MSE News: New totally free way to get your Experian Credit Report

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  • teffers
    teffers Posts: 698
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    Just to give an example of how strange/ridiculous/confusing/pointless credit scores can be, I have 3x different scores all from Experian.

    All scores are within a 7 day period during which no changes took place:

    BarclayCard Experian score = 853
    MSE Credirt Club Experian score = 861
    Experian Credit Matcher score = 933

    Maybe I'm missing something especially as I'm easily confused :D
  • sonstream
    sonstream Posts: 133
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    teffers wrote: »
    Just to give an example of how strange/ridiculous/confusing/pointless credit scores can be, I have 3x different scores all from Experian.

    All scores are within a 7 day period during which no changes took place:

    BarclayCard Experian score = 853
    MSE Credirt Club Experian score = 861
    Experian Credit Matcher score = 933

    Maybe I'm missing something especially as I'm easily confused :D

    The likely reason you have different scores from each product is....

    BarclayCard Experian score = 853 updates once every 60 days
    MSE Credirt Club Experian score = 861 updates once every 30 days
    Experian Credit Matcher score = 933 updates once every 30 days

    plus whatever address information you have listed with each

    so depending on when you logged into each they will more likely show different scores :)
  • RedDwarf82
    RedDwarf82 Posts: 178
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    sonstream wrote: »
    plus whatever address information you have listed with each
    Plus how the address information you input in the website:
    - Gets modified when stored in Barclays database (because the database doesn't accept commas, or it has a bug or whatever)
    - Gets modified when sent from Barclays to Experian (because the format to send to Experian doesn't accept the format in which is stored in the Barclays database)
    - Gets modified when Experian reads it (because somebody created a constant sized array and the whole address doesn't fill)
    - Gets modified when Experian parses it (because the Experian parser supposes any number at the start is the house number, not a flat number, or whatever)
    ....

    It's not just that the credit score is random/meaningless. The information lenders receive is hidden from you so it could also be anything and we can just *hope* it's similar to the truth and/or what Credit Expert/MSE report.
  • onthego
    onthego Posts: 66
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    MSE_Dan_L wrote: »
    Hi onthego

    We've had a few users raise this with us. It seems to be a problem where the info your provide to MSE is then matched up with Experian on your credit report.

    Short-term the best way to raise this is via the 'need some help' button within your credit report, which'll flag this over to Experian.

    MSE's and Experian's techies are aware of this and are looking into how it can be prevented from showing.


    Thanks for the reply, sorry I've only just seen it.
    I think it's because I've lived at my current address for three separate periods with different addresses in between, and the system was obviously not designed to cope with that. Should be an easy fix for a programmer I would think. I truly hope this is just an MSE display issue and has not affected what credit I've been offered from lenders in the past, that would explain a lot though! :)
  • teffers
    teffers Posts: 698
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    sonstream wrote: »
    The likely reason you have different scores from each product is....

    BarclayCard Experian score = 853 updates once every 60 days
    MSE Credirt Club Experian score = 861 updates once every 30 days
    Experian Credit Matcher score = 933 updates once every 30 days

    plus whatever address information you have listed with each

    so depending on when you logged into each they will more likely show different scores :)

    I see what you're saying but each site gives a score 'generation date' all within a week of each other. However, if they're just picking a random date within that 30/60 day cycle, then I guess that would explain it.

    As for the address details, here's me thinking they are actually just looking at my Experian credit reference and not adding in any of source site's inconsistencies ... anyway, thanks for the possible explanations, much appreciated.
  • RedDwarf82
    RedDwarf82 Posts: 178
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    teffers wrote: »
    As for the address details, here's me thinking they are actually just looking at my Experian credit reference

    There is not such a thing as a "Experian credit reference". "Experian, generate me a credit score (same thing for reports) for the person with name "X" who has lived in "Y" and "Z" during these time periods, please." is all that happens.

