[John Smith]

Everybody has a credit file, maintained by a credit reference agency. Many people have adverse credit details on their files, such as defaults, bad payment history, County Court Judgments. This means that when these people apply for credit, such as loans, mortgages, credit cards, car finance or even a simple bank account, they may be turned away.

Most people are unaware of credit information, credit files and credit reference agencies, yet they have increasing importance in today's world. Most lending sources will automatically run a credit search on applicants, by contacting the major credit reference agencies, Experian Limited or Equilfax Limited. These reference agencies' purpose is to hold files containing credit information, including information about you.