Credit referencing agency partners with brokerage

CheckMyFile could have just shot themself in the foot. They will now be the least preferred credit reference agency for mortgage brokers across the UK. It will be interesting to see how this affects the use of their reports going forward.

CheckMyFile offer brokers the ability to refer clients to them, to obtain their credit report information, an important part of the application process. Their tie-up with Haysto suggests that clients referred by brokers to CheckMyFile are then sold on to another firm, taking business away from the very firms that feed them. It’s a worrying arrangement and will certainly anger brokers who sit in the adverse and specialist market.

This feels like a significant “slap in the face” to mortgage brokers who refer clients. The new referral arrangement with Haysto will certainly make us reevaluate our current partnerships and explore other options.

CheckMyFile, a key player in obtaining credit reports, has partnered with Haysto for mortgage advice. This raises several alarm bells for me.
Firstly, Haysto explicitly stated back in 2021 that they don't handle buy-to-let, leaving landlords referred by Checkmyfile potentially stranded.
Secondly, mortgage brokers, who rely on Checkmyfile for credit reports, may feel undermined by this partnership, with Haysto looming in the background. Third, Haysto specialises in adverse credit, potentially steering landlords and other borrowers with good credit towards higher broker fees possibly? Checkmyfile lacks transparency about this partnership, including Haysto's limitations and raises serious questions about Checkmyfile's commitment to serving its clients and referral partners.

CheckMyFile receive a lot of referrals from mortgage brokers and now many of those will be considering if they will to continue referring with the risk of their clients being referred to a Haysto. The changes from CheckMyFile last year frustrated many and this will be another smack in the face of the broker community.

This takes away the unbiased attraction that Checkmyfile had. I personally recommend all my clients use them, but I won’t be now if their data is then being sold on to Haysto.

This has to be the worst case of biting the hand that feeds you on record. To sell on the details of clients to another broker is a real slap in the face. I’m sure that when other brokers realise this they will stop referring to Checkmyfile. This has to be an ill-thought out plan, surely no company would do this to their own clients. This could be about to backfire in a very big way.