Four simple things you need to know about your credit report

1 IT IS IMPORTANT YOUR credit report is a history of your individual borrowing – from mortgages to phone contracts – as well as other important personal information.

It is referred to by lenders when you apply for credit so they can check you are who you say you are, and are a safe bet to lend to.

Your details are held by three credit reference agencies: Experian, Equifax and Callcredit. 2 YOU CAN CHECK IT TO get a free copy of your report, sign up to a 30-day trial at Experian or Equifax. But do remember to cancel before the trial ends, as otherwise you will pay nearly £15 a month.

Website Checkmyfile also has a free 30-day trial and shows data from Equifax and Callcredit. A report from the latter can be accessed for free via website Noddle. You can also write to the agencies for a £2 copy of your report. If there are inaccuracies, you can add a notice of correction, showing you dispute the entry.

3 IT REVEALS A LOT ABOUT YOU THE report shows where you live, how long you have lived there, previous addresses, whether you are on the electoral roll and the name of anyone you are financially linked to. It also highlights bankruptcies or other publicly recorded debt problems, which companies you have borrowed from, how much was borrowed and the balance left to pay. You may also see a credit score, which is a crude measure of your creditworthiness.

But it is not an official figure as individual companies may score you differently behind the scenes, based on whether or not you are likely to make them money.

4 THINGS CAN GO WRONG YOUR report might be unattractive if you are not on the electoral roll, have skipped loan repayments or applied for multiple loans. These will all be recorded on your file.

To get on the electoral roll you must register to vote. Do this online at gov.uk/register-to-vote. You will need your National Insurance number.