Equifax Commercial Information - Business Credit Report User Guide

**Summary Report View Now Available**

Returns the business name, address and business information for the legal entity which most closely matches your inquiry information as well as the legal name, if available.

Requestor ID - Displays the User ID of the person requesting the report.
Reference number - Identifies the report based on the number submitted by a user.
Report Date - Provides the date when the inquiry was made as recorded by Equifax.
File in database since - Provides the date the business file was first created within the Equifax database.
File Number / Subject Number - This is number assigned by Equifax to the business report.
File alert - Provides an alert displaying the most recent date on data received from the Superintendent of Bankruptcy such as a bankruptcy or lien (For details on the alert, see Information from the Superintendent of Bankruptcy section).

Additional business information and firmographics

This section includes firmographic information reported on this company, including other known tradestyles, employee size and sales volumes.

Other known tradestyles - Displays up to 10 additional names by which the business may be known.
Business Contact/Title - Provides up to 5 reported contact names for the business.
Incorporation number/ effective date - This is the date of the original filing of incorporation documents, along with the incorporation number assigned.
Employee size - Provides the approximate number of employees for the business.
Sales volume - Displays the estimated sales for the business.
SIC - This is the 4-digit number assigned to the business based on the industry classification. Displays up to 6 SIC codes.
NAICS - This is the 6-digit number assigned to the business based on industry classification. Displays up to 6 NAICS codes.

Score summary

This section shows an assessment of the risk level of the business with an overview of the scores available with definitions and the numeric value; detailed information is available by clicking on the hyperlink.

Report Highlights and Alerts

This section shows a summary of the key report components and an overall summary of the credit reference information. This includes the former delinquencies summary section.

Number of accounts reporting - Provides the details on the number of accounts or credit references are being reported on, within the business file.
Number of delinquencies/amount - Displays the total amount and number of accounts that are delinquent, as reported on this file.
Most severe status/date - Shows the most severe account status reported and the date it was reported.
Single highest credit 90 days, 13 months and all lines – shows the single highest credit reported to Equifax in the period indicated.
Credit limit 90 days, 13 months and all lines – indicates the total credit limit reported in the period indicated.
Number of charged off accounts/amount - Number of accounts reported with an overall status of charged-off and the total amount.
Largest charge off amount/date - This represents the largest single amount written off and the date on which this occurred, as reported on this file.
Total current credit exposure - Sums total outstanding balance or available credit on open and closed accounts to indicate the maximum credit exposure associated with the accounts in this credit report.
Total outstanding - Total outstanding amount to all creditors, as reported to Equifax.
Total current balance - Total current reported balance including any past due amount to all creditors.
Total past due – Total past due to all creditors, as reported to Equifax.
Collection - Displays the number of collection claim information reported by third party collection agencies, total amount of collection claims and the date of the last item reported
Legal Suits - Identifies the number of lawsuits, sometimes called statements of claim or writs, total amount of the lawsuits and the date of the last item reported.
Judgments - This is an order from the Court that places liability on the defendant's business. Number of lawsuits, sometimes called statements of claim or writs, total amount of the lawsuits and the date of the last item reported.
Returned Cheques - Provides the number of cheques returned as reported by contributing creditors, total amount of cheques returned, date of the last item reported.
Liens - Provides the number of liens reported, the total amount of the liens and the date of the most recent lien reported.
Bank report on file - This flag will let you know if we have conducted a bank report and the date on which it was performed. By clicking on the link, you can go directly to the banking information on file.
Corporate search on file - This flag will let you know if we have conducted a corporate search and the data on which it was performed. By clicking on the link, you can go directly to this section of the file.
Number of inquiries on file - This is the number of times a report on this business has been requested from Equifax in the past two years. The report dates, and inquirers are detailed in the Inquiries section.

Score details

Displays the definition, the numeric value and reason codes for each score appended to the business folder. Currently, the following decisioning tools are available with the Business Credit Report. Graphical View of Score Trend Now Available!

