How to check your credit score and credit report in South Africa

What is a credit score, and how is it different from a credit report?

A credit report is the full record: who you have borrowed from, how you paid, and what has been recorded against your name. A credit score is a single number that summarises that record. On Experian's consumer service, for example, the score runs from 0 to 999.

The National Credit Regulator (NCR) explains that a credit bureau is a company that gathers and updates each consumer's credit history. It supplies those records to banks, retailers and other credit providers. The bureau itself does not decide whether you get credit.

Think of the report as the evidence and the score as the headline. The headline is quick to read, but the evidence is where you find mistakes, so the report is the document worth checking.

Which credit bureaus operate in South Africa?

In its consumer education material the NCR lists four credit bureaus where you can ask for your report. They are the companies below, and each keeps its own file on you.

Because each bureau collects its own data from the credit providers that report to it, the files can differ slightly. That is one reason to look at more than one if you are chasing a problem.

• Experian
• TransUnion
• XDS
• Consumer Profile Bureau

How do you get your free credit report?

Section 72 of the National Credit Act gives every person the right to inspect a credit bureau file about them without charge, as of right, once within any period of twelve months. The NCR repeats this in plain words: consumers are entitled to one free credit report a year. Further requests inside the same twelve months can carry a small fee, set under the rules.

To ask, contact the bureau directly through its website or call centre. Expect to prove who you are, usually with your identity document and proof of address. Experian's own page, for example, asks for an ID and proof of residence dated within the last three months, and it says that South African citizens with a valid ID number can use its Up service to see their report and score at no cost.

You can ask each bureau for its own file. The NCR's guidance says to contact any one of the listed bureaus for a free copy, and it urges consumers to look at their reports because relatively few people do.

One more protection is worth knowing. The Act says a credit provider must not require or induce you to get a bureau report in connection with an application. If someone makes you pay for a report as a condition of getting a loan, walk away.

• Choose a bureau from the list and open its consumer page.
• Have your ID number and a recent proof of address ready.
• Register or fill in the request form and submit your documents.
• Save or print the report and keep it with your financial papers.
• Diarise next year's request so you check at least once every twelve months.

Does checking your own credit report lower your score?

Experian states on its consumer page that it does not penalise you for checking your own credit score or credit report. It recommends checking regularly, even when you pay everything on time, to confirm your details are right and to spot fraud. The NCR also encourages consumers to read their reports.

A lender's enquiry is a different thing. When a credit provider looks at your file in response to an application, that request is recorded on your report, together with the name of the company. Several applications close together leave several entries, and a lender reading your file will see them.

That is a good reason to check your own report first, fix what you can, and then apply for credit only when you have compared your options.

What is on your credit report, and how do you read it?

The NCR describes bureau records as covering your accounts, payment history, defaults, judgments, trace alerts, collections and enquiries. Experian's report adds your personal and contact details, your credit portfolio, and an online way to dispute items.

Go through the report slowly, with a pen and your own papers beside you. Start with the easy items and work towards the harder ones.

• Personal details: name, ID number, addresses, phone numbers and employer. Wrong details can mix your file with someone else's.
• Accounts: every loan, store account, credit card or contract listed under your name. Look for accounts you do not recognise.
• Payment history: whether instalments were recorded as paid on time, late or missed. Compare with your own bank statements.
• Balances and status: an account you closed should not appear as open, and a debt you settled should not show as unpaid.
• Adverse items: defaults, judgments or collections. Check that each one is yours and that the details are right.
• Enquiries: the lenders who have looked at your file. An enquiry you never made can point to an identity problem.
• Debt review flag: if you went through debt counselling, the flag should be removed after the clearance certificate.

What affects your credit score?

The score is built from what the bureau holds, so the factors are the items on the report. Paying on time matters most in the NCR's advice: it warns that paying after the due date adversely affects your credit report and your chances of credit later. Defaults, judgments and collections also weigh on a record.

The number of enquiries and the level of debt you already carry play a part too. When a lender assesses an application, the NCR says it must consider the debt repayment obligations shown on a registered credit bureau record, so heavy existing commitments count against a new loan.

Each bureau and each lender uses its own methods, so the same person can see different numbers in different places. Use the score as a guide to direction, and rely on the report for detail.

How do you dispute a mistake on your credit report?

Challenging information you believe is wrong is your right, and it is free. Section 72 lets you require the bureau, or the NCR, to investigate the accuracy of challenged information without charge to you. Only dispute what is actually wrong. The NCR advises against disputing accurate information such as a payment you genuinely missed.

Start with the bureau that issued the report. The NCR's guidelines say to notify it by email, phone or through its website, and the bureau may ask for ID, proof of address and supporting documents. Ask for a reference number and keep it.

The bureau must take reasonable steps to find evidence for the disputed item. If it cannot find credible evidence, it must remove the information. While the challenge is open, the bureau may not report the disputed information. The NCR guidance gives the bureau 20 business days to resolve the dispute.

• Mark the item on your report and gather proof, such as a settlement letter or bank statement.
• Lodge the dispute with the bureau and note the reference number.
• Wait up to 20 business days for the bureau's response.
• If you disagree with the outcome, you can ask the NCR to investigate as a complaint. The Act sets 20 business days after you receive the bureau's evidence.
• The Credit Ombud, part of the National Financial Ombud Scheme, deals with complaints once the bureau route has been tried.

How long does information stay on your credit record?

Different kinds of information have different retention periods, set in the credit bureau regulations. As the regulations were amended in 2015, payment profile information can be kept for up to five years, and the record of enquiries on your file for one year. Other categories, such as court judgments and debt restructuring orders, follow their own rules.

Debt review has a special route. While you are under debt counselling, bureaus place a flag on your profile. The NCR states the flag is not a negative listing. Once all restructured debts are paid and the debt counsellor issues a clearance certificate, the flag is removed and the related debt information is expunged.

Because regulations can change, check the current periods with the NCR if a decision depends on them. Be wary of anyone who offers to wipe your record for a fee. The NCR warns consumers not to fall for scammers who promise to remove your name from the credit bureaus, and says repairing a credit report is not a quick fix; money is better used to reduce and settle your debts.

How do lenders use your credit report?

A lender uses the bureau file as one input. The NCR says the decision to grant credit is made by the credit provider, not the bureau. Before extending credit, the provider must assess whether you can afford the repayments. Under the affordability rules it must verify your income and consider every debt repayment obligation shown on a registered credit bureau record.

The NCR also notes that a healthy credit profile can open the way to credit at a lower interest rate than an impaired record would. A strong record does not oblige a lender to say yes, and a weaker one does not close every door, because each lender sets its own criteria.

If a lender declines you, ask which information it relied on. You are entitled to a copy of your record, and a mistake found there can be corrected. Our guide to loans with a low credit score covers what to do next.

Which credit score myths should you ignore?

A few beliefs cause people to avoid their own record. Here are the common ones and what the official sources say.

The simplest rule is to look at your file once a year, fix what is wrong, and keep your payments on time. The rest follows from that.

• Myth: checking my report lowers my score. Experian states it does not penalise you for checking your own report.
• Myth: I have to pay to see my report. The Act gives you one free inspection within any twelve months.
• Myth: debt review means I am blacklisted. The NCR says the debt counselling flag is not a negative listing.
• Myth: someone can clean my record for a fee. The NCR warns against paying people who promise to remove you from the bureaus.
• Myth: the bureau decides if I get a loan. The lender decides, after its own affordability assessment.
• Myth: my score is the same everywhere. Bureaus and lenders use their own methods, so numbers can differ.