Getting credit

Before you are given access to credit, your credit history will be assessed.

Your credit history is designed to help lenders discover whether you should be granted credit and how much you can safely repay.

It will generally contain information such as:

A list of all your loans
The total amount you owe
How many credit cards you have and the amount of your credit limits that remains unspent
Whether you have paid off loans promptly in the past
How well you handle other major bills, such as utilities
Your banking history and whether you have savings accounts
Other information can also be included – for example, whether you own your home or have other assets, such as stocks and shares

Credit bureaux

Credit bureaux are accredited organisations that collate financial information about individuals and companies.

These organisations are highly regulated and serve as neutral central repositories of consumer data. They collect relevant financial information and distribute it to registered lenders that want to assess your suitability for a loan.

Not all countries have yet established credit bureaux. Where they have been set up, the information about you will be consistent across all bureaux.

Checking your credit history

It makes sense to review your credit history regularly and correct any errors.

In Europe, legislation has been put into place to give you the right to inspect your credit history, if you pay a small fee, but this has not yet been implemented in every country.

Credit bureaux must correct any mistakes at no charge – but you must be able to prove that they are wrong. To find out more, contact a credit bureaux in your country.

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Austria

KSV

Wagenseilgasse 7
1120 Wien
Austria
Tel: +43 (0)50 1870 8226
Fax: +43 (0)50 1870 99 8226
Email: ksv@ksv.at
Internet: KSV website

Belgium

Centrale des Crédits aux Particuliers de la Banque nationale de Belgique

Boulevard de Berlaimont 14
B-1000 Brussels
Tel : +32 (0)2 221 30 06
Fax: +32 (0)2 221 31 18
E-mail: cr@nbb.be
Internet: Centrale des Crédits aux Particuliers de la Banque nationale de Belgique website

Czech Republic

CCB - Czech Credit Bureau

Na príkope 21, 117 19 Praha 1
Tel: +420 222 811 030
Fax: +420 222 811 031
Internet: CCB website

Denmark

RKI Kredit Information A/s

Glarmestervej 2
Postboks 259
DK-8600 Silkeborg
Denmark
Email: rki@rki.dk

France

Experian

Immeuble Le Triangle de l'Arche
8 cours du Triangle
92937 Paris La Défense Cedex
Standard : + 33 (0)1 41 45 10 10
Fax standard : + 33 (0)1 41 45 10 20

Germany

Schufa

Wulf Bach, SCHUFA Holding AG - Germany
Tel. +49 6119278310
Internet: Schufa website

Infoscore

Internet: Infoscore website

Greece

Tiresias

10 Masalias St & Solonos St
106 80 Athens
Tel: 210 3676700

1 Alamanas St.
151 25 Marousi.

Italy

CRIF

Enrico Lodi,
Tel. +39 051 4176111
Internet: CRIF website

CTC - Consorzio Tutela del Credito

Nerio Saguatti,
Tel. +39 02 66710235

Experian Italy

Fabio Tortora,
Tel. +39 06 724221
Internet: Experian Italy website

The Netherlands

BKR - Netherlands

Joop Lobstein
Tel. +31 344 616041

Experian Nederland

Rory Matthews
Netherlands
Tel: +31 70 440 4000

Norway

Creditinform

Sørkedalsveien 10C, N-0369 Oslo
P.O. Box 5275 Majorstua, N-0303 Oslo
Phone: +47 2293 2000
Fax: +47 2293 2080
Email: kundeservice@creditinform.no
Internet: Creditinform website

Poland

Biuro Informacji Kredytowej (BIK)

ul. Pruszkowska 17
pok. 101
02 - 119 Warsaw
Tel: +48 22 8229101
Internet: Biuro Informacji Kredytowej (BIK) website

Slovakia

SBCB - Slovak Credit Bureau

Na Vrsku 10
811 01 Bratislava
Tel: +421 2 5920 7515
Fax: +421 2 5920 7517
Email: sbcb@sbcb.sk

Spain

ASNEF – National Association of Financing Entities (Asociación Nacional de Entidades de Financiación)

Asnef-Equifax Servicios de Información de Solvencia y Crédito, S.L.
C/ Cardenal Marcelo Espínola, 6. 28016 Madrid or
Aptdo de correos no 10546 - 28080 Madrid
Internet: ASNEF website

Experian Bureau de Crédito S.A.

Nicolas Vedrenne,
Tel. +34 91 417 93 60

Sweden

UpplysningsCentralen

Tel: +46 8 670 90 00
Internet: UpplysningsCentralen website

Turkey

KKB Kredi Kayit Bürosu

Tel: +90 216 455 45 45

Equifax UK

Equifax Credit File Advice Centre
P.O. Box 1140
Bradford
BD1 5US
Tel: 0870 010 2091
Internet: Equifax UK website

Experian UK

PO Box 9000
Nottingham NG80 7WP
Tel: 0870 241 6212
Internet: Experian UK website