Survey stresses awareness of credit ratings

Chinese people should improve their awareness of credit ratings, which may influence their daily life with regard to bank loans, credit cards, job applications and even trips by rail and air, according to an industry report.

Only 10 percent Chinese people understand the influence of the national credit system while 25 percent never check their credit rating, according to a survey by New York-listed Rong360 Jianpu Technology.

Personal credit reports have become people’s “economy IDs” covering various parts of daily life. More than half of people check their credit for bank loans and credit card applications, over 20 percent for visa and job applications while 5.7 percent check each other’s credit rating before marriage, according to the survey.

In 2019, personal credit ratings were checked 2.4 billion times with 6.57 million checks every day, according to the central bank, which offers each person free check reports twice a year.

However, about 25.2 percent people never check credit reports and only 10 percent people understand credit check mechanism and usage, according to the survey. 

People with bad credit records may face problems with finance services and job applications. Sometimes, they are forbidden to take high-speed trains and planes.

Regular credit inquiries help to understand people’s credit status, which can avoid some unexpected events that lead to damage to credit without people knowing about it, Rong360 said.