Have you ever seen your own credit report?

  By Brett Hunter from Yeti Wise

 

You are entitled to a copy of your credit report for free each year and should be checking it on a regular basis.

 

WHY WOULD I BOTHER?

-      Catch identity theft - The report will show all credit applications made in your name.  If there is a credit enquiry on the report that you did not make then it could be someone else using your identity to borrow money.

 

-      Find & fix errors in the report - Sometimes there are mistakes in the credit report.  You can get the report corrected but it can be a slow process and is best done when you are not in the middle of trying to organise a loan.

 

-      Know what a lender will see – Have you always paid all of your bills and loan repayments on time?  Check to see if late or missed payments have shown up on your credit report.

 

-      Know who else has checked your file – The report includes a list of credit providers that have requested a copy of your credit report so you can know who is looking you up.

 

WHAT NEXT – GET YOUR CREDIT REPORT

There are three main credit reporting agencies in Australia and it is possible that different information could be held by each one.

- Equifax	https://www.mycreditfile.com.au/products-services/my-credit-file
- Dun and Bradstreet	https://www.checkyourcredit.com.au/Personal
- Experian	http://www.experian.com.au/order-credit-report/

 

Ideally you should get a copy from each one but at a minimum I suggest you at least get one from Equifax.

 

NEED SOME HELP?

Watch the videos above showing how to request reports from each credit reporting agency.

Once you get your report back if you see something that you don’t understand let me know and I will check it out then explain it to you.