effort to understand what your score is and if it’s not great, there are things you can do to improve it.
What is a credit score?
Your credit score is created from information held within your credit report, also known as your credit file.
Your credit score reflects the way you’ve handled your financial obligations and bills in the past. So, if you’ve borrowed money in the past and always kept up with repayments, this is likely to have had a positive impact on your score. But a history of not paying your monthly payment or making late payments could have had a negative impact.
You should note that your credit score can vary between lenders. This is because it can depend on the criteria used in assessing you as a potential customer.
Why would I want to improve my credit score?
A lender may use your credit score to determine how much of a risk you are when looking to lend to you.
A good score can help you get approved for credit products such as credit cards, loans and mortgages, while a bad score can stop you getting approved and hinder your plans.
The lender may also use the credit score to help them decide how much to offer you.
Suddenly this thing known as a credit score is sounding like an important thing!
How do I know what my credit score is?
It is important that you are aware of your credit profile, especially if you are looking to take out credit in the near future. We think it’s always a good idea just to know, so you don’t get any nasty surprises in the future.
There are three main credit scoring agencies in the UK — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.
They all hold information on you, which lenders use. Even small errors can cause complications, so it’s essential you check through your credit report. It would be a good idea to check each of them at least once a year.
The credit reference agencies offer free access to your full credit report and score. These are available through their partner websites:
Equifax — ClearScore
Experian — MSE’s Credit Club
TransUnion — Credit Karma
How do I improve my credit score if it is low?
Just because you may have a low credit score now doesn’t mean this will be the same situation in years to come. There are things you can do to help improve your credit score and get you back on the road to getting access to credit at a lower rate of interest.
What is likely to have the biggest impact on increasing your credit score is your ability to keep up repayments on current credit commitments.
Ensure you are making your repayments on time and in full, this is the ideal solution. We do understand that this isn’t always the case if you are struggling managing your monthly payments on multiple commitments.
If you are in a situation where you think you may fall behind on payments, it is best to have that conversation with your lender.
It is easy to bury your head in the sand and want to avoid that awkward conversion, but unfortunately it needs to happen. By letting them know your circumstances, you may be able to come to a mutual agreement on your repayment schedule.
Can Go Car Credit improve my credit score?
Here at Go Car Credit, we are specialists in helping people who have a low credit score secure the car finance they need to drive off the forecourt in a new set of wheels.
Once passing initial checks, applications we receive are reviewed by our employees and not just a computer program. This approach allows us to consider individual circumstances such as a poor credit history, self-employment, or income from benefits.
We like to make sure our customers always feel valued and have found the best way to do this is to be as open and honest with them regarding any of our terms, conditions, and interest rates. By being as transparent as possible with our affordable loans, we could provide our customers with the opportunity to re-establish their credit rating and get them back on track.
