In mid November 2021, ClearScore has finally adopted the new 1000 Equifax credit scores.
Equifax credit scoring changed in April 2021, when it switched to calculating scores out of 1000 – they used to be calculated out of 700. It also changed the bands used to describe your credit rating.
Equifax didn’t make an announcement about these changes. The Equifax Credit Report & Score was updated but hardly anyone uses that.
11 million people see their Equifax data using the ClearScore report. That continued to use the old-style Equifax scores out of 700. But in mid-November I saw this on my ClearScore report:
So what is happening and how does this matter to you?
Contents
How will the score changing affect you?
Your credit record hasn’t changed – a higher score isn’t better
You might think a higher number sounds good – but it doesn’t mean your credit history has improved. You are just being shown a different number.
It like a teacher saying “I normally mark your project out of 10, but from now on I am going to mark out of 20 instead”. If you had 7/10 for your last piece and next get 14/20 your work isn’t any better.
Lenders don’t use these scores that Equifax calculates for you at all.
Some lenders use the Equifax data and some of them get Equifax to calculate a score for them, so the credit history Equifax holds is important for your chance of getting a loan or a credit card.
But the scores lenders use are not the ones you can see, so the fact your headline number has changed won’t affect whether your credit application is approved.
As Clearscore says:
Your score may look higher, but you’re not more likely to be accepted for new credit by lenders.
Equifax now puts scores into different bands
Equifax used to use Very poor – Poor – Fair – Good – Excellent to describe your credit rating.
The numbers would have to change for the new 0-1000 scale, but Equifax has also decided to change the band names to Poor – Fair – Good – Very good – Excellent.
This table shows the old Equifax guidelines compared to the new ones:
| Equifax rating | previous | from 2021 |
|---|---|---|
| Very poor | 0-279 | - |
| Poor | 280-379 | 0-438 |
| Fair | 380-419 | 439-530 |
| Good | 420-465 | 531-670 |
| Very good | - | 671-810 |
| Excellent | 466-700 | 811-1000 |
It isn’t easy to see from that at a glance, but some of the changes in the bands are large and they haven’t all been caused by the change to 0-1000 scoring. It is clearer in a diagram:
In summary:
- no-one has a Very Poor credit score anymore and most people who were rated Poor before are now Fair
- the new Good band is much larger than the old one, so more people will be in it;
- the previous Excellent band has been divided into two, so some people will see their rating “drop” to Very Good.
But these are just labels… once again they don’t have any impact on whether you are likely to be accepted or rejected for credit. Equifax could have called them “Pants” and “Awesome” and lenders would not change what they think of your credit record.
Different CRAs have different scores
It has always been confusing that the three major Credit Reference Agencies (CRAs) each assess your credit score on a scale with a different maximum:
- Experian is 999.
- Equifax was 700, now it’s 1000.
- TransUnion is 710.
You might think that now Equifax’s maximum is almost the same as Experian, this means that your Experian and Equifax scores will be almost the same so you only have to check one of them… but that is wrong.
The most important factor in calculating your credit score is your credit history. But many creditors don’t report to all three CRAs. So you could have a good score with one CRA and a poor one with another.
If you want to be sure what your credit record looks like, you have to check reports covering all three CRAs. See The best ways to check your credit ratings for my recommendations – there are free reports for each of the CRAs.
I asked TransUnion if they had any plans to change from their current 710 maximum. Kelli Fielding said:
“If, in the future we felt there was a potential benefit in changing the current scoring model we would look into that but it’s important that any changes take into account the broader discrepancies in how different credit reference agencies and lenders use the data provided. Without careful consideration and planning there could be a risk of confusing consumers by suggesting the scores are the same if the meanings are not.”
Why did Equifax do this?
I have asked Equifax this – so far they haven’t replied, so the following are my thoughts.
700 always seemed like a strange number, so perhaps Equifax just wanted a more sensible one? But making this sort of change is going to be confusing for customers during the transition, so there probably has to be a better reason than that.
My guess is that Equifax wanted to change, not because of the new number at all, but because changing the numbers gave them an excuse to change those band names and ranges. This looks like a pure marketing move to me.
Consumers often ask “Which is the best CRA/credit report?”
