Experian - Waste of Time

ValHaller

InsideInsurance wrote: »

In fairness to those who you call gullible, in the USA, where Experian also operate, the credit score as presented by the CRAs is actually used. Therefore if you google and are not careful to check if they are talking about US or UK then you may believe the CRA scores are what is used.

Gawd 'elp us. It seems that the US lenders are as gullible as the borrowers.

Surely they can see that different types of lending require scoring differently? For example, I would never lend someone such as myself money for a sofa, because I would pay it back too soon and there would be no money to be made. But on mortgages and big items, people like me will never over extend themselves.

InsideInsurance

ValHaller wrote: »

Gawd 'elp us. It seems that the US lenders are as gullible as the borrowers.

Surely they can see that different types of lending require scoring differently? For example, I would never lend someone such as myself money for a sofa, because I would pay it back too soon and there would be no money to be made. But on mortgages and big items, people like me will never over extend themselves.

Its an industry standard there and so all the CRAs apply the same formula to the data they hold about the customer/ applicant. So the only variance in scores between CRAs would be the result of a variance of data.

Just because all credit scores are equal doesnt mean that all lenders will make the same decisions.

If you're credit worthy of consideration for a mortgage then you are also already worthy for a interest free loan on the sofa in which case early settlement is preferable to them

[Deleted User]

I've never understood all the whining about credit scores on here. Experian (and the others) are businesses and therefore exist to make money. Nobody is making people pay - that's their choice.

InsideInsurance

Lazyloki wrote: »

I've never understood all the whining about credit scores on here. Experian (and the others) are businesses and therefore exist to make money. Nobody is making people pay - that's their choice.

No one has an issue with a company making money but it is how they make money that can be underhanded or intentionally misleading etc.

Its similar to when the latest generation of games consoles came out and are in exceptional short supply and a load of people sold the boxes on eBay. Yes if you read the small print it says you are just getting a box but the vast majority seeing an Xbox for sale assumed they were getting more than just the box

People buy THE experian credit score for themselves and believe it is THE score that experian provide to lenders for them. In reality it is a score that experian has simply made up to give them and that no serious lender will ever see.

If the marketed it as a guide to their credit worthiness then it would be more honest (but sell a lot less)

Anoneemoose

I just checked my free (and only free would never pay) Noddle one and it has gone down from 5/5 - 3/5 in 2 months with absolutely nothing different at all. I have 2 cc's that I use for groceries/petrol - one for the cash back and they are both paid off in full every month. There is always approx the same amount used on them most months as well. No recent searches, no applications, no other changes at all.

Baffles me!

ValHaller

Anoneemoose wrote: »

Baffles me!

I'm with you on this, I wouldn't pay good money to be baffled by this.

matttye

Anoneemoose wrote: »

I just checked my free (and only free would never pay) Noddle one and it has gone down from 5/5 - 3/5 in 2 months with absolutely nothing different at all. I have 2 cc's that I use for groceries/petrol - one for the cash back and they are both paid off in full every month. There is always approx the same amount used on them most months as well. No recent searches, no applications, no other changes at all.

Baffles me!

Mines gone from 2/5 to 1/5 from June to July (Augusts is not up yet), and the only thing that's changed is that I've paid everything off in full and on time again in July.

I never realised paying things on time was bad for creditworthiness :rotfl:

Hazzinho

At the end of the day 2 people could have the exact same credit and the exact same score, it means nothing, one huge factor is salary isn't included in credit reports, these 2 people might want a £10k loan, according the the CRA's they're both as credit worthy, but if one earns £15,000 and the other earns £100,000 only one of them is getting the loan.

As long as the data is accurate then that's all the matters, don't get too much debt over 50% of your salary, don't miss payments and default and get on the electoral roll, finally take out credit, no credit then no credit history. I personally think credit etc should be taught at school as most people have no idea how it all works.

matttye

Hazzinho wrote: »

I personally think credit etc should be taught at school as most people have no idea how it all works.

I agree.

If I had any idea irresponsible borrowing would affect me for 6 years even after its paid off, I wouldn't have bothered!

Bosie

matttye wrote: »

Mines gone from 2/5 to 1/5 from June to July (Augusts is not up yet), and the only thing that's changed is that I've paid everything off in full and on time again in July.

I never realised paying things on time was bad for creditworthiness :rotfl:

Totally agree:D same here I basically do not owe and my score has since dropped:rotfl: