Level of credit checks up by more than half on last year
DURING the boom it was ignored but these days old-fashioned credit checking is back in vogue.
Public interest in searching judgment records to check debt histories increased by more than half year-on-year in 2011, according to Registry Trust's annual statistics.
In 2011 the trust received some 10,484 requests to check its Irish register, up 50pc on 2010, itself a record year.
Registry Trust is the parent company of Irish Judgments, which collates judgment information in Ireland. Judgments are seen as a key indicator of creditworthiness in lending decisions. The number of judgments registered in the Four Courts alone rose 13.8pc to a record 8,159.
As well as these, the Registry Trust says there were thousands of judgments issued in district and circuit courts during the year but not selected for registration by plaintiffs.
Irish Judgments chairman Malcolm Hurlston said: "In 2011 in Ireland we received more requests per month than we did in the entire year of 2008.
"There is an understandable clamour for sensible lending procedures which the Central Bank is actively promoting."
He also criticised the Courts Service decision to restrict access to judgments recorded at district and circuit courts from late 2010, calling it "a hazard to responsible lending and borrowing at this critical time".
- Peter Flanagan
Irish Independent
