Credit Score and Files not worth the paper thier written on

bmwman740

I have account with two of the most popular credit reference agencies "Equifax and Experian". Equifax show my score as very good with no defaults on any accounts, yet Experian show my score as very poor with one defaulted account. Surely for this to work correctly all credit reference agencies should operate on the same criteria. Can anyone one please give me some advice on how to correct this?.

Thank You.

[Deleted User]

The files are worth the paper or screen area they're printed on, but as has been said endlessly, the scores are useless.  Experian will never offer you a loan, no matter what they score you as.

Is the data on your files correct, bearing in mind of course that not all lenders report to all CRAs?

MovingForwards

The credit score and rating are not seen or used by any UK financial institution it's the credit history they see and use when assessing applications.

There are four CRAs within the UK:
TransUnion
Equifax
Experian
Crediva (very few lenders report to them)

Not all lenders report to all CRAs which is why the information differs.

Pay bills / financial agreements on time, do not miss payments, do not go over limits, do not borrow too much, that's the key to maintaining a good credit history.

RG2015

@bmwman740, Never mind the cost of the paper, do you pay for your accounts with Experian and Equifax?

I hope not, because your credit reports from Transunion, Experian and Equifax are available free of charge. This perhaps explains why they perpetuate the myth of the credit score and credit rating.

bmwman740

Hi RG2015 yes I do pay for them so will cancel the subscriptions.

RG2015

bmwman740 said:

Hi RG2015 yes I do pay for them so will cancel the subscriptions.

If you want to continue to monitor your credit reports free of charge you can access them as follows.

Experian on the MSECredit club
Equifax on Clearscore
Transunion on Credit Karma.

The first two are updated monthly and Credit Karma updates every 7 days.

You can also request your statutory credit reports free of charge direct from the three CRAs although I find these less user friendly. 

MaryNB

Check that your address history is correct and that all versions of any address you may have used are accounted for. 

I had information missing from all three (each one was missing different info) because my address is registered differently by Royal Mail and the Council. Also, when I moved in I change some of my accounts to a third version of my address which corresponded to my tenancy agreement and the address that brings you to the front door (Royal Mail address brings delivery men to a bedroom window...). I naively didn't realise the implications of doing this.