What Hurts Your AECB Score: Bounced Cheques, Utilisation, and the Telecom Bill You Forgot

AECB doesn't publish factor weightings, so nobody outside the bureau can tell you a bounced cheque costs exactly X points. What the file structure and lender behaviour make clear is the ranking of damage. Here it is, worst first.

Tier 1: Defaults and bounced cheques

A default (typically a payment 90+ days overdue) is the single worst entry on a UAE credit file. Bounced cheques sit right beside it; four or more in under a year can floor a score at 300. Failed direct debits are recorded in the same family of missed-commitment events.

Two things matter after the fact. First, settle and get a clearance letter from the bank. Second, confirm AECB has updated the entry from "default" to "settled"; the line stays on your file for years, but that status change is what lenders look for. If it doesn't update, dispute it.

Tier 2: Late payments at 30, 60, 90 days

Your report shows 24 months of payment history per facility, with delays bucketed at 30, 60, and 90 days. A single 30-day late payment hurts; a pattern of them hurts more; and each escalation bucket is worse than the last. Recency matters: a six-month-old late payment weighs more than a four-year-old one.

Tier 3: Credit card utilisation

Utilisation is the share of your total card limits you're using, and the working rule is to keep it under 30%. The mechanical detail most people miss: AECB sees your statement balance, not your real-time balance. If you charge AED 18,000 to a AED 20,000-limit card and pay it in full two days after the statement date, the bureau still recorded 90% utilisation that month. Pay down before the statement cuts.

Tier 4: Inquiry clusters

Every credit application triggers a hard inquiry that stays visible on your file. One or two spread across a year is normal. Three card applications in the same month reads as financial stress to underwriters. Space applications a quarter apart. (Checking your own report is a soft inquiry and costs nothing; here's how to pull it.)

Tier 5: Telecom and utility defaults

Since 2022, AECB ingests alternative data: your monthly salary, e& and du telecom bills, and water and electricity bills from DEWA and other providers. A postpaid phone bill left unpaid when you switched providers is one of the most common surprise entries on expat files. Put every recurring biller on auto-pay.

Tier 6: Quiet structural drags

• Closing old cards shrinks your total limit (raising utilisation) and shortens your history.

• Court-ordered financial obligations are reported and visible.

• A thin file isn't damage, but it caps you, which is relevant if you're building credit from zero as a new expat.

What doesn't hurt your score

Savings balances, investments, salary level per se (it's recorded, not scored as "too low"), marital status, education, and checking your own report.

Model the damage before it happens

Want to see roughly what a missed payment or a utilisation spike would do to your number? Our free AECB Credit Score Simulator lets you test scenarios. And if a bank has already declined you, the cut-off logic is covered in minimum AECB scores for cards, loans, and mortgages.

For the full picture of how the score is built and how fast it moves, start with the pillar guide: Your AECB Score Decoded.

Sources and References

• Al Etihad Credit Bureau, Credit Score page and FAQ (etihadbureau.ae)

• UAE Government portal, credit report overview (u.ae)

• Federal Law No. 6 of 2010 on Credit Information, as amended (uaelegislation.gov.ae)

• Central Bank of the UAE, Consumer Protection Regulation (centralbank.ae)

This article is for general information and does not constitute financial advice.