How does a lender make a credit decision or decline credit?
Potential lenders will look at your credit report and decide on your credit risk. This is a fair and effective way of working out how likely it is that you'll keep up with your payments on a new credit agreement. They might also bear other factors in mind, such as the information on your application form or any previous credit they've given you.
Each lender has different assessment criteria, so one company refusing you credit doesn't necessarily mean you'll be refused by another. We don't make any credit decisions ourselves - only the lender can tell you why they haven't accepted a particular application.
Our Equifax Credit Rating™ product can help you understand your score more clearly
Does a Blacklist exist
No, it doesn't - this is a myth.
The information we show potential credit lenders is exactly the same that you can see in your credit report. Once the lender has looked at your information, they'll decide whether or not to offer you credit. We have nothing to do with the decision the lender makes.
What is a co-signer?
A co-signer is someone who backs up a borrower's agreement to repay a loan, and takes over the payments if the borrower can longer pay. A lender might suggest that you use a co-signer if you have no credit history, or one that doesn't meet their criteria.
If you co-sign for someone else, you're legally liable for the debt, including any late fees and cancellation costs. If the person you've co-signed for is late making payments, the lender will contact you and will most likely report this on both of your credit reports. This means it's very important that you only co-sign for someone that you trust to pay the bill on time.
Co-signing affects your credit score, even if you're not the one making the payments. It could also make it more difficult for you to get a personal loan. Before you co-sign, be sure you can afford to repay the debt. If you put your property down as loan security, you could lose the property if you can't make the repayments.
Always ask the lender to let you know in writing if the borrower misses a payment. This gives you the chance to bring the payments up to date, or make back payments without being saddled with the whole debt.