Check yourself out: get your credit report

If you have a credit card or have taken out a loan, you’ve got a credit history. Your credit history is a record of your payment habits over time. In Canada, this information is collected by two major credit reporting agencies, or credit bureaus: Equifax Canada and TransUnion Canada.

Your credit report is compiled by the credit bureaus and is a snapshot of your credit history within a certain period of time. It usually contains the following information:

• personal details, such as address, phone numbers and employer
• money borrowed, such as credit cards, loans, lines of credit and mortgages
• bank account details, including NSF cheques
• public records, such as a bankruptcy, credit-related court judgments or secured loans
• debts that have been referred to a collection agency
• statements you have made to explain a situation, such as a fraud warning
• a list of credit report inquiries

How it’s used

The credit report will also include your history of credit repayment, indicating how long you take to make loan payments, and your credit score. This is a ranking from 300 to 900 that indicates your financial health at a specific point in time. It compares the risk you pose for lenders to that of other Canadians.

Lenders may take your credit score into account when deciding whether to approve a loan application and in deciding what interest rate to charge you.

Who can see it

Your credit report may be requested by a potential lender when you apply for a mortgage, by an insurance company when you submit a policy application, by a landlord when you go to rent an apartment, or by a potential employer.

However, your credit report is personal information, and no one can access it except you, unless you provide permission. When you sign a credit card application, you are usually giving permission for that company to check your credit history.

Get yours regularly

You should review your credit report from time to time to see where you stand and check for inaccuracies or suspicious activity. Learn how to get your credit report.

Be sure to always take steps to protect your credit rating.

Learn more about credit options.