Last week the Comet reported on news that Kingston people fared poorly in a credit ratings league table, despite the relative wealth of the area.

A survey, carried out by online credit rating company Equifax, identified Kingston as the 654th town out of 919 surveyed in terms of overall ratings.

This week the Comet looks at two Kingston residents with very similar lifestyles, spending habits and backgrounds and turned up some interesting results in terms of their ratings.

Credit ratings are a mystery to many, but are most likely the reason you are turned down for a credit card, cannot get a mortgage or have even been unable to get a store card.

Several factors influence someone's rating. The first, and simplest of these, is being on the electoral roll for more than three years doing so boosts your credit rating.

There are then several other categories to consider. Lenders like you to have several credit sources and, if possible, a mortgage all of which should be paid back on time, every time.

County Court judgements for non-payment are not looked upon kindly, nor are too many applications for credit cards (more than two in six months).

Credit reports also give information about fraud investigations and details of homes you may have left with outstanding bills, all of which could dent your prospects of getting a loan.

Our two subjects live on the same street in Kingston. Neither are home owners and neither have any dependants.

Go to www.myequifax.co.uk to find out about your credit rating.

James Spartan (name altered), 24, has an annual income of £15,500. He has no credit cards, no mortgage and almost no chance of getting credit. Rating: 243 out of 900 very poor.

This was the first time Mr Spartan had dared to look at his credit rating, and he was not surprised by what he saw.

He was, however, surprised to discover that just one or two issues have had an apparently massive impact on his credit rating.

Mr Spartan has had no credit cards since his last one in 2002 was cancelled due to late payments. That debt is now cleared, but lenders like to see a steady flow of credit and repayment and the word "default" at the bottom of the report sets off alarm bells.

No County Court judgements, thankfully.

The good people at Capital One Services were good enough to check credit details before turning Mr Spartan down for a credit card application he has made three applications in the past six months, all of which have been refused.

He said: "I had no idea credit card applications could count against you, but apparently they do. If I had known, I wouldn't have done so many.

"It is quite scary to see the amount of information people have on you, but it is quite helpful too and has helped me identify areas where I could improve."

Mark Robertson (name altered), 27, has an annual income of £24,000. He has one credit card in use and several with £0 balance. He has no mortgage but has several accounts, all in good order. Rating: 420 out of 900 good.

With the second highest rating possible, money lenders are positively queuing up to give Mr Robertson money.

In the words of the report: "Your score is highly predictive that you would be a good candidate for credit. You are above the average for UK borrowers."

His high score centres largely around the fact that he has never been late with a credit card repayment and has an account with Telewest which has also never been late.

He has been on the electoral roll at his current address for just two years, bringing his score down slightly.

When the time comes for Mr Robertson to get a mortgage, his credit rating will probably shoot up into the excellent category if he keeps up payments.

He said: "I wasn't surprised I had a good rating. I pay everything by direct debit so there is no chance of me forgetting to pay my bills and I never stretch beyond my means.

"I use my credit card sparingly and only for things like holidays, which I know I can pay back over a couple of months."

drankin@london.newsquest.co.uk