What can a prospective employer see in a credit check done to a prospective employee?

Question

What I mean is can they actually go into detail with your accounts, etc.? OR do they only see you "credit rating" or "score"?? Someone with experience as an employer or manager, please help me out with this one. I am going to have a credit check done on me for a job, and my credit if considered "fair" because I don't have a long credit history, but I need a little info.

Answer 1

taximomu is correct.

Credit reports are like report cards when we were in school only instead of showing how good/bad we are doing in our studies they show how good/bad we are doing at managing our debt.

Employers do have the right to do credit checks and most applications for employment have a clause that allows them to do this as soon as you sign it.

Answer 2

I could see how one would interpet this as an invasion of privacy, however when your applying for a position which you will have access to large sums of money and are responsible for project accounting and handling both account recievables and payables. The report is the only way to tell just how well this person handles money and how they will handle your money as a business owner. I will say that this doesn't always reflect a true description of the person as people have different aspects to their personal lives like divorce or investments which could make it look as though they are not financially responsible but a good employer will take these into consideration and will talk to the references before making a final decision. Unfortunately until there is a better method employers will use the only one they have....

Answer 3

They'll see what anyone sees. What accounts you have open and where, how much your credit limit is on each one, and what your balance is. How much your payments are, and most importantly whether or not you've ever been more than 30 days late on any of them. As an employer they are checking for stability, whether or not you are responsible enough to handle your finances, etc. If you have a short history but it's good, it's better than a long one that's bad. A couple of late payments here and there can be explained, but if you've got a huge history of late payments it's not good especially if you're applying for a job at a bank, etc.

Answer 4

If your employment is in financial industry the credit check may be done. Short credit history does not mean bad credit it means that your credit file will be thin. This will not hurt your chances. Good Luck

Answer 5

If your prospective employer is a bank, a lending institution, etc., they have access to a Money Bureau and can see all our Bad Debts/ Credit history. They have a Risk Manager to do the works for them.

Answer 6

Well, I hate to tell you this, but they can find out practically anything about you. There are sites online that charge for certain things like background checks, if you have been charged with a crime, what your credit rating is, etc. They can even find out personal things like medical records! All you need is a credit card to get the information. I typed in my name on one of these sites, and they showed me EXACTLY where I lived for the past three years. If I were you I would investigate these sites - I think one is called, Private Eye, and just type in your name and it pulls up just enough information to let you know they know things about you. I don't mean to frighten you; it was done to me. Better to be informed than not to be! Protect yourself!

Answer 7

They can see all the same things anyone else does who performs a credit check, which is all the details. Find out what the company's standards are for the credit check (ie, what would they consider acceptable for hiring)

Answer 8

They can see what accounts are delinquent or in collections. They don't see your credit score.

By the way, for those who think it is not a prospective employer's biz, it IS their biz if you are being considered for a job where you handle money in any way. In my job I send out large checks to subcontractors. The employer would want to know if you might be likely to embezzle or take bribes from vendors. Just like you wouldn't want to hire a cop who had armed robbery convictions.

And it is legal to check your credit, as long as they get your signed permission first.

Answer 9

Can an employer check your credit is a better question.
It is generally illegal for an employer in the United States to use a credit check as part of a background check on a perspective employee.

Answer 10

No, the only reason they would go into your credit report is to double check your identity and important personal information. Other then that you score or financial history shouldnt have any impact on the job.

Answer 11

Why not have credit checks. Don't ya just like going to work and everyone of your fellows asking you if they can borrow a dollar, bum a smoke and lend them your ink pen everyday... Good gosh if you have to hide it, probally isn't worth seeing anyways... Look over there, his credit score is 2, so is his IQ...