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Removing A Bankruptcy From Your Credit Reports
Find out how long bankruptcy remains on your credit file and what you need to do to remove it. This page contains affiliate links. Find A Mortgage Online Ltd may receive a commission for qualifying purposes.
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Your credit history and score is a really important part of any finance application you make. Even if you think your score is perfect, your advisor is going to want to see and understand your report and make sure they’re supporting you in the right way.
Bankruptcy is considered one of the most severe forms of adverse credit and its impact on your ability to apply for finance whilst it remains marked on your credit file can be pretty far-reaching.
Read on to find out how long you need to wait before bankruptcy can be removed from your credit records and what steps you can take to make sure this happens. You can also download your credit reports for free to see what effect this has had on your credit score.
How to remove bankruptcy from your credit reports
In effect, once you’ve been declared bankrupt there isn’t really anything you can do to remove this from your credit records other than to wait until six years has passed. At this point the bankruptcy note will be removed automatically from your credit file.
You can take proactive steps once this date has been reached by regularly reviewing your credit reports to make sure the bankruptcy note no longer shows. If it does, you should contact the three main credit reference agencies in the UK – Experian, Equifax and TransUnion – to request its removal.
To do this you would likely need to produce your confirmation letter and certificate of discharge, which you can get directly from the Insolvency Service.
How long does bankruptcy stay on your credit report?
A bankruptcy event will remain on your credit files for six years after it was first officially declared. Most bankruptcies are usually discharged after twelve months and all financial restrictions put in place will then be lifted.
The Individual Insolvency Register should be updated with this information within three months of your discharge date. At this point the bankruptcy notice on your credit file should reflect this change in status, albeit it will remain on your record for a further five years.
However, credit reference agencies are not informed directly when your bankruptcy is discharged (they get this information only from public records). So, it is definitely worth monitoring your credit reports at this stage to ensure your files are updated accordingly.
What is the best way to build credit after a bankruptcy?
Once you’ve been discharged from your bankruptcy you’ll still, typically, have five more years to wait before it is removed from your credit files. This does give you plenty of time to build your credit rating by taking certain steps such as:
- Ensuring you’re registered on the electoral roll at your home address
- Pay all of your regular bills on time
- Monitor your credit reports to make sure the information held is up to date and accurate
- Avoid using credit repair companies
Download your credit reports today
Reviewing your credit files on a regular basis after declaring bankruptcy is an important step to taking back control of your finances. You can download your reports for free right now by simply clicking on the button below.
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FAQs
There should definitely be an improvement, particularly if you’ve taken certain steps beforehand (as outlined above). However, it’s impossible to estimate by how much as everyone’s financial situation will be different.
Whilst the bankruptcy note remains on your credit report it can have quite a negative affect on your ability to secure any form of finance, even after you have been discharged.
A prospective lender uses your credit report and history to assess whether they can trust you as a borrower and evidence of bankruptcy in your recent past would indicate to them you could be at a higher risk of defaulting on future repayments.
Getting a mortgage after bankruptcy can be very difficult as it’s regarded as one of the most severe credit issues you can have registered on your credit report. But it shouldn’t mean that it’s impossible once you’ve been discharged.
The best thing to do is contact a bad credit mortgage broker who will know which specialist mortgage lenders can consider your application.
