CCR World Magazine

The Department for Business Innovation & Skills (BIS) has announced that all three credit reference agencies have made it possible for consumers to access their statutory credit report online.  Leading instant online credit information provider, Equifax, has welcomed this news because it has been trialling its own £2 statutory credit report online service since August 2009 with around 1 in 5 of requests for the Statutory Credit Report* now being delivered this way.

“Since we launched our instant online consumer credit file services in 2004 we have been determined to give individuals as much insight as possible into their credit data”, confirmed Neil Munroe, External Affairs Director, Equifax.  “Having easy access to your own credit information puts you in the strongest possible position to get the best financial deals for your circumstances as well as generally manage your finances.

“Adding the £2 Statutory Credit Report to our online services is obviously essential to give consumers complete choice – and we were delighted to be able to demonstrate to BIS, as part of their investigations last year into consumer access to credit information, that this was something we were already trialling. 

“This service is now fully accessible from our home page, www.equifax.co.uk, giving consumers the full range of options when they are thinking about accessing their credit information.”

Recent research* conducted by Equifax amongst consumers who had bought the £2 Statutory Credit Report confirms that credit information is becoming much more integral to an individual’s financial management.  Although 12% of respondents said they obtained a copy of their file because a recent credit application had been declined; nearly a third (28%) said they had taken the action simply because they wanted to better manage their finances or they had read about credit information in the press. 

The addition of the £2 Statutory Credit Report to Equifax’s online services demonstrates the company’s commitment to finding the best way to empower individuals to manage their finances, whether they simply want to manage their existing finances, resolve debt difficulties or check that they haven’t been a victim of identity theft. 

“Credit information is a really important part of an individual’s financial assets and it is their right to know that it is representing them fairly”, concluded Neil Munroe.  “We, therefore, have an on-going commitment to give consumers the best possible access to this vital data and we believe the addition of the £2 Statutory Credit Report to our online services, accessible right from our home page, strongly reinforces that commitment.”

(Source - Equifax Press Release)