How can I improve my credit score?

Your credit history goes back 72 months (six years), and it records every time you make a repayment on time – or every time you don’t. It updates every month, so each month some information drops off and new information is added.

Lender's check your credit history when you apply to borrow from them. Your credit score, or credit rating, is a number that the three credit reference agencies calculate to help explain how your credit history will look to lenders.

You can check your credit history for free for free at the following links:

• Equifax via Clearscore
• Experian
• TransUnion (which was CallCredit) via Credit Karma

Checking your report has no effect on your credit score.

It is a good idea to check all three credit reference agencies to ensure that the details they hold are correct. They may not all hold the same information about you. If some details are wrong, you can contact the agencies to get them corrected. For example, if your credit report states that you have a ‘financial association’ with someone you’re no longer linked to, you can submit a ‘notice of disassociation’. You can find details of how to make these corrections on the credit reference agencies’ websites.