Credit Agency

Updating credit scores

The full electoral register is published on 1 December. Each month between January and September there will then be a monthly update of any changes to the register.

When your updated details are sent to the credit reference agencies depends on what date you register to vote. Your registration must be completed by the cut off date to be included in the next month’s update.

For example, if you registered to vote on 10 January, your updated details would be included in the update sent to the credit reference agencies around 3 February.

If you registered to vote on 11 January, your updated details would be included on the update sent to credit reference agencies in March.

Register updates

The register is updated on a monthly basis. Any newly added electors or changes to an existing elector's details made in a particular month's register are then sent to the following CRAs: Experian, Equifax, Callcredit and Crediva.

Credit reference agencies

The full register of electors can legally be sold on to registered credit reference agencies (CRAs) who use it to update information held on individuals' credit reference files. The full register is not the same as the open register, which can be bought by any person, company or organisation.

Your inclusion in/exclusion from the open register has no bearing on a CRA's ability to see if you are registered at your address.

Disputes

If you find that your electoral register information is inaccurate or missing from your credit file, the first thing you should do is raise this as a dispute with the CRA that you obtained your credit file from, by contacting them directly. In the first instance, they can try to match you to the correct information. There are 'easy' mistakes to identify such as an obvious mis-keying of a house number or misspelling of a name, and in these cases the correct information can be merged or separated as appropriate. The CRA should reply to let you know that they have resolved the issue or, if they are unable to, explain why.

Further information about credit referencing is available on the Information Commissioner’s website.

Find out if you are on the electoral register

You can find out from us whether you are on the register by making a subject access request to apply for a certificate of registration. If registered, we can supply you with a copy of your record.

If you have already provided confirmation that you are registered to your bank or credit reference agency, any further problems will have to be taken up with them.

If the record of a person who used to live at your property is preventing you from obtaining credit, you should contact the credit reference agencies to ask for a 'disassociation'.

Credit history enquiries

The Information Commissioner’s website has details on how to check your credit reference file. It will also give you information on how organisations use your data.

If you are enquiring about your credit history, the credit reference agencies are entitled to apply for the new electoral register, but it is up to them to do so and to then update their records, which can take some time.

Exclusions

Being 'excluded from version for sale' simply means that details of those residents are not available to purchase for marketing purposes. It does not affect credit rating as credit reference agencies are sent the full register (which is simply a list of names and addresses, no other information such as contact details appear).

For any other questions, contact the elections team on electors@eastherts.gov.uk