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Credit Report
Credit history or credit report is a record of an individual's or company's past borrowing and repaying, including information about late payments and bankruptcy.
When a customer fills out an application for credit from a bank, store or credit card company, his or her information is forwarded to a
credit bureau, along with constant updates on the status of his or her credit accounts, address, or any other relevant financial information. Credit report includes past and present addresses, specific account information, such as the date opened, credit limit or loan amount, outstanding balances, and any missed payments.
This information is used by lenders such as credit card companies to determine an individual's credit worthiness; that is, determining an individual's means and willingness to repay indebtedness. This helps determine whether to extend credit, and on what terms. Those with better credit history, or "credit reputation" will get lower interest rates, and/or higher credit limits.
Many employers now do a credit check of job applicants as part of in pre-employment screening and in combinations with
background checks.
For all these reasons consumer advocacy groups advise people to regularly check their own credit reports. This will assure that your file is accurate, and will guard against identity theft. Consumers in the United States are entitled to get a free copy of their credit report every 12 months.
There are three major credit bureaus:
Equifax,
Experian, and
TransUnion. Each of so called "big 3" collects data in a separate credit file. For access to all three reports, get a
3-in-1 credit report. [Source
Wikipedia]
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