Do you know whether your credit rating is good, bad, or average? While the only way to know for certain is to get a copy of your credit report, you can get a pretty good idea where you stand by taking our credit check quiz. Just keep a running tally of the number of A’s, B’s, and C’s you choose as you go along, and we’ll tell you how you did at the end.
First, the Mini Credit Check Quiz
1. Have you been bankrupt or entered into an individual voluntary arrangement in the past six years, or are you currently being hounded by one or more creditors?
A. Yes. A bankruptcy or IVA stays on your credit for six years, and creditors don’t hound you if you are paying your bills on time. If either of these applies to you, you can skip the quiz. You have bad credit, and you probably already know it.
B. No. Continue on and take the 8-question credit check quiz below.
The Credit Check Quiz
1. How many accounts do you have open?
A. I have a mortgage and one credit card. I prefer not to take on more than I can handle.
B. I have a mortgage, a car payment, and one or two credit cards.
C. I have a mortgage, a car payment, and several credit cards.
2. Do you pay your bills on time?
A. I haven’t had a late payment in years.
B. I always pay the full amount due, but sometimes my payment is a few days late.
C. I frequently pay my payments late. Sometimes I pay less than the amount due or miss a payment completely.
3. How much of your revolving credit are you actually using?
A. I keep the balance on my credit cards below 30% of the limit.
B. I’m using about half of the credit available to me on my credit cards.
C. Most of my credit cards are maxed or close to it.
4. Do you spend more than you earn over the course of a year?
A. I rarely carry a balance on my credit cards. If I can’t afford to pay cash, I certainly can’t afford to pay interest on top of the cost of the item. If I have a car loan, I expect to continue driving the vehicle for at least two years after the loan is repaid.
B. I try to stay within my means, but often find myself buying something on credit that I wouldn’t have purchased without the card.
C. I use my credit cards to buy things I couldn’t otherwise afford. That’s what they’re for, right?
5. Have you gotten a debt consolidation loan, remortgaged your home to pay off your debts or participated in a debt management plan?
A. No.
B. Yes, but I learned my lesson and have changed my spending habits.
C. Yes, and now that my debt payment is smaller I can afford the minimum payments, so I have started using my credit cards again or have gotten a new one.
6. Do you have an emergency fund?
A. I’ve saved up at least six months’ worth of expenses in case of a major emergency, such as a job loss.
B. I have at least £1,000 in a savings account that I don’t touch except in an emergency.
C. I have little or no savings. I find myself scrambling to pay for repairs if the car breaks down.
7. Do you add to your savings regularly?
A. I have weekly or monthly contributions being made automatically to my savings account and my retirement fund.
B. I am regularly funding either my savings or my retirement, but not both.
C. I am not funding my retirement or savings account on a regular basis.
8. How often do you check your credit report?
A. I subscribe to a service that sends me alerts at least monthly if my credit rating drops.
B. I check my credit report at least once per year.
C. It has been more than a year since I last saw my credit report.
How Did You Do?
If you have mostly A’s, you are a good saver who tries to use credit sparingly and responsibly. You probably have good credit.
If you have mostly B’s, you are on a slippery slope. You’re probably keeping up with your payments for now, at least most of the time, but you are spending more than you should, at least occasionally. If your circumstances change for the worse, you could find yourself in trouble very quickly. Your credit rating is likely average.
If you have C’s, you are struggling to keep up with your debt repayments and sometimes failing. You have bad credit and should consider making an appointment for debt counselling with a non-profit debt management organisation.