When a person to whom you are, or have been financially linked makes a credit application, a lender may search your credit file to help inform their decision to grant or reject that credit. This is how a financial associate search could be show on your credit report.

This does not mean that you have made an application for credit or that any credit will be held jointly by you and your financial associate. It means only that the record will then show that your information was considered when your financial associate made the application.

Financial Associates - Why?

A lender can use information from any financial associate of a credit applicant, to better inform their decision when deciding to grant or reject a credit application. This is because an associates finance can often affect your ability to manage credit.

You Are No Longer Linked To A Person - What To Do...

If you are no longer linked to a past financial associate (eg; an ex partner) you can contact the 3 credit reference agencies and request that you be "Unlinked" from that person. It is a good idea to do this at the earliest opportunity, ensuring that a past associates ability to manage credit does not negatively affect your applications.