Myths When You Order Your Free Credit Check Online

There are myriad myths floating around that can give consumers a false sense of security or a false sense of hopelessness about their credit standing, depending on their credit history and credit score. Knowing the facts about your credit before you order your free online credit check can help you evaluate your credit standing realistically based on your credit report and guide you in taking steps to repair bad credit or maintain good credit.

Fact: If you're turned down for credit, it won't hurt your credit rating. What hurts your rating is repeatedly applying for cards that you're denied. Each time a lender accesses your credit history, your credit report is flagged. Too many flags may indicate to lenders that you're a high risk. If you're turned down for credit once, order your free online credit check to determine where the problem lies, whether it's a poor payment history or your credit history isn't long enough to give lenders a good idea about how well you handle debt.

Fact: You should order your free online credit check every year and carefully review it for mistakes. Even seemingly innocuous inaccuracies, such as an incorrect address, can wreak havoc on your credit rating. Report mistakes to the credit reference agency and to your lender in writing, and include any proof you have that an error has occurred.

Fact: Being on the electoral roll has a huge impact on your credit. If you're not on the roll, it could be perceived by potential lenders as a sign of instability, and it also makes it more difficult for those checking your credit to check your identity and prevent identity theft and fraud. If you're not on the electoral roll, you can immediately improve your credit score by signing up.

Fact: Missing just one credit card, loan, rent or utility payment can have a significant negative impact on your credit score. Your payment history is worth 35 percent of your credit score, and making payments on time every month is crucial for a good credit rating.

Fact: Having several credit cards won't necessarily lower your credit score, depending on how you use them. If you have just one credit card with a high balance, your score may be lower than if you have five cards with low balances. If you keep your credit-to-debt ratio around 30 percent on all of your cards, meaning you're only using 30 percent of your available credit line, potential lenders will see that you handle credit wisely and they will be more likely to extend credit to you at low interest rates.

Fact: Paying off your credit card each month will not lower your credit score. Lenders like it when you carry a balance over because they make money off of the interest you pay. However, when it comes to choosing you as a customer, having a stellar payment history, including paying off your cards each month, shows the lender that you will be a good customer and honor your debts.

Fact: It's better to have a variety of account types in your credit portfolio. This means that it's to your benefit to have a combination of credit cards, mortgages, loans and retail store cards than just credit cards or just loans. This shows lenders that you are capable of handling different types of debt responsibly.

Fact: Items on your credit report will fall off after six years. This includes bankruptcies, late payments, IVAs, repossessions and county court judgments. If you have any of these items on your credit report, you can still vastly improve your credit over time by always paying your bill on time and keeping your credit-to-debt ratio below 30 percent.

Fact: Closing accounts you no longer use will not negatively affect your credit. In fact, closing unused accounts is a good way to prevent fraud, and too much unused credit can lower your credit score.

Fact: Credit reference agencies do not make decisions about whether or not to extend you credit. This is solely the role of the lender. The credit reference agencies only compile data on you so that lenders can assess how much of a financial risk you might be.

Sam Jones the author of this article recommends to his readers who are struggling financially and seeking assistance and help to visit http://www.uswitch.com/credit-reports/ from uSwitch.com