In the UK you invariably rent through an agent who has access to credit reporting, the cost of which is passed on to both you and the landlord. If you're self employed or a company director then there are a few other things you have to pay for, £45 to look at your balance sheet, for example, which is freely available to anyone else.

I know a few landlords and despite the efforts they take to find the perfect tenant, they all have tales to tell of people who passed all the tests with flying colours but soon turned out to be a costly disaster.