Hi,

My girlfriend and I are moving in to rented accomodation next month. We are looking to open a joint savings account to pay our bills out of, my question is, does this affect both our credit ratings?

We are looking for something which does not affect our credit score as we are concerned that we may affect each others rating.

Any help would be appreciated.

Once you obtain a joint account or joint loans your financial association(s) become linked with each other for credit scoring purposes... if you want to keep your credit ratings independent, then keep all your financial affairs separate.

cew:

A savings account will have no effect on your credit report because it will not be listed with Credit Reference Agencies (because no credit is involved). A current account, even a basic account, will be listed and has the potential for adverse effect if badly run. A CRA identity check may be made when you apply for your savings account (make sure you list your addresses for the previous 3 years) but this will not affect your credit rating.

Be aware that if you ever take out a joint current or basic account this will create a financial link on your credit reports.