TransUnion is one of the three main Credit Reporting Agencies (CRAs) in the UK. It was founded in 1968 with its headquarters in Chicago, USA. It’s now in over 33 countries. TransUnion provides credit information and credit scores for businesses and consumers.
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What is TransUnion UK?
TransUnion is one of the three main Credit Reference Agencies in the UK. The other two are Experian and Equifax. As a CRA, TransUnion gathers information on your financial activity – past and present. They also capture your personal details, and they use all this information to generate your credit score.
History of TransUnion
In 2018, TransUnion acquired the CRA that was known as Callcredit. Since then, TransUnion has started to be used by more lenders. But Experian and Equifax are the CRA market leaders.
In 2019 they launched their open banking platform. The purpose of this is to help businesses make their lending decisions. TransUnion were recognised in the 2019 Credit Collections and Technology Awards. Here they received an award for the Affordability Assessment Solution.
What does TransUnion do?
As a Credit Reference Agency, TransUnion collects information about how you handle your finances to document a history of your financial situation. They file this in your own unique credit report. This information is gathered from a variety of sources which include:
- Banks
- Credit card companies
- Loan companies
- Public records
Your credit report helps to identify you as well as provide information about your credit history. It shows how well you’ve maintained your loan and credit accounts, both past and present. TransUnion uses this information to give you a credit score. This gives an overview of how creditworthy you are.
Is TransUnion a legitimate company?
Yes, TransUnion is a legitimate company. It is one of the top 3 Credit Reference Agencies in the UK. It is used by businesses when they need to verify who you are or if they want to confirm how credit worthy you are.
Services and products offered by TransUnion
There are many services offered by TransUnion, below are some of the things you can get from it.
1. Credit report
Your credit report contains information on you, which lenders use to help with their lending decisions. It includes a variety of information including your personal information, your payment history, and whether you’re on the electoral roll. It also includes information that’s recorded on the public register.
2. Credit score
TransUnion uses the information in your credit report to give you a credit score. Credit scores are a numerical representation of how credit worthy you are. They give you a guide on how lenders will view you when you apply for loans and lines of credit.
The higher your credit score, the more likely you are to be approved for credit.
3. Fraud protection
TransUnion has services that help companies prevent fraud. They do this with detection systems, validation tools, and consultancy services. By keeping check on your own credit file, you can spot any fraudulent activity before it gets out of hand.
4. Financial education
This is a service TransUnion offer to consumers. It provides help with commonly asked questions about your credit report. And it gives you advice on how to protect yourself against identity fraud.
5. Data security
The information TransUnion hold on you is safely stored. They care about your privacy, and they’ll only keep your details in line with the UK’s data protection rules. You have rights with regards to how they hold your information. You can find out more about this from their website.
How does TransUnion collect data?
TransUnion collects its information from a few different sources. But every bit of information is based on an activity you’ve carried out with a business including:
- Direct Lenders
- Banks
- Landlords
- Utility and mobile phone companies
What types of data does TransUnion collect?
TransUnion’s credit files contain a variety of information, they include the following information.
1. Some personal information
This would include:
- Your name
- Your date of birth
- Your current and previous addresses
2. Whether you are on the electoral roll
Your credit report will confirm whether you’re registered to vote. It helps lenders to verify your identity if you are.
3. A list of all your credit accounts
This includes every type of credit account you have. It can be anything from your bank account to loans, from mortgages to even having credit cards for bad credit. Your credit report will show all the payments you make to these credit accounts too. And it’ll show if they’re paid late or on time.
4. Public information
Public information is items that are reported on the public record. For example, these would include County Court Judgements (CCJs), repossessions and bankruptcies.
5. Details of people who you’re linked to financially
If you’ve taken out any joint borrowings or bank accounts with someone, they’ll be linked to you financially. This will show up on your credit report. It means that lenders may look at their credit report too when deciding whether to lend to you.
How does TransUnion use this data?
TransUnion uses the information in your credit file to give you a credit score. Credit scores are a numerical representation of how credit worthy you are. The higher your credit score, the more likely you are to be approved for credit.
The information TransUnion holds can also be seen by lenders when they do a credit check. This is carried out when you apply to borrow money, it’s known as a hard credit check. You’ll know if a lender has done a hard credit check on you as it’ll appear on your credit file.
Which companies use TransUnion?
