If you’ve ever been declined for a loan, an overdraft, a credit card or a mobile phone contract, you’ll know how embarrassing it is. You dread the thought of other people thinking you’re a dodgy character – and yet most of the time nothing could be further from the truth.

 

And yet when you ask why you’ve been declined, all you get is that you’ve failed on your credit score. That’s it. How on earth is that supposed to help? It doesn’t give you any indication of WHY you have failed.

 

Each and every lender scores applications based on their own system. But over and above this there are a number of factors which have a big impact on your credit score, no matter what you apply for or who it’s with. And you can improve your history credit wise by doing every single one of the nine factors I’m about to reveal to you.

 

This could make all the difference between helping you fix a bad credit score enough to get that loan, or being refused yet again. And when you consider that some banks won’t even lend each other money, you can appreciate how powerful these techniques can be.

 

So here they are – now it’s up to you to do something about each one.

 

If you are registered to vote, then you’ll be on the electoral roll. Your full name, date of birth and address are on here. Credit companies will check the electoral roll to see if you were living at the address you’ve stated at the correct time. If you’re not on the electoral roll at the time you’ve put on the application form, you can kiss your chances of that loan goodbye. Your address history credit score needs to be good so check on www.aboutmyvote.co.uk to find who to contact. They’ll make sure your details are put on the electoral roll as soon as possible – enabling you to take a huge step towards being able to fix a bad credit record.

Would you believe that just over a third of your score is determined from what you’ve done in the past? County court judgements certainly don’t look good, but even missed or late payments will put a dent in your score. And entries like this will stay on your record for six years. It’s true that the impact reduces as time goes by though, so make sure you concentrate on paying your bills and card payments on time every single month. Over the course of a year or so this will greatly help your record.

Put simply, the more you move around, the more it will affect your credit record. Finance lenders like to see stability and continuity, so you can fix a bad credit rating by staying put for a longer period of time. It might be more tempting to keep moving if you are renting, but it can really hurt your chances of getting credit when you need it.

This has the same effect as the point above. Who is going to be willing to lend you money if you change your job every five minutes? If you’ve had two employers in 3 years it won’t affect you much, but continually changing jobs – especially if it’s not for a wage rise every time – looks bad. A good employment history credit score is a big factor in getting the credit you want.

If you’ve stuck with your bank through thick and thin, it will be to your advantage. If you keep changing accounts, you will be penalised for it. And if you don’t have an account at all, now is the time to get one. Having a bank account shows that a bank has vetted and accepted you, but seeing as most loans are paid by direct debit you simply can’t get one without a bank account in the first place.

Whenever you apply for credit a search is made and this is recorded on your credit file. If you apply for lots of loans over a short space of time, this can have an impact on your credit score. You may still find a lender who will do you a deal, but many places only use a small selection of lenders. These could well be the ones you’ve already been turned down by so choose carefully. Applying here there and everywhere with a bad history credit wise won’t do you any good.

You might think that having credit cards with nothing owing on them that you don’t use is a good thing. But that’s not necessarily the case in the eyes of the credit agencies. If you want to fix a bad credit score then you should close the accounts you don’t use. The point here is that the history credit cards can give you adds up to the sum total of all those credit limits. And who in their right mind would lend you more money when you already have a lot of available credit to your name – even if you don’t use it? So cancel those cards.

Anyone you’ve applied for a joint loan with in the past will be tied to you through your credit report. If they have a bad history credit wise, it will affect you too. So make sure you aren’t associated with them anymore by contacting either Equifax or Experian and making the necessary adjustments. They can be reached at www.equifax.co.uk and www.experian.co.uk.

You’d be amazed at the mistakes that can be made. If you have never checked your credit report then you have no idea whether or not it is right. Finding and spotting an error can help to fix a bad credit report in one simple step. Order your copy from either of the above agencies and check through it carefully. If you find anything that is wrong, tell them about it and get it corrected. This can throw up instances of identity fraud too, so it’s definitely worthwhile to check your record every now and again to make sure everything is as it should be. You can take advantage of a free credit report form CreditExpert below...

 

So there you are – nine essential things that you can do to give yourself that much prized credit stomping mega score. No matter whether you are looking for credit to get yourself a new car, or for any other reason, going through these nine steps could make all the difference between getting that car and having to take the bus.

 

Focus on one or two, and you’ll make a difference. But focus on all nine and anyone can fix a bad credit score with no problem at all.

 

So what are you waiting for? Get pro-active and start making a difference now.