Things you (probably) didn't know about your credit record

The three credit reference agencies - Call Credit, Experian and Equifax - now hold an enormous amount of information about us, and any minor indiscretion will be used by lenders as an excuse to refuse a credit application. It is therefore vital to make sure that your record is accurate, up-to-date and as clean as possible - yet many people still do not understand how credit records actually work.

Here are some useful tips.

1. People who have lived in your home before you do not affect your credit rating. The only people that affect your rating are those you have a financial connection with – for example, a joint account or joint mortgage.

2. Registering to vote will improve your credit rating.

3. Checking your credit report will not harm your rating.

4. There is no “credit blacklist�. Many consumers mistakenly believe that lenders hold a database of blacklisted people that will never again be given credit. This is untrue.

5. Paying a mobile phone bill late will damage your credit rating. Always pay all bills on time to keep your record squeaky clean.

6. All applications for credit made in the last 12 months appear on your report – although the report does not detail whether or not the applications were successful. If you have made numerous applications recently, this will damage your record.

7. The size of your credit limit affects your rating. If you have large amounts of credit already available, such as an overdraft and credit cards, you are less likely to be given new credit.

8. Getting married or divorced does not affect your credit record. The record only notes financial connections – so if you are divorced but still have a joint account, your credit rating will still be linked to your ex-partner’s.

9. If a credit account is in default, this will stay on your credit record for six years.

10. If you do remove your name from a joint account, you should still tell a credit reference agency you want to "disassociate" yourself from that person.