Tag Archives: financial association

Ask James: latest credit questions answered

James Jones

Every month Experian’s James Jones answers a selection of your questions about credit and fraud in his ‘ask the experts’ style column here.

Sultana from Ilford wants to register her 17-year-old for a credit report but is unable to – James explains why this is so, and what they can do next.

Bianca from Tunbridge Wells wants to know if her library fine will affect her credit score, while Alan from York has a row of U’s on his credit report and asks Will the status code U on my credit report damage my score?

Anne-Marie from Newcastle-under-Lyme has this question: Can changing bank accounts have an effect on my credit score?, as she wants to apply for car finance later in the year.

See the previous Ask James : questions about claiming benefits and credit rating, changing from PAYG to direct debit, and more.

You can find more Ask James questions answered in our Ask James archive. If you have a specific question and can’t find an answer here or you wish to contact us to query something on your credit report, please contact us – find all the ways you can contact us here.

Does financial responsibility make someone more attractive?

The summer months are often when love can bloom as people enjoy the sun and fun. People pair up with each other for all sorts of reasons, but is it true that one of the biggest is the way they manage their finances?

Well, could it be that most women prefer a man who’s responsible with money to a George Clooney lookalike with a degree?

A nationwide Experian survey of couples in relationships in 2014* asked if financial responsibility would make someone more attractive. 29% in total said it would, while 35% of women said this would make a male ‘much more attractive’.

However, 3 in 4 of women (75%) said they rated financial prudence more attractive than appearance, education or background, and on a par with intelligence (74%).*

Continue reading →

Quiz: How well do you really know your partner?

Valentine’s day may be long gone, but the quest for love and harmony goes on all year!

We decided to look at how well people know their partner’s attitude to finances – money and relationships. It only takes a minute to do this fun, interactive quiz to find out!

Your Experian Credit Score is a guide that will help you understand how your credit history is likely to be viewed by lenders. It can also help you both understand if one partner’s credit report needs a little work before any joint credit applications, such as a joint mortgage, are made.

What is financial association? Watch our new video

To begin the second series of Credit Café videos, on the topic of Money and Relationships, our Experian Experts James Jones and Jill O’Connor explain what financial association means, and the impact it can have on your credit report.

You can see all the Credit Café videos so far here on our YouTube playlist.

Size Does Matter

Jo Hemmings

Behavioural psychologist Jo Hemmings is our guest blogger, discussing money and relationships.

We’re talking about wallet size here. And not really the actual size of the wallet itself or exactly how much cash it contains. But how honest you are about how much money you have, how you like to spend it and whether you’re on the same page as your partner about how you choose to spend it as a couple, rather than as a single person.

Often at the beginning of a relationship, we are so smitten by our partner, that the dizziness of chemistry and anticipation diverts us from whether they have the same approach to spending as ourselves. Continue reading →

How linked are your finances?

Does linking hearts also link up credit ratings?

Love is… a many splendoured thing. It’s in the air; it’s like oxygen, it’s even a wonderful colour. But when you choose to formalise your union, how can it affect your credit status?

Well, getting married in itself doesn’t change anything. If you didn’t share a mortgage, a bank account or have any other shared financial arrangements beforehand, then the mere act of saying “I do” at the altar is not going to have any impact. However, certain things are worth bearing in mind. Continue reading →