Most of the UK, those over 18 at least, will have some experience with credit checks. Almost everything we do which involves giving money to a company or service provider is logged onto a personal credit report. This is then used by potential lenders to ascertain how much of a financial risk an individual is, and what their ‘credit score’ is.

Missed payments, default and CCJs will all lower this score, while meeting payments on time will raise it, or keep it high. The higher the score, the better your chances of getting credit usually are.

If you’ve been refused in the past, there are things you can do to improve your chances of getting accepted for finance in the future.

• The first, and most obvious, is not to miss payments on any existing finance plans. It takes 6 years for any adverse credit to disappear from your file so if you have missed some in the past, take care not to miss any more and eventually your record will get better.

• If your score isn’t too low that you’re getting refused at every turn, don’t let this tempt you into getting too much credit. The amount of money you owe, even if you haven’t missed payments, can still go against you on a credit check. If the company looking at your file thinks you’ve got too many outgoings already, they’re less likely to want to add to it.

• Take a look at your household bills. A simple thing like missing a payment on your utility bill, phone bill or council tax could drop your score significantly if it happens regularly. If this is the case, talk to your providers and see if there’s a payment option which will better suit your financial circumstances. In some cases you may be able to switch to a different supplier with a more affordable rates.

• It may surprise you to know that the electoral roll has a bearing on your score too. If you’re eligible to vote but never have, this could make the difference between acceptance and refusal of credit. You can get yourself on the electoral roll simply by visiting your local council offices.

• Having no credit history at all can sometimes be worse than having a bad one. From a lender’s point of view, somebody who has never had credit is an unknown factor; they have no way of knowing whether you’ll be a financial risk or asset. Most companies, especially now, don’t want to take the chance.

• To help with this, and other issues relating to bad credit history, some lenders have brought out special credit cards which promise to help you raise your credit score. If used correctly; paid on time, limit adhered to and so on, they can raise your score to a more acceptable level provided no further credit is taken out in the meantime.

• Try to avoid applying for any more credit than you genuinely need. All loan applications, credit card applications, and credit searches will show up on your file. If a company can see you’ve made several in a short period of time it’s a warning that you’re already a risk, even if all previous applications have been successful. So try to avoid overloading your credit file with searches.

• Banks like customers who will make them money, and someone who pays their credit card balances off in full each month will not accrue any interest. If you know you have a good score but you keep getting refused, this could well be the reason. If you have at least one credit card which you pay the minimum payment each month and allow interest to be charged occasionally, this could, strangely, work in your favour.

You can obtain a copy of your credit report by applying to Experian, Equifax or CreditExpert online. I would recommend checking your report at least once a year to make sure everything is up to date. Any errors can be corrected by contacting the above mentioned companies and asking about for a notice of correction, or amendments, to be placed on your file. This in itself can sometimes improve your score. And above all, don’t take on more debt than you can comfortably afford.

Louise Tillotson is a financial author for moneysupermarket.com

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