For many under‑40s, it doesn’t just feel harder to get ahead than it was for their parents, it genuinely is. You can be in a “good” job, paying rent, juggling bills, doing what you think is responsible, and still find that one missed payment haunts your financial record for years.

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A late phone bill, a missed Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) instalment, or an overdraft you didn’t clear can become long‑term red flags on your credit file. Those marks don’t just make borrowing slightly more expensive, they can lock people out of mainstream credit altogether and push them towards high-cost options like overdrafts, high-interest credit cards and subprime lenders to get through the month.

We’ve quietly built a system that punishes ordinary mistakes for years, while failing to reward everyday........

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