How does your Credit History Affect you?

How does your Credit History Affect you?
CCRIS, CTOS, DCHEQS, RAM & FIS

CCRIS, CTOS & DCHEQS -they may sound like military codenames to some exotic places; In fact, they are tools  which credit providers and interested parties use to check your creditworthiness before offering you services or credit.

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The main thing that your credit history affects is your eligibility to apply for credit products, including credit cards and any kind of loans (housing, auto and personal). CCRIS and DCHEQS are internal systems within Bank Negara, and CTOS, RAM and FIS are private 3rd party companies which hold credit information and are frequently used by banks, insurers, suppliers etc. to determine your credit history/rating.

CCRIS 

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Central Credit Reference Information System (CCRIS) is the computerised database maintained  at the Credit Bureau, Bank Negara Malaysia since 1982 under the Bank of Malaysia Act 1958. Financial institutions in Malaysia will send a monthly report of all their borrowers to the Credit Bureau.

Data received by the Central Bank regarding loans given by financial institutions will be processed by CCRIS in order to format a credit report. This report can be accessed by any financial institution upon request. The financial institution is required to inform the applicant,in writing, that a credit check is to be conducted under the applicant's name and that the credit facility application will be reported to the Credit Bureau.
How Does CCRIS Affect You?

A CCRIS report contains factual and historical information on the loan amount, interest and charges outstanding on each loan (like housing loan, personal loan, hire purchase, credit card and overdraft). It also shows the amount of each monthly payment to be in arrears to the bank for one year (12 months). By having this CCRIS report, the financial institutions can assess your credit rating by analysing each loan by the loan balance and payment record of the loan.

Typically, financial institutions will reject an application if there are 2 month in arrears of loan payment for each loan the applicant has undertaken. However, some financial institutions will reject loans if there is a debt ratio of 50% or more. Ultimately, lending decisions depend on the risk evaluation by the financial institutions. It highly depends on the financial institutions' policies.

Using the same information from the credit report and other sources, one lender may approve an application while another may not. The Credit Bureau does not express any opinion on the information provided in the credit report.
How Do I get My CCRIS Report?

Any individual or company can apply for its own credit report once in 3 months, after the last request date. The credit report can be obtained from Bank Negara at no cost. Simply go to the Customer Service Centre at any Bank Negara Branch or send a mailing request.  Click here to see the full details on how to obtain your credit report.

Kindly visit the Credit Bureau official website for more information.
CTOS

Credit Tip-Off System (CTOS) is a company which privately runs a database maintaining information on legal proceedings against individuals and business entities in Malaysia. If there is a bankruptcy suit against an individual or a company, CTOS will collect and register this information into their database.
What Is In a CTOS Report?

Bankruptcy information contains information on individuals and companies.The report contains information such as court file number, filing location, date of notice or court orders, individual's name, identity card number and the date referred to in court proceedings (if it goes to trial).

Besides bankruptcy, information on other legal proceedings often contains details of the suit against the individuals or companies in which summons has been issued. Details such as court filing number, filing location, date of notice or court orders, individual's name or company's name, the amount of the suits (if any), individual's identity card number or company's registered number (if any) and the date mentioned in court proceedings are included in the report.
How Does CTOS Affect You?

The information presented in CTOS is only meant to act as "information leads".  CTOS does not rank, rate or give any opinion on the character, integrity, credit standing, worthiness or capability of individuals and companies. This judgement is wholly and exclusively reserved for the financial institutions.

They will examine this information provided by  CTOS and decide if it is material to your application and, subsequently, the impact on your application. As with the CCRIS, risk attitudes and tolerance differ for each financial institution; What is acceptable to one organization may be unacceptable to another.

You can apply for a self-check report at CTOS through registration at their office or through online registration. You can see the details on the procedure of registration here.
DCHEQS

Dishonoured Cheque Information System (DCHEQS) is a computerised database system developed and maintained by Bank Negara to collect, process, store and generate information related to dishonoured cheques.

This information (collected from financial institutions) is a profile of dishonoured cheque issuers including details such as name, address, identity card number, account number, cheque number, issuance date and amount.
What Is In a DCHEQS Report?

DCHEQS will keep a record in the database for a certain time period. Please refer below :

    One year for account holders who produce less than three bad cheques within 12 months.
    Three years for account holders who produce three or more bad cheques within 12 months.

How Does a DCHEQS Report Affect You?

DCHEQS is not a black list issued by Bank Negara. In fact, BNM does not release the list of the names of current account holders who issue dishonoured cheques. DCHEQS only stores information about the records of current account holders who issue dishonoured cheques.

