This information is stored on your credit file by a Credit Reporting Body. There are three credit reporting bodies in Australia.

 

Veda:  MyCreditFile.com.au (Veda) Phone: 1300 762 207 (note Veda is now Equifax) https://www.equifax.com.au/contact

D&B: CheckYourCredit.com.au Phone: 1300 734 806

Experian: Experian Credit Services Phone: 1300 783 684

Your credit score is a number from 0 to 1200 and is calculated from your history of paying back loans, credit cards and your history of paying bills.  When you apply for a loan the financial institution will obtain your credit history to make a decision regarding whether you are a credit risk.  If you have a good history they will loan you the money.  If you have a high credit score you demonstrate that you are responsible when borrowing money and are not deemed a credit risk.  Alternatively, a low credit score may deem you as a high credit risk and you may find it difficult to borrow money.

Anyone who has ever borrowed money will have a credit file. It has been legislated that Credit Reporting Bodies provide one free credit score per year per person.  This is your opportunity to verify the information is correct and have changes made if necessary.

If your credit score is incorrect it may hinder your ability to borrow money from any financial institution.

Here are the different levels of credit scores according to Veda. In case you do not know who Veda is; Veda runs the top credit bureau in Australia and has been trusted in this role for almost 47 years.  

833-1200 (EXCELLENT)

You have an EXCELLENT credit score. What does this mean? You have good standing and can be trusted to pay for loans and debts on your credit card. Also, this implies you are in the top 20% of Veda’s active in credit population and you’re HIGHLY UNLIKELY to have any bad records in your annual credit report. There is a high chance of you maintaining your files clear from any disputes at a rate of 5 times better than that of the general population.

726-832 (VERY GOOD)

This Veda Score suggests that you are 2 times better than the general population in terms of your credit score and in maintaining that status. It is unlikely that you will be subjected to an adverse event that might affect your credit standing in the next 12 months or more.

622-725 (GOOD)

This Veda Score implies that is unlikely that you will expose yourself to an adverse situation that might be in any way be harmful to your credit report and credit standing in the next 12 months. Your edge of having a clean credit report is better than average for Veda’s credit-active population.

510-621 (AVERAGE)

An AVERAGE Veda score means that it is LIKELY that you will have an adverse event in the next 12 months or so such as a default, a court hearing or at worst - bankruptcy.

0-509 (BELOW AVERAGE)

This is a score you would want to avoid. On this level, you are at the bottom 20% of Veda’s credit-active population. This suggests a MORE THAN LIKELY chance of you having an adverse event in the next 12 months or so.