Canada Loses a Credit Bureau

Just over two years after acquiring Quebec-based Northern Credit Bureau, Experian announced that it will be halting its Canadian consumer credit bureau operations as of April 17, 2009.

The company cited the global economic crisis as the reason for its exit from the Canadian market and stated that after April 17 – and after any last disputes are closed – the company will be erasing its Canadian credit database. Its absence will leave TransUnion and Equifax as Canada’s only national credit reporting agencies.

Reduced credit bureau competition

Competition is typically a good thing regardless of what market or industry you’re talking about. But in the case of credit bureaus, fewer players may actually be better for Canadian consumers. Here’s why.

Credit bureaus collect and distribute information about individuals’ personal credit histories. They monitor consumer habits such as the balance of existing credit accounts, payment behavior, past bankruptcies and loan applications. They combine this information into reports to determine an individual’s creditworthiness, and then sell these reports to approved companies.

Important to get your credit reports from both bureaus

Those companies looking to acquire your credit history – or to report credit information about you – can deal with one credit bureau or the other (or both). Because of this, your TransUnion and Equifax credit reports may contain different information about you. The bureaus don’t share information with each other either, so diligent consumers should order their credit reports from both bureaus (a practice that should be employed regularly, experts say). 

This can be quite a hassle, as anyone who has ever sat on hold with a credit bureau can attest. To obtain the free report you are entitled to by law, you have to dig around on both credit bureaus' websites. The bureaus would prefer to sell you reports online for a cost rather than mail you the free one the law stipulates we can receive each year.

Also note the free reports do not include a credit score, which is what many of us are really interested in. To obtain your report and credit score you will have to pay $23.95 at Equifax and $22.90 at TransUnion.

Fewer credit bureaus mean less hassle for consumers

At least now, Canadian consumers will only have to deal with two bureaus, instead of three. This should save some time, money, and hassle when it comes to getting credit reports, fixing errors found on them, and placing fraud alerts if necessary.