Notice of Correction: add context to your credit file

Sometimes the numbers on your credit file don’t tell the full story. You have the right to add a personal explanation. This is known as a Notice of Correction.

What is a Notice of Correction?

A Notice of Correction (NOC) is a short statement (no more than 200 words) that you can add to your credit report. It’s your chance to explain a missed payment, a temporary drop in income, or anything else that might affect how lenders interpret your credit history.

Why add a Notice of Correction?

When lenders make credit decisions, there are a number of factors they take into consideration. Such as credit score, debt-to-income ratio, affordability, income and expenditure. However, it’s not just about numbers. Lenders also look at your credit history and can interpret the context behind it. This means they may consider events or patterns that explain why your credit looks the way it does.

While a NOC doesn’t change your credit score, it does add context. This context could very well improve your chances of being approved for credit – particularly if your credit report is being reviewed manually.

Here are a few examples of when a NOC might help:

You missed payments due to illness or redundancy
You were a victim of fraud
You were linked financially to someone else whose credit history affects yours (read more in our blog post on financial associations and how to remove these)

How to add a Notice of Correction

In the UK, you can request to add a NOC through the three main credit reference agencies:

You’ll need to:

View your credit report
Identify the entry you want to explain
Contact the credit reference agency with your statement

They’ll review it (to make sure it’s factual and appropriate), then add it to your file. It will then be visible to any lender who runs a credit check.

A NOC can be removed from your credit report at any time regardless of whether the situation described in the notice has changed. You will need to directly contact the credit reference agency (via email, post or phone) that holds the NOC and request that it be removed.

What should you say?

The NOC statement should have a maximum of 200 words. Therefore the statement should be clear, concise and factual.

The whole story matters

Mistakes can happen and life circumstances can change. A Notice of Correction (NOC) gives you the chance to add your voice and provide lenders with a fuller picture. It could help strengthen your application and improve how your credit report is viewed.