Credit Information Score (CI) - The Credit Information Score measures seven information elements that could appear in every Equifax credit report. This index helps you to determine if you will get paid. The higher the score, the higher the risk. **When Equifax has information on file from the Superintendent of Bankruptcy, the current CI score is not calculated. Instead, it is 'flagged' as a 70 to alert customers to consult the 'Information from the Superintendent of Bankruptcy' section of the report for the detailed information.
Credit Information (CI) Trend Graph - This graph plots the Credit Information Score for 9 quarters plus shows the current score. It is calculated as of the day you ordered the report. The graph allows you to see at a glance if the risk is decreasing, steady or increasing.
Payment Index (PI) - The Payment Index (PI) is a numeric measure of the businesses payment habits, and is calculated strictly on the distribution of the total owing amounts across the aging periods in the 90 days immediately preceding the day the report was ordered. The Payment Index ranges from 0 to 99. The closer the company scores to zero, the better it is paying the creditors reporting to file. A zero score would indicate all reporting creditors are paid within terms. A score of 99 indicates that creditors are being paid in the third period past due or longer. This index is similar to days-beyond-terms.
Payment Index Trend Graph - This graph plots the Payment Index for 9 quarters plus shows the current score. The graph allows you to see at a glance if the business pays bills slowly, steady or is improving.
Commercial Delinquency Score (CDS) Risk Class - CDS Risk Class is a less detailed view of the CDS score, but retains its predictive nature, permitting you to determine potential for delinquency within 12 months; returns a risk classification of 1 - 5 for at-a-glance view of risk level for CDS Risk Class.
Business Failure Risk Score (BFRS) Risk Class - BFRS Risk Class is a less detailed view of the BFRS score, but retains its predictive nature, permitting you to determine the potential for business cessation in the next 12 months.

Industry trade summary

This section summarizes the credit references that are reported on the business file. The cumulative summary is provided for the periods of 90 days, 13 months and all references. All references standard is 60 months. Also, the Payment Index (PI) score is provided based on the indicated period, the number of credit references included and the high credit as reported for any accounts listed within the noted period. The total owing, current, period 1, period 2 and period 3 are included.

Industry trade detail

Tabular view now available! This section provides specific information about the business' creditors. This information is updated frequently and is reported as it appears on the creditors' accounts receivable statements. In some instances, there may be disputes or credits on the account of which Equifax is not aware.
Those contributing creditors providing their trade information can select to have their industry and company name, or just the industry in which they do business to appear in the creditor information. Some abbreviations you might see are MFR-Manufacturer, WHL-Wholesaler, CONTR-Contractor or SVCS-Services.

Date Reported - This is the date the trade reference was reported to Equifax.
Terms - Provides the payment terms as agreed upon with the creditor.
Pay Habits - Displays the payment description on a specific account.
Status - Current status of the account in review.
Account opened - Date the account was opened by the business with the creditor.
Date closed - Date an account was closed with the creditor.
Total past due - The total delinquent dollars (not written-off) on open and closed accounts.
Write off amount/date - Amount of an account written off and the date on which this occurred.
Original credit limit/date - Displays the original credit limit provided by the creditor when the account was opened, and the date the credit limit was set.
High credit/date - The highest credit amount granted and the date it was reported.
Total balance - Total reported balance, including owed but not yet due, and all past due amounts.
Current balance - Total current balance including any past due amount.
Period 1, 2, 3 - The dollar amount that is past due for the creditor's 1st, 2nd, and 3rd periods. Period terms vary by creditor, for example, a period could represent 7, 15, or 30 day terms.

Quarterly industry payment trend

This table details the numbers provided in the Score detail section, with respect to the CI and PI. The information displayed in each row of this table represents a calendar quarter (i.e. 3 months), and lets you see any fluctuation in payments over a period of 9 quarters.

Payment Index (PI) - A dollar-weighted indicator of a business's current payment performance based on the total number of payment experiences in the Equifax Commercial database in the 90 day period that the index represents.
Credit Information Score - An index built to provide a credit risk score using 7 factors in the credit report such as years on file, current payment index, number of trade payment references, etc., calculated every quarter.
Number of References - Provides the number of trade references reported on the business by contributing creditors Equifax each quarter.
Risk Trend Numbers - Total Account, Current, Period 1, Period 2, Period 3 - Represents the total amount outstanding to the creditors reporting in a particular quarter. It is a consolidated aging of the accounts.

Returned cheque details

This section provides information on returned cheques, as supplied by contributing creditors. The Information displays the date printed on the cheque as the payee received it, the amount of the cheque written and the bank/ creditor that appears on the cheque.

Reason - Provides the reason why the returned cheque did not clear. The predominant reason is NSF (not sufficient funds).
Status - Display the status of the cheque as of the reported date. The status is NOT updated or tracked beyond the Reported date.

Collection detail

Provides detailed collection information reported by third party collection agencies. You will find the date the claim was reported to Equifax, as well as the date the claim was placed with the third party collection agency, and where applicable, the date the claim was paid and/or closed. When an account is listed as closed, the usual reasons are that it is paid, settled or abandoned.

Creditor/Debtor - Outlines the creditor who placed the business's account for collection and the debtor name against which the claim was initiated .as well as the status of the claim, which is updated regularly.
Claim Amount - The amount of the claim reported by the collection agency.
Amount Paid - Payment made by the business or returned goods in an attempt to settle the debt.
Account balance - Represents the balance on the account remaining to be paid.

