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An online credit-scoring tool has relaunched with a commitment to give away one million free credit scores, enabling people to instantly access their credit history.
According to GetCreditScore.com.au – a joint initiative between peer-to-peer lender SocietyOne and credit bureau Veda – Australians are not utilising their credit information for their own benefit.
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Research by GetCreditScore revealed that 85 per cent of Australians do not know their credit score, and 60 per cent have not asked for a better deal on a personal loan or credit card in the past 18 months.
The research also found more than one-third of Australians won’t ask for a better deal on a financial product because they find the process difficult, embarrassing or uncomfortable.
Consumer advocate and GetCreditScore.com.au spokesperson Christopher Zinn said knowing your credit score is financially empowering, and believes more Australians could make better decisions about credit and save themselves money if they were aware of their score.
“Now is the time for consumers to get informed and empower themselves with their credit score to ask for a better deal,” he said.
“If you have a good credit score, it puts you in a much better position if you are seeking a loan or credit.”
GetCreditScore.com.au uses Veda’s rating tool VedaScore, which provides each person with a credit score between zero and 1,200.
The relaunch coincides with new data released by Veda which shows the average credit scores for each state.
Topping the list is the ACT with an average credit score of 760, followed by Western Australia (771), Tasmania (770), South Australia (767), Victoria (764), New South Wales (759), Queensland (751) and the Northern Territory (746).
[Related: Australians ‘alarmingly misinformed’ about credit reports]
