Comprehensive Credit Reporting (CCR) explained

Soon, our funder Bendigo and Adelaide Bank will begin participating in a new way of credit reporting. One that shows the good things customers do, and not just the bad, so there is a more accurate — or comprehensive, if you will — picture of your financial history. This means changes to the information they disclose about you and your credit facilities, to credit reporting bodies.

Way back in March 2014, the Privacy Act 1988 introduced a number of amendments including Comprehensive Credit Reporting (CCR). These changes have been made mandatory and are coming into effect. This change enables Credit Providers (e.g., banks, financial institutions, utility and telco companies) as well as Credit Reporting Bodies (CRBs — such as Equifax and Illion) to exchange more credit reporting data about individuals.

Before a Credit Provider can view CCR data on their customers' credit reports, they must first report their customer CCR data to the CRBs.

Put simply, Credit Providers (like us) are now required to report more credit information to CRBs.

When will Tiimely Home start reporting CCR data?

November 2020, and this info will be visible on customers' credit reports from February 2021. Our funder, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank, will report CCR data to CBRs.

There is a gap between when we start sending CCR data and when it is visible, so that the CCR information can be confirmed to be accurate and complete before it “goes live” and is visible on credit reports.

What info will be displayed on an individual's credit report?

Credit reports will display two types of information: Consumer Credit Liability Information (CCLI) and Repayment History Information (RHI).

CCLI is consumer credit account info, such as:

Name of credit provider
Type of consumer credit – credit card, personal loan, home loan, personal overdraft
Credit Limit – balances are not permitted
Terms of consumer credit – loan term, account start and end dates, account active or closed status
Loan type – P&I, IO, Revolving

RHI is repayment information, which includes:

RHI status – indicates the number of days overdue on a repayment
24 month rolling history of the RHI status
RHI can only be reported and viewed by licensed Credit Providers (e.g., this excludes utility and telco companies)

Credit reports will continue to display the following information:

Identification info (e.g., name, address, DOB)
Default information
Court proceedings (e.g., credit-related judgements)
Personal insolvency information (e.g. bankruptcy, debt agreements)
Serious credit infringes
Credit enquiries

How will CCR affect Tiimely Home customers?

CCR will assist Tiimely Home in making more informed credit decisions. The result for our customers is Credit Providers will see a more complete credit history by including the repayment history of customers, not just the negative information that is reported today.

For customers who have a proven repayment history, the additional information reported may lead to a positive financing outcome. And for those customers who are experiencing repayment difficulties, their situation can be holistically assessed to consider the best course of action for the customer.

Will COVID-19 payment deferrals impact a customer's credit report?

An agreed COVID-19 deferral (or payment pause) will not show up as a missed payment on an individual’s credit report. This is in line with industry guidance. Customers can visit CreditSmart’s COVID-19 page for additional information.

How can customers improve their credit score and learn more about their credit report?

As well as contacting us as early as possible if they are having trouble making repayments, customers can also visit the CreditSmart website for some credit basics, including:

What Credit Reporting Bodies (CRBs) hold credit reports?

Tiimely currently provides CCR data to CRB Equifax. There are other CRBs (eg, illion and Experian) who may hold credit reports about individuals. Credit Providers can provide CCR data to all or some of these CRBs. CRBs are also regulated by the Privacy Act, to ensure that the information they hold is accurate, complete and up-to-date and CRBs are required to provide a free credit report (upon request from a customer) at least once, every 12 months.

Can a customer ‘opt-out’ from Credit Providers supplying their CCR data?

No. Customers cannot opt-out of CCR. Credit reporting, like other types of ‘privacy’ related matters, is governed by the Privacy Act 1988.

The Privacy Act sets out very clear rules to protect a customer’s privacy and ensure that their personal information is protected. The protections in the Privacy Act are generally based on the idea of ‘consent’. That is, the business can use the customer’s personal information for its purposes provided it gets their consent to do so.

However, things are a little bit different when it comes to credit reporting. The rules applying to credit reporting aren’t based on getting your ‘consent’. Instead, the law imposes limitations on Credit Providers and CRBs that are much stricter than those applying to other forms of personal information, while also giving you very clear rights to see what’s on your credit report and to get incorrect information fixed.

Importantly, the information held by the CRB is not available for just anyone to view. Only a limited range of Credit Providers can access the information – and then only for a limited range of purpose, such as when you apply for a loan with a Credit Provider.

How can a customer request a correction to their credit report?

A correction is where the individual or the individual’s authorised representative, contacts a Credit Provider or Credit Reporting Body (CRB) to dispute the accuracy of information held on their credit report and requests a correction. If you believe information held in your credit report is incorrect, you can contact us or contact a CRB directly.

Want to learn more about credit reporting and credit scores? You can read about how and when Tiimely Home checks an applicant's credit report, or check out the industry-funded CreditSmart site.