To which the correct answer is they are all much the same but they have different data, so you need to check them all.
But most people only check one credit report covering one CRA…
Reports using Equifax’s new rating labels may simply look more friendly as they are using more positive terms for most people. And splitting the Excellent band in two may encourage more people in the new Very Good category to apply for more credit to get their score up to excellent again.
Many problems with credit reporting in the UK
The FCA restarted its review of the credit information industry in 2021. The first report is now expected in late 2022.
I think consumers want a system:
- which is simple to understand;
- a single report on their whole credit history;
- where repaying debt helps your credit score; and
- where applying for credit you do not need is not the best way to increase your score.
Funnily enough, more clever marketing by CRAs is not on that list at all.
Further reading:
BNPL purchases will be reported on credit reports from summer 2022
“Will a credit builder card improve my score?”
K says
Hi, thanks for the article because there has been very little about this.
One point to make, I was sat at a very low on 100 points on the old system. Overnight when the system moved me the band I moved to was good and 580! So I do think that the system of calculating my risk factor has changed drastically too (not just the number and banding). I’d be interested to see if any one else has had the same experience because nothing has changed on my report and the other CRAs have not moved my score. Is this a sign of softer point scoring? Ultimately, it’s not going to change the outcome of any applications I would make but it seems it could mislead a lot of people into a false sense of security.
Nye says
My rating jumped from 265 on old system to 660 on new system despite no changes in my financial situation. (Score has remained the same with other two CRAs)
Dave says
Thanks for this Sarah, I have taken an active interest in my credit scores lately to try and improve them and they have left me completely baffled so this is helpful. Wish there was a simpler more transparent way of working out your credit health and how it will look to potential lenders. The scores themself see pretty pointless may as well just say poor, fair, good, excellent.
Gordon KENT says
Hi, I have noticed how bad the CRAs are, slow , cherry picking which part of regulations they apply , many many errors on their part , which takes along time to correct and that is after many protestations to correct often falling on deaf ears, they are slow to correct but fast to condemn , they do not practice full transparency, I have no faith in them , there does indeed need to be some kind of Governmental investigation, CRAs selfish practices are harming the economic recovery.
Thanks
G.K.
B says
> I have noticed how bad the CRAs are
When you understand that your data is not being held for your benefit, but so the CRAs can make money from it, then you understand their business. Experian are a FTSE100 company, and they don’t make or build anything. They collect your data, and then they sell it. They sell it to creditors and they sell it to you if you want to pay for it. The entire business model of this data being ‘commodified’ is inefficient and needs changing.
GDPR has improved things. The right to access your data for free, your right to rectify errors. I have read but cannot find it again now that US customers only get 1 free copy of their Credit Reports per year.
I get emails from Credit Karma saying “your credit score has dropped! Log in to see why.” and I’ve done nothing different to what I normally do. It’s dropped because an arbitrary algorithm notices I haven’t logged in for a while, and it’s trying to direct my time and attention so it can sell me an unwanted credit card.
My advice – pay attention to the information on the credit report because that is important. Don’t get too drawn to the score – it’s obscure for a reason.
Edward says
I have two accounts with Creation Finance. i applied for a credit card with Creation, i got knock back.
My credit score 959 why is this, i have never missed a payment ,and i only owe now £150 which will finish
in October this is my 3rd account with Creation. Why i that.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I have no idea! You can ask them, but people don’t often get helpful replies from any lender.
I suggest you go through a soft checker to see what you are likely to be accepted for, eg https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/eligibility/credit-cards/search/
Thea says
Hi
I have a few questions and I’m sorry if they have been asked before.
I noticed recently that my Experian credit score had dropped by 109 points!!!in a month. I have a couple of CCJ’s but these are due to come off within the next 2 years. The only finance I have is the mortgage, and I have not applied for any new finance. I appreciate that I need to check my credit scores and I’m in the process of requesting these, but in the meantime is there anything I should be looking at that could cause such a big drop in my score? Can a request to remove a financial connection affect my credit score?
