How to Fix Bad Credit in Canada

Being laid off is difficult, and so is a debilitating illness. Whatever problem you may have, it could cause you to pay bills late, if at all, and that will have a devastating effect on your credit score. Most Canadian lenders will look at your credit score to see if you pay your bills on time before granting you credit. So a bad score will dictate whether you get the loan or not.

Instructions

1

Get credit reports from Equifax Canada Inc. and Trans Union of Canada, the two major credit bureaus in Canada. The majority of creditors, both Canadian and international, will send information to them, so you will need to get information from both. Through the Residential Tenancies Act, you may receive your credit report from the two bureaus free once each year, so that gives you the opportunity to review your credit each year.

2

Go over the reports with a fine-toothed comb. Make sure the bureaus' records show you have paid your accounts on time. Because so much information is sent to the credit bureaus, negative information about someone else can appear on your report, as well as accounts that have gone into collection that are not true. That error alone can make the difference between you getting credit and being turned down, so be sure that you contact the credit bureau by disputing those types of errors on the form available on each report.

3

Pay off as many of your accounts as you can. Try to get your credit cards to raise your limit because applying for new ones will raise a red flag with the bureaus. Also, try to get your balances on your credit card below a third of your credit limit, a characteristic of those with great credit.

4

Make sure your bills are paid on time. Try paying them the day they arrive as opposed to when they are due. That will impress the credit bureaus and they may increase you credit score. Also, because of high interest rates, you might consider paying off your credit cards. Doing so will be viewed favorably by the credit reporting bureaus.