The only businesses who can look at your Equifax credit report are those with good reason to. The information held on you is secure so not just anyone can look at your credit report. Businesses must have a legitimate reason for viewing your credit report. Here’s a list of the businesses who might have a need to look at your credit report.
- Lenders
- Banks
- Landlords
- Utility and mobile phone companies
These businesses are the same ones who’ll report information about you on your credit file too.
How can I download my credit report from TransUnion?
If you want to download a copy of your TransUnion credit report, you’ll first need to register with them. Once you’ve logged in, you’ll be to see your credit report and will have the option to print it out. Click on the print option and then change the destination from a printer to ‘Save as a PDF’. This will then allow you to download and save your credit report to a folder on your computer.
How reliable is the TransUnion credit score?
Your TransUnion credit score is reliable based on the information it holds on you. It won’t give you a score based on information held with other Credit Reference Agencies. That’s one of the reasons why your credit score will be different to your score with the other two CRAs.
What is a good credit score TransUnion UK?
A good credit score with TransUnion will fall between 604 and 627. The table below shows all of their credit scoring ranges.
| Credit Score | Very Poor/Poor | Fair | Good/Very Good | Excellent |
| TransUnion | 0-565 | 566-603 | 604-627 | 628-710 |
Why is my TransUnion credit score lower than Equifax?
You may have found that your credit score is different when compared with your Equifax score. This is because these two CRAs have their own scoring range that they use.
Plus, your credit score can only be worked out based on the information they hold on you. If the information on your TransUnion file isn’t the same as what’s on your Equifax file, it’ll generate different credit scores. The reason this happens is because lenders don’t all report to all three Credit Reference Agencies.
The table below shows you the different ranges the two Credit Reference Agencies use.
| Credit Score Range | Very Poor/Poor | Fair | Good/Very Good | Excellent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Equifax | 0-438 | 439-530 | 531-810 | 811-1,000 |
| TransUnion | 0-565 | 566-603 | 604-627 | 628-710 |
How can I improve my TransUnion credit score?
If your TransUnion credit score is low, there are things you can do to improve it:
1. Make your payments on time
Every late payment you make brings down your credit score. If you set up a direct debit you can make sure your payments go out on the day your salary goes in.
2. Don’t make lots of new applications close together
Every application you make shows up on your credit file. Even though it only stays on there for 12 months, it impacts your credit score. If you make a lot of applications in a short space of time, it makes you look desperate for money.
3. Register on the electoral roll
If you’re not already enrolled to vote, consider registering. It’ll give your credit score a boost and could help with future applications for credit you make.
4. Remove links to anyone you’re no longer connected to financially
If you’ve taken out loans or had a joint bank account with someone, it shows on your credit file. If they have a poor credit score, it’ll affect you when you apply for credit. That’s why, if you’re no longer linked to them, it’s worth getting them removed from your credit file.
5. Don’t use up all your available credit
Lenders like to see that you can manage your money well. By not borrowing up to your credit limit you’re showing that you’re in control of your spending. If you can, try to keep your borrowing to around 30% of your credit limit.
What are some alternatives to TransUnion?
TransUnion is one of the top three Credit Reference Agencies in the UK. To find out what Experian or Equifax are reporting on you, you’d have to go direct to them.
You can also get access to your TransUnion credit report through one of the UK’s credit monitoring services. TransUnion partners with the following services:
FAQs About TransUnion
How can you contact TransUnion?
You’ll find a lot of answers to questions you might have on the TransUnion website: TransUnion UK | TransUnion UK.
But if you have something specific you need help with, you can contact TransUnion by email or phone. Here are their contact details.
1. You can email them at: UKConsumer@transunion.com
2. You can call them on: 0330 024 7574
How do I cancel my TransUnion account?
If you’ve registered with one of TransUnion’s partners, you’d have to contact them directly to cancel your account. You can do this online, by email or through the post. When you log into your account, you’ll find details on how you can cancel your membership.
How can I raise a dispute with TransUnion?
If you find a mistake on your credit report, you can raise a dispute with TransUnion. These are the steps you need to take.
1. Notify TransUnion that there’s an error on your credit file: You can do this by raising a dispute with them. This can be done online or by post.
2. You’ll need to provide your personal details: TransUnion will need this from you so that you can be verified. Then you can tell them which entry is incorrect on your credit report.
3. TransUnion will investigate your claim: They may ask for more evidence from you, or they’ll contact the lender who reported the entry.
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