Home / Commons / Session kits / Credit reports and scores / Slides
Fluent · Slides
Credit reports and scores: the slides.
A 15-slide deck with speaker notes, for a 60-minute session. Present it from this page, or print it to PDF with one slide per page. The run sheet says when to show each slide.
While presenting: → or Space next, ← back, Home and End, S speaker notes, F full screen, Esc to stop.
Moraph for Good · Fluent
Credit reports and scores
A Fluent session from Moraph for Good
A free session kit · moraph.org/commons/sessions/fluent/credit-reports-and-scores
Moraph for Good · Fluent · Credit reports and scores1 / 15
Speaker notes
Welcome people and make sure everyone has a worksheet and handout. Introduce yourself briefly.
How today works
Before we start
- Nobody shares their report or score
- General information, not advice
- We don’t recommend any product or service
- The worksheet and handout go home with you
Moraph for Good · Fluent · Credit reports and scores2 / 15
Speaker notes
Some people may feel anxious about credit. Say that nobody will be asked about their own history.
The idea
A credit report is the record lenders, landlords and sometimes employers see. You have the right to see it too.
Moraph for Good · Fluent · Credit reports and scores3 / 15
Speaker notes
Mistakes on reports are not rare, and they can be fixed. That is the main message of the session.
What’s on it
What a credit report usually holds
- Your name, date of birth and addresses
- Accounts: cards, loans, some phone and utility contracts
- Whether payments were made on time, and balances and limits
- Defaults, collections and some court records
- Who has checked your report recently
Moraph for Good · Fluent · Credit reports and scores4 / 15
Speaker notes
What is included varies by country. A score is not the same as a report; it is calculated from it.
Getting yours
Free, through the official route
- Each country here has a free way to get your own report
- Use the route on your handout, not a search result
- You shouldn’t need a card number to see your own report
- Bureaus can hold different information, so check each one
Moraph for Good · Fluent · Credit reports and scores5 / 15
Speaker notes
Read out the official route from the country block. Warn about sites that offer a free report and then charge for a subscription.
Activity
Try it: read a made-up report
- Work in tables of three or four
- Read slide 7 line by line
- Mark each line: fine, possible error, or possible fraud
- Decide who to contact about each problem
Moraph for Good · Fluent · Credit reports and scores6 / 15
Speaker notes
Hand out the printed slide 7. Allow 13 minutes, calling time at 5, 10 and 13, then debrief for two.
The made-up report
Read each line
- Old address in a town never lived in; phone contract paid on time for three years
- Card: limit 1,000, balance 900, one late payment, though there’s a receipt showing it was paid on time
- Store card opened last month that was never applied for
- Loan paid off four years ago still showing 200; one unpaid bill of 150 listed twice
- Three credit checks last month, one from an unknown lender
Moraph for Good · Fluent · Credit reports and scores7 / 15
Speaker notes
Expected findings: the address, the late payment, the paid-off loan and the duplicate bill are errors; the store card and unknown check suggest fraud; the high card balance is accurate but may weigh on a score.
Disputes
Disputing an error
- Contact the credit bureau and the company that reported it
- Say in writing what is wrong and why
- Send copies of your evidence, never the originals
- Keep a copy of everything, with dates
Moraph for Good · Fluent · Credit reports and scores8 / 15
Speaker notes
Some countries let you dispute online, but writing creates a record. The country block explains the process where you live.
Disputes
If the answer is no
- Ask for the result and the reason in writing
- Where allowed, add a short statement to your report
- Complain to the regulator or free complaints body on your handout
- You don’t need to pay anyone to do this for you
Moraph for Good · Fluent · Credit reports and scores9 / 15
Speaker notes
Point to the complaint route in the country block.
Scores
How a score is built
- Calculated from what is on your report
- Different bureaus and models give different numbers
- Paying on time generally matters most
- Using a small share of your limits, and fewer new applications, generally help
Moraph for Good · Fluent · Credit reports and scores10 / 15
Speaker notes
Keep this general. Scoring models aren’t public and differ by country and bureau. Don’t quote numbers or ranges.
Rebuilding
Rebuilding takes time, not tricks
- Pay on time from now on; recent history counts
- Bring balances down well below the limits
- Apply for credit only when you need it
- Negative information drops off after a set time
Moraph for Good · Fluent · Credit reports and scores11 / 15
Speaker notes
The country block gives how long negative information stays where we could confirm it. If someone is struggling to pay, a hardship arrangement or free advice is better than missing payments.
Worth knowing
Nobody can legally remove accurate information for a fee.
Moraph for Good · Fluent · Credit reports and scores12 / 15
Speaker notes
Credit repair firms can only do what you can do yourself for free: dispute errors. Accurate information stays until its time is up.
Identity theft
If someone uses your name
- Accounts or checks you don’t recognize are warning signs
- Contact the lender and the credit bureaus straight away
- Ask about a fraud alert, freeze or ban on your report
- Report it, and keep a record of every call and letter
Moraph for Good · Fluent · Credit reports and scores13 / 15
Speaker notes
Each country has different tools for this. The country block names them.
Your next step
One thing this month
- Request your free report through the official route
- Read it line by line with the worksheet checklist
- Dispute anything that is wrong, in writing
- Set a reminder to check again
Moraph for Good · Fluent · Credit reports and scores14 / 15
Speaker notes
Ask people to tick their step on the worksheet privately.
Thank you
Questions?
- Take the handout and worksheet home
- Your country’s official routes are on the handout
- More free guides at moraph.org/commons
This kit, the worksheet and the handouts: moraph.org/commons/sessions/fluent/credit-reports-and-scores
Moraph for Good · Fluent · Credit reports and scores15 / 15
Speaker notes
Take questions, keeping answers general. Thank the host.