    Now Experian checks what information it has about that person on those addresses and from the information it *finds* (different to what it *has*) in its database it generates the score/report. It you happen to have a a £20K debt in a credit card registered in "Flat A, 19, Random Street" and you ask for credit or try to get a credit score providing as your address "19A, Random Street" Experian may well fail to notice that credit card is from the person asking for a score or credit and give you a different score (or make the lender accept instead of reject an application for a mortgage) than had it noticed they are the same address.
  • onthego
    onthego Posts: 66
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    MSE_Dan_L wrote: »
    Hi onthego

    We've had a few users raise this with us. It seems to be a problem where the info your provide to MSE is then matched up with Experian on your credit report.

    Short-term the best way to raise this is via the 'need some help' button within your credit report, which'll flag this over to Experian.

    MSE's and Experian's techies are aware of this and are looking into how it can be prevented from showing.


    Experian have told me that I need to delete my current address on MSE, only leave it on there the first time I lived there. But does that not mean lying? As I do currently live there? If I delete the most recent one, then it looks like I live at my previous address, which I don't. Also I've been on the electoral roll there on the different times I've lived there, if I delete some of the times I've lived there, this won't match up any more will it? If this is a real problem at their end and not an MSE display issue, maybe this is actually why I've struggled to get credit in the past despite managing my finances well. !!!!!!. I will just have to wait until I move house and hopefully the problem will disappear then. Another two month wait before I can change bank then!
  • MHOWARD_2
    MHOWARD_2 Posts: 58 Forumite
    I tried to sign up for this but failed verification. If asked me for my account number starting and ending with the number zero, I have no account starting and ending with these numbers.
    I still can get an experian credit report though.
  • RedDwarf82
    RedDwarf82 Posts: 178
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    onthego wrote: »
    Experian have told me that I need to delete my current address on MSE, only leave it on there the first time I lived there. But does that not mean lying? As I do currently live there? If I delete the most recent one, then it looks like I live at my previous address, which I don't. Also I've been on the electoral roll there on the different times I've lived there, if I delete some of the times I've lived there, this won't match up any more will it? If this is a real problem at their end and not an MSE display issue, maybe this is actually why I've struggled to get credit in the past despite managing my finances well. !!!!!!. I will just have to wait until I move house and hopefully the problem will disappear then. Another two month wait before I can change bank then!

    Exactly! And this is the **standard** way Experian behaves. Instead of fixing their address matching algorithm they keep asking people to change the addresses they submit to them. Then when you do and you start seeing the "right" information they tell you the problem is fixed.
    The problem is NOT fixed. Now you see the right information... but when you tell to the lenders the truth they will still see the wrong information.

    But since you can't see what the lenders see you can't prove this. So when you complain to the Ombudsman, the FCA or the Steering Committee On Reciprocity they ignore you supposing that Experian is saying the truth and the problem has been fixed.

    IMHO this is even a case of misselling since they are selling Credit Expert as a tool to fix what the lenders see... but you can't use it for that purpose.
  • MSE_Dan_L
    MSE_Dan_L Posts: 655 MSE Staff
    MHOWARD wrote: »
    I tried to sign up for this but failed verification. If asked me for my account number starting and ending with the number zero, I have no account starting and ending with these numbers.
    I still can get an experian credit report though.

    Hi MHoward

    The Credit Club verification questions are required to confirm your identity and are taken based on information in your credit report based on the information you provided (your name, date of birth, and address). For fraud protection reasons, Experian doesn’t share any detail about individual accounts with us.

    When we launched Credit Club, we had a few similar queries to yours, but when we investigated with Experian, we found that the questioned accounts did actually appear on the individual's credit files.

    If you’re certain that this account isn't linked to your credit history in any way, then it might be worth going through your full Experian report and checking that there isn't anything showing there which shouldn't

    I do understand that this may be a little frustrating, but these checks are in place to prevent fraudulent access to your personal details so it isn’t something we can override.
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