Say you have two car loan quotes open on the kitchen bench, and one lender's email mentions your credit score. You've never seen the number. You don't know which bureau it came from, or whether looking at it yourself will cost you or count against you.
A lender reads the file behind that number. When you apply for a personal loan or car finance, the lender may check your credit file, so see what's in it first.
Ask each of New Zealand's three credit bureaus, Centrix, Equifax, and Experian, for your credit report online. By law each must respond within 10 working days and include your credit score and the range it sits in. It costs nothing unless you want it within 3 working days.
The Privacy Commissioner sets these rules in the Credit Reporting Privacy Code 2020.
Who holds your credit information in New Zealand?
Three credit bureaus: Centrix, Equifax, and Experian. They're the three the Privacy Commissioner lists.
Each keeps its own file on you and works out its own score from it, so don't expect your three scores to match. A lender may use one bureau or several.
Where do you get each bureau's free report?
From each bureau's own website.
Centrix:
The free personal credit report form at centrix.co.nz. With a New Zealand driver licence or passport, Centrix says it generally processes your request the next working day. With other ID, it takes 5 to 10 working days. Its score is a number between 1 and 1000.
Equifax:
The free credit report at mycreditfile.co.nz, Equifax's site for individuals. Equifax sends it within 10 business days.
Experian:
Your free report through Experian's CreditConnect, from experian.co.nz.
A free online service can show you your score and report too. ClearScore is one: it shows offers for personal loans, credit cards, and car finance, and it says its service is "free, forever" and that checking "will never harm your score". To correct anything you find, you still ask the bureau that holds it.
Can you get your credit report faster?
Yes, if you pay. The code lets a bureau charge up to $10 including GST when you ask for your report within 3 working days, and nothing otherwise. Equifax's express report costs $9.95 and arrives within 3 business days.
Does checking your own credit score count against you?
No. Centrix says checking doesn't affect your score, and that you can check "as many times as you like". Your own request isn't a lender's credit enquiry.
The worry makes sense. When a lender looks at your file for an application, that enquiry is recorded, and the code lets it stay on your report for 4 years.
Seeing your own file is your right under the code, so you know what a lender will see before they see it.
What should you look for in your credit report?
Start with the score, then read every line under it.
- The score and its range. The code says your score must come with a statement of the range it sits in and how it was worked out. A score only means something against its own scale.
- Your accounts. Every loan, card, and account listed should be yours.
- Repayment history and defaults. Repayment history can stay for 2 years, and a default for 5 years from the date it happened.
- Enquiries. Each one should be from a lender or business you dealt with.
- Anything you don't recognise. Ask the bureau to correct it. The code gives you that right, and a correction costs nothing.
To see what counts as a good score at each bureau, read our guide to what a good credit score is in New Zealand.
Checking your credit: the other questions
Why does my old report say illion?
It was made before illion's credit check became part of Experian CreditConnect. A new request goes to Experian.
What can I do if I think someone is using my identity?
Ask each bureau to suppress your credit information. That makes it harder for someone else to open new credit in your name. The code lets anyone who reasonably believes they may become a victim of fraud ask for this. The bureau must then suppress your file for 10 working days.
Back at the kitchen bench
Now all three reports sit beside the two quotes. The score in that lender's email has a bureau, a range, and a history behind it, and you've checked every line yourself.
When you apply with us, we start with a soft credit check, which does not affect your credit score. If we submit your application to a lender, that lender may carry out a full credit enquiry, which is recorded on your credit file.
Then a better finance adviser gives you your three numbers before you commit: what the loan costs each week, how long it runs, and the total you'll repay. Apply online → or Talk to our team →
Disclaimer: Please note that the content provided in this article is intended as an overview and as general information only. While care is taken to ensure accuracy and reliability, the information provided is subject to continuous change and may not reflect current developments or address your situation. Before making any decisions based on the information provided in this article, please use your discretion and seek independent guidance.
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