What is a credit history and how do I establish one?
Your credit history is a measure of how reliable you are when it comes to repaying your debts. It’s not something that’s established by your bank, a credit card company or a credit bureau. It’s established by you. If you’ve ever applied for credit in Canada, you will likely have a credit file, kept at both of the country’s two main credit bureaus, Equifax and Trans Union of Canada. The information in your credit file includes your birth date, address and employment information in order to identify you, as well as a comprehensive history of the credit you use now or have used at any time in the past 6 years, or even longer if you’ve ever declared bankruptcy. This history is kept up to date by the banks, credit card companies, retailers, auto lease financing companies and other establishments that provide you with credit. The questions and answers below will tell you more about your credit history and how it affects you as a borrower.
