Credit scoring

aulora

I have checked my Experian credit report and they give me a score of 708, which is described as "Poor". I need, I think, a score of over 720 for the score to become "Fair". One of the reasons for my "poor" score as identified by Experian is that I am not on the electoral roll (the other is that I have high outstanding "debt" other than my mortgage, which is actually Hire Purchase for my car! - about £7,000 - perhaps I should be walking the forty miles between my home and my work!).

I can't do anything about the car payments just now but I have recently sent off the form to register on the electoral roll, so I should appear on the roll very soon: does anyone know how much this will help my credit score? A little? A lot? Diddly squat?

Thanks in advance of any replies.

Citysam

Hello! I don't know much about this myself, but I am in the same boat as you - classed as only having a low end fair score on Experian and I couldnt work out why.

Firstly, several people on here have said that the score they quote is meaningless as different potential lenders use their own scoring system anyway.

Secondly, I applied for a Equifax report and was suprised in the difference! Unfortunately there was a default that I had forgotten about which didnt show on Experian (Luckily it should be off the end of this month), and other things which I hadnt even remembered I had - like a short lived credit card (all cleared at the time so its not impacting on anything).

So I think you should get one from equifax as well - there is a free trial and you can get money back from topcashback. And the good thing is, unlike Experian, you can have instant access to the report after answering a couple of security questions :T

Sorry I couldnt offer any proper help - good luck!

YorkshireBoy

aulora wrote: »

...I should appear on the roll very soon:

Sometime during December (monthly updates are suspended at this time of year due to the annual canvas of properties to compile the register).

does anyone know how much this will help my credit score? A little? A lot? Diddly squat?

It will help. It will help more if you have a traceable ER history at previous addresses over the last 3/6 years.

BTW, stop wasting money on meaningless and worthless CRA scores. They're only of any use if Experian et al start issuing cards. Until then keep your money in your pocket.

aulora

Thanks to the two replies so far - it's helpful. Yes, I know different credit companies will have their own scoring system, but presumably they look at the information supplied by the likes of Experian, though they may score more, (or less) leniently.

I think you are probably right YorkshireBoy, but I had to know what was on the report that a potential mortgage provider would see - I think Experian and the likes at least give you a 'ball park figure', so to speak - if your rating is bad for them it is going to be bad for most lenders, I would think.

Thanks very much for your comments - very helpful, and something for me to think about

Citysam

Interestingly, my mortgage shows (and was searched) on Experian not Equifax - and its with the Chelsea.

(lucky eh as the default is showing on Equifax and not Experian!).

YorkshireBoy

aulora wrote: »

... Experian and the likes at least give you a 'ball park figure', so to speak

Precisely my point! You're paying good money for a "ball park figure".

- if your rating is bad for them it is going to be bad for most lenders, I would think.

Experian et al don't know:

How much you earn
How long you've been with your bank
How long you've been with your employer
Your job title
Whether you're salaried or hourly paid
Whether you're managerial or a manual worker
Whether you work full or part time (indeed whether you work or not!)
The number of dependants you have
Your marital status
What your partner earns


All they know (in the main) is:

The number of accounts you have
The available credit you have
The debt you have
How well you've serviced those debts
The number of searches you've had
Where you live
Whether you're on the electoral roll or not


You get the picture?

aulora

Yes, YorkshireBoy, I get the picture: the credit report is only a small part of what a lender will take into account, only part of a bigger picture among all the other things you mention.

So, I do see your point that these reports are not worth chucking good money at - and I won't chuck a lot of money at it; but I do need to know what info they hold on these reports and what "sort" of rating they put on this info (they may not have the answers to all the other questions, such as my employment status etc.. but I do! So at least I can have the whole picture before I go looking to remortgage after a hefty fixed term rate, which is why I am looking at my credit reports at the moment).

kindofaverage

I wonder who virgin cc and nat west platinum use experian/equifax - they both have good deals on!!!

Citysam

For a 'normal ' natwest credit card they checked both experian AND equifax for me. I'm not sure where it is, but there was a thread somewhere about which companies check what.