Is a chequered credit history ruining your financial future?

New research undertaken on behalf of www.MyCreditZoo.co.uk highlights just how important a person's credit rating can be, and how a bad credit rating can dramatically affect their financial future.

The research shows that anywhere between 40,000 and 70,000 County Court Judgements (CCJs) are registered every month throughout the UK. CCJs can be used by financial organisations to assess an individuals' credit history for up to 6 years from receipt, and significantly affect an individual's future credit rating. Nearly 1 in every 25 individuals in the UK has a CCJ against their name, and over the last 6 years, 4.6million CCJs have been registered.

A bad credit rating can substantially affect the deals on offer when an individual is looking for credit - whether it be a credit card or loan. According to the research from www.MyCreditZoo.co.uk, Interest rates can vary from as little as 5% to as high as 30%, dependant the individual's credit rating. Even more surprisingly, high street banks regularly turn down as many as 6 out of every 10 of their own customers for credit, based on their credit rating. And a further 7 out of every 10 initial credit applications are declined by lenders every day.

However, help is at hand. Consumers now have access to their credit rating and are able to find out which financial companies are likely to lend to them based on their personal circumstances and which interest rates they should expect to be offered. Even consumers without a perfect credit history are still able to access credit facilities from selected lenders. By using www.MyCreditZoo.co.uk, these consumers can quickly identify which credit providers are able to help and at what level of interest.

www.MyCreditZoo.co.uk takes the sting out of applying for credit - consumers can avoid the often frustrating and time-consuming approvals process. The free service works by asking consumers a number of personal questions and assigns them with their credit rating based on their responses. Using this information, www.mycreditzoo.co.uk instantly lists which credit card or loan companies and exactly which brands are most likely to accept a full application and allows users to click directly through to apply online, and avoid wasting time applying for products which they will automatically be declined for based on their credit rating. Using www.MyCreditZoo.co.uk also allows consumers to access the most relevant APR for their personal credit rating, so that they can get the best possible deal on the credit and loan offers they apply for.

www.MyCreditzoo.co.uk aims to help promote the responsible use of credit. Therefore the service provides full details of each product including interest rates, fees special terms and the all important 'small print', so consumers can be better informed before they make a credit decision.

The service also enables consumers to access sister company Callcredit's www.MyCallcredit.com to view their full credit history online, for a one-off fee - so that users can instantly see what is affecting the financial offers they receive. With identify fraud on the increase, many consumers find peace of mind in regularly viewing their credit report and monitoring their current credit status.

John Dobson, Managing Director at EuroDirect says:
"Many consumers are unaware of how a bad credit rating can impact on their ability to get credit and how much it will affect the interest rates of financial products offered to them. www.MyCreditZoo.co.uk gives you an insight into your own credit rating so that you can use it to your advantage, reducing the time, effort, embarrassment and frustration often experienced by many of us when applying for credit."

"www.MyCreditZoo.co.uk puts the power back in the hands of consumers - they can not only instantly identify which cards and loans they are likely to be accepted for and choose from the best offers available, they can also take the process a stage further by viewing their actual credit report."