[[File:Consumer_Law_and_Debt_-_Credit_Reports_and_Credit_Ratings.jpg|thumb|275px|right| link=| <span style="font-size:50%;">Image via www.istockphoto.com</span>]]Each institution that a consumer obtains credit from has its own details of the consumer’s history with that institution. A person’s credit record is basically the accumulation of their entire credit history. Historically, that information was kept at a local credit reporting agency, called a credit bureau. Credit bureaus and other reporting agencies provided credit report information to creditors for a fee. More recently, credit reporting services have been consolidated into national reporting services, including [https://www.consumer.equifax.ca/home/en_ca Equifax] and [https://www.transunion.ca TransUnion]. These are not government agencies.