Am I on a credit blacklist?

The simple answer is no, you're not. There is no such thing as a blacklist.

Credit reference agencies only display factual information about people, most of which is provided by lenders. They do not offer opinions about your creditworthiness (that is, whether you are likely repay credit).

Companies make their lending decisions using credit scoring based on information held by credit reference agencies, additional information you may have provided, plus their own internal processes. The information credit reference agencies hold shows that most people are actually good payers and make repayments on time.

What is credit scoring?
Credit scoring is a technique used by companies to help them assess the risk involved in lending someone money. It involves building a score based upon the details provided by you on the application form and the information held on your credit report.

It may be that the information you supplied on your application form meant that you did not fit the lender's 'customer pro-report' and that the information held by a credit reference agency did not affect the decision.

Different companies take different information into account and, therefore, your application may be accepted by one company but declined by another.

If you are declined credit, the lender should tell you the main reason for this - whether its decision was based upon a credit score, information held on your credit report or on its own specific policy.

If the decision was based upon your credit report, the lender should tell you the name and address of the credit reference agency it used.

Always check your credit report
It always makes sense to obtain a copy of your credit report, either before you make an application or if you are declined credit as a result of the information held by a credit reference agency.

Your credit report will include all the information that any company you apply to may see and should help you to establish why your application was declined. It will not state the reason you have been declined because only the company you applied to will know this.

Do not make repeated applications for credit once you have been declined. Each application you make is likely to result in a search of your credit report. These searches will be registered and could affect future applications.

Establish why your application was declined before making further applications. It is valuable to monitor the information held by credit reference agencies and to ensure that it shows what you believe to be an up-to-date and accurate reflection of your credit history.

To view your personal credit information that lenders are currently basing their credit decisions on, you can apply online for a credit report from Experian, the UK's largest credit reference agency. You will also receive a free trial to its CreditExpert Monitoring Service.

Get a free trial and a free copy of your Experian credit report.