Legal details

This section contains details on legal suits, judgments and other legal information.

Legal Suits - Indicates the commencement of a legal action by a plaintiff against the debtor's business.
Judgments - This is an order from the Court that places liability on the defendant's business. The plaintiff has proven his case in Court. A default judgment is similar but indicates that the defendant did not file a defense to the action against him within the Court's prescribed time.
Other Legal Information - Displays the legal items important to the business, which are not normally considered derogatory and do not affect the business' credit indices (CI/PI) with Equifax. Information could be legal suits, garnishments, seizures of assets or judgments already on file.
Reported - Date when the legal information was reported to Equifax.
Claim date/number - Date the legal item was filed with the Court or in the case of a judgment, it is the date that the Court rendered its verdict. The claim number is what the Court uses to identify the legal document.
Defendant - This is the name of the business, as it appears in the Court documents. It is possible that a Court case can be dismissed if the proper legal name of the defendant does not appear on the documents.
Plaintiff - This is the name of the person, enterprise or legal entity who has commenced proceedings.
Amount - In a legal suit (statement of claim, writ), this is the amount the plaintiff seeks. In a judgment or default judgment, the amount shown is what the Court has ordered the defendant to pay the plaintiff.
Reason - Posting of a general reason for the plaintiff's action against the defendant in the Court documents such as money owed, goods sold and delivered or contract.
Court - Displays the type of Court where the action is being considered. Provincial dollar limits and other factors determine where an action is filed.

Corporate search and additional business information

This section contains information obtained from the provincial ministry, by corporate search, principal interview or other sources of data. Each segment will indicate reported or verified. If verified, the data is obtained from a verifiable source. If reported, this is information provided by principal interview.

Registration number/type - Date the business filed its incorporation documents with either the Federal or Provincial government, along with the registration number assigned.
Jurisdiction location/type - Indicates a province or federal registration.
Effective date - Date in which the registration information took effect.
Business contact, title and shares owned - Provides the main contact information for the company and the title of the individuals names on the file and when available the shares owned.
Ownership/source, Property covered/address, Property value/evaluation date - Shows the ownership of the property described, as well as the property value and the date it was evaluated.
Employee size and Sales volume - Represents the number of employees and sales volumes for the business.

Information from the Superintendent of Bankruptcy

This section returns information detailing voluntary assignments in bankruptcy, involuntary assignments, receiverships and notices of intentions to file a proposal. Information on the business is kept on file for 5 years.

Estate Information represents the company information as it is filed. This segment will provide you with details such as the assigned estate number, creditor meeting date if established, as well as the discharge date.
Court Information provides you with the details of the court where the bankruptcy was filed. Important information also includes the file number and date which provides you with the information you require if you are seeking more information from the court on the details.
Receiver Information provides you with detail on the assigned receiver.
Trustee Information provides you with detail on the assigned trustee.

Banking report detail

For a fee, Equifax contacts a business' bank to obtain information. A short time after we collect this information we add it to our database to share with all report users. Within this section, we will provide details from the bank that was contacted, the number of accounts, lines of credit and loans, as well as a summary indication of the balances for each.

Reported - The date on which the bank report was completed.
Open Date - The date the account, credit line, or loan was opened with the creditor.
Number of accounts, credit lines, loans - Specifies the number of each account type associated with the business, as reported by the bank.
Account type, loan type and credit line type - provides details on the type account, for example, savings account, checking account, operating line of credit etc.
Balance - This is the balance in the current account of the business as of the date the bank was interviewed. Some banks report a specific figure, while other report ranges. Equifax will present this data as it is reported.
Returned cheques information includes the number, frequency and reason for the returned cheques.
Rating - this is the rating on a loan or line of credit as provided by the bank.
Secured By - Displays the item used as security against the line of credit extended to the business such as Machinery and Equipment, Accounts Receivable, etc.
Authorized Amount - This is the amount the creditor has authorized this business to borrow for operating purposes.
Utilization - Amount the business borrowed against its line of credit.
Loan Details - This section will provide you with the number of loans, their type and rating information, as well as the terms, balances and if the loan is secured, as provided by the lender in question.

Liens detail

This section details the different liens associated with the business file. Provided are the lien number as provided by the registry, the pertinent amounts, lien period, collateral description and any renewal or amendment information. Up to 8 additional debtors may be listed in this section.

Other files included

Returns any additional information that may relate to the business such as former or changes of address, phone number, etc.

Inquiries

Provides a list of recent inquiries requested on the business within the last 24 months.

File comments

This section will display any comments specific to the business made by the business owner or creditors grantors. All comments are dated for reference.


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