We sure do, it seems like a natural progression of a free market. The corporations want to know our worth before they deal with us.
I'm speaking from a Swedish perspective but for a long time already we had these "credit checks", where a company can quickly order a check on a customer to see if they're eligible for paying via invoice, or installments. And the consumer gets a letter in the mail notifying them of each credit check and who requested it. They basically see if you have any large debts, and what your reported income is.
But now some companies have gone even further and actually invented a credit score for us, that you have to pay them a subscription fee to see.
All this is an organic progression driven by corporations who simply want to know if consumers are worth their time and risk.
the entire first world has credit checks. china is doing behaviour checks
> the entire first world has credit checks
No it doesn't.
give me a country in the first world that doesnt have credit checks
France
interesting. you dont get a credit rating but you have an effective credit check. nobody is giving money out to strangers hoping itll get paid back, theyre all checking your credit history - a mortgage is credit, mortgage defaults still count against your borrowing ability. Its a credit check in all but name
No. Landlords for example cannot request that information.
Actually same in Sweden. I never thought about it until now.
It's mostly for luxury items and services that they request credit checks.
Of course a landlord can still request you send in proof of employment and your salary specification.