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A couple of columns ago I made the point that the credit industry had to do "what it said on the tin" ie by making credit easy to understand! Conversely, "Joe Public" has to accept its share of the responsibility of borrowing more and more as it uses credit to finance a modern day lifestyle and accept the consequences of a spiraling debt problem.

I think it is a fair assumption that we, the great British public, understand that if you don't pay your mortgage, your home is at risk. Recent figures from the Bank of England show that home owners have borrowed 198bn using mortgage equity withdrawal since the start of 2000, encouraged by rising house prices and low interest rates.

Products such as the Experian CheckExpert service - which I am sure is a number of similar products from different suppliers - can help the ill-informed borrower to overcome the complexities of credit scoring, by helping to maintain a "perfect" score. Maintaining a perfect score is a bit like maintaining healthy teeth and gums, the analogy being that instead of brushing twice a day, you have to pay your credit commitments on time, every time, and if you miss a payment, then you end up with toothache!

So whilst flagrant breaches of meeting commitments such as a CCJ or missed mortgage payment, will clearly upset a person's score, more people need to understand that a missed credit card or store card repayment can also have a damaging effect.

In the past, credit scores have of course been shrouded in mystery. Credit checks which are published, easy to follow, and transparent ensure we all understand our financial responsibilities and help us manage our commitments by putting the information under our noses.

Instead of sending for a credit report when credit is refused, the CreditExpert system, reminds the subscriber of a change in the data file. The Experian service is paid for as an up front fee which offers peace of mind, and an insight into how a credit file is being accessed by the world at large.

An alert is sent every time the credit record is changed which includes any access to the record. This means the borrower has a better chance of being aware of what is happening to his or her credit file, and can be in front of managing a situation before it gets to the point of upsetting the credit score - a much more positive outcome, for borrower and creditor alike.

So the question then has to be, how is this going to be communicated to borrowers? Does the strap line of "your home is at risk if you do not keep up payments" need to be extended to "your home is at risk if you do not keep up payments and we are entitled to pursue you for 12 years for any shortfall in the amount owed to us from the date of your first failure to make a payment". I know it doesn't quite have the same ring - but it's a lot more sobering - and means we, the great British public, will have a more informed understanding of what it means to default on a mortgage.

Promoting greater awareness of how "perfect" scores can be maintained, and helping us all manage our commitments instead of penalising us for missing a payment, is something the credit industry should be singing from the rooftops as a major innovation in customer service.