The dishonoured cheques issued may mean that there will be no more consideration for the re-opening of the existing current account. However, an application for the opening of a new current account depends on the bank's internal policy and is subject to the bank's discretion. DCHEQS doesn't provide any opinion on this.

As with the CCRIS report, simply go to the Customer Service Centre at any Bank Negara Branch or send a mailing request to obtain your DCHEQS report.
RAM

RAM

RAM is a credit-information bureau owned by RAM Holding Bhd & DP Information Network Pte Ltd, Singapore. RAM's information solution empower business decision makers with credit information and advances scores or rating designed to help them make critical and time-driven decision. RAM Credit Information has comprehensive and still expanding database  of below:

    Statutory information on more than 800,000 companies and businesses registered with the Companies Commission of Malaysia.
    More than 500,000 summaries of companies' financial records.
    Information on all bankrupted and wound-up companies in Malaysia.
    Court litigation cases.
    Negative payment information contributed by subscribers from numerous industries.
    Addresses of business and individuals, captured from a variety of sources.
    Names and NRIC numbers of more than 13 million individuals.
    Records of past credit enquiries on individuals, companies and businesses in Malaysia.

Those information normally are used by business corporations, financial institutions, and legal as well as accounting firms as a basis for credit sales, marketing, financial, purchasing and general management decisions. RAM Credit Information provide their services to their customers through online for the convenience of the customers.
RAM Services

RAM Credit Information has 3 types of services:

• Credit Track

RAM Credit Information allows you access detailed information on companies, businesses and individuals in the area of bankruptcy, litigation cases, winding-up petitions, trade reference information, addresses, shareholdings, and the number of credit enquiries made on a particular subject over the years.

You can also conduct company and business searches on statutory information from the Companies Commission of Malaysia as well as bankruptcy and liquidation searches in the form of certified investigations made at the offices of the official assignee and official receiver.

Besides that, you can get financial snapshots of past years' summaries of profit and loss performance from RAM Credit Information. They provide more in depth business rating reports which encompass credit-risk assessments on companies, with assigned ratings and probability of default. They also employ predictive and robust statistical rating models based on profitability, capital structure, liquidity, business activity, growth and size.

• Red Alert and Business Watch

RAM Credit Information provide alerts on new developments in credit and legal standing of companies and individuals. Through their business watch service, you can kept updated on the changes in the businesses of customers, suppliers, partners and competitors.

• Trade Bureau

A platform is established which is independent and neutral, allows the sharing of customers' payment records and behaviour. RAM's database includes critical credit information on a vast and still-expanding array of industries, including automotive, licensed money-lending, distribution of building materials, logistics, electrical and electronics, heavy construction equipment, metal trading, and information and communication technology. Their database alerts credit guarantors of defaulting customers and serve as a tool for recovery of neglectful debts.
Other Services

RAM Credit Information has a self-check service also. It allows individuals, businesses and companies to perform a background credit check on themselves before obtaining any loans or credit terms from financial institutions or credit companies.

Besides, the self-check service has the ability to curb identity theft. Identity theft occurs when someone obtains an individual's personal information such as credit card or bank account information, and then poses as that individual to take over his or her credit accounts, or create new accounts and commit crime at that individual's expense.

For individual self-check you can either walk-in or online register. See details here. For business and companies self-check, you can download a form here or send an email.
FIS

FIS Data Reference Sdn Bhd (FDR) is wholly owned subsidiary company of Financial Information Services Sdn Bhd (FIS), and was setup in April 2012 to take over the credit reporting agency services from FIS to collect, compile, publish and maintain a database of credit information to provide "lead information" services and such services related to credit bureau business to our subscribers.

FDR provide services as below:

Credit Enquiry

The credit information is the main product offered by FDR to their subscribers. The credit report will be furnished to clients when the search criteria is an individual subject's identification number or business registration number. Subscribers use the credit report as a tool to identify delinquencies and bankruptcy filings for the subject concerned.

Double Financing Enquiry

This report is furnished to subscribers when the search is the vehicle registration, chassis or engine number. The purpose of the search would be to determine if the search vehicle has an existing hire purchase loan or is a problematic vehicle.

Ownership Claim Registration

This is to register the subscriber's ownership claim interest in motor vehicles, goods or equipments which is the subject of hire purchase and leasing agreements. It should be submitted promptly to avoid double financing of hire purchase or leasing agreements.

Ownership Claim Discharge

This is to discharge an ownership claim which was registered earlier when the hirer settled the loan with the subscriber.
How Do I Subscribe To FDR?

To become subscriber of FDR, you have to pay the initial entry cost of RM520.00 comprising of joining fee RM300(non-refundable), membership deposit RM200(refundable after deducted last outstanding balances), stamping and others RM20. They also charge you monthly recurring charges of minimum RM5.00 per month.