I also have found that on Money Supermarket Credit Monitor (TransUnion) that they have listed one of my old current accounts as being in default by £884.00, I was totally unaware of this and thought the account was closed, I went into default in January 2017 and the last statement/ transaction summary statement received was in Sept 2017. I don’t remember paying this back and the ccjs I have are not for anything to do with bank accounts. If my first default was in January 2017 am I right in thinking that this will be off my credit report by 2023? I did think about contacting the bank involved and asking the question but I’m sure I’ve read in one of your response’s that people shouldn’t as this could open a can of worms.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
in the meantime is there anything I should be looking at that could cause such a big drop in my score?
it’s not worth the time to speculate about this. Find out the facts, then come back and ask any questions.
Can a request to remove a financial connection affect my credit score?
yes if you are no longer connected with this person and the joint accounts are closed.
If my first default was in January 2017 am I right in thinking that this will be off my credit report by 2023?
if a debt has a default date of Jan 17 on your credit record, it will drop off in Jan 2023
mr t says
Ccj’s drop off exactly after 6 years from date of judgement. Mortgages companies want to see a satfsfied ccj for 2 years at least before you look for any new mortgage/remortgage offers.
Andrew Bate says
I made the mistake of trying to update clear score of my address, because according to them and Equifax I was not on the electoral register.
They had my address as 86 Embankment Rd, where my actual address is Flat 1, 86 Embankment Rd. My score was 171 out of 700, on my supposed change of address it went down to 0 out 700. Three weeks later it has risen to 22 out of 700. They say that the address they have is what is on the National Register, however I personally have come across 6 so called National Registers. Basically credit reference agencies are screwing up peoples lives because of outdated or misinformation, and trying to get it sorted is frankly a suicide mission. The poor are discriminated against while the rich get all the best deals and interest rates.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
What address does your bank account have for you?
Hannah P says
I have become really frustrated with the new equifax system. When viewing the credit report it flahs that my account payment aren’t up to day and that I last missed a payment 9 months ago. I haven’t missed a payment in over 4 years! When querying this they advised its because one of my accounts had a N and a U on them. These are are as I had no payment due on the account and a zero balance on my account at the time. They tried to fob me off advising well these are negative markers that’s why ! I put a complaint advising a zero balance and no payment due are not missed payment and my account are all up date. This was never an issue until the new equifax system. I would appreciate any suggestions?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
the report is from Equifax?
can you tell if your credit score has dropped because of this or is it just showing on the report?
who is the lender involved?
cyrilv says
It is possible to see your new Equifax scores by signing up, free of charge, to http://www.finder.co.uk – it just gives the basic score (a bit like the Experian Creditmatcher does) but at least it can be checked there until ClearScore update their site to show the new style Equifax scores.
Oli says
Hello
I have a concern regarding my Clearscore credit score – since the new Equifax scoring system was applied in June, I’ve had a point score of 688 or ‘Very Good’ with Equifax but my Clearscore points have remained at 318 or ‘On the Up’. This is such big difference and clearly doesn’t give an accurate picture at all.
Any advice on what to do would be much appreciated.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
It does sound odd. What Equifax report are you looking at?
Oli says
Thanks Sara, it sure does. I’m looking at the free Equifax trial for 30 days and the Clearscore app.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I suggest you do a line by line comparison of each debt on both accounts and see if there are any discrepancies.
Oli says
Hi Sara
I have already done this and everything seems to be up-to-date and correct, in fact my Clearscore account only updated yesterday and my Equifax earlier this week.
Should I raise a dispute with Clearscore?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
yes, it will be interesting to see what they say.
Caro J says
Looks like something’s changed in the way they calculate it as well – last month I was 533 out of 700, this month I’m 1000 out of 1000. No changes in my finances that would merit a jump like that.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That sounds more like a bug than an intended change.
The MSE forum also has someone saying they have got 1000.
But they aren’t all wrong – my own Clearscore is now the same as what my Equifax score was a couple of months ago, which sounds reasonable as nothing has changed.
Dave says
I had an almost identical jump to 1,000 out of 1,000. I assume it’s a teething issue, but I don’t know.
Matt says
My score went for between 385 and 420 to 1000. It’s stayed at 1000 every time it’s updated, so it doesn’t seem to be a bug. I don’t have any defaults or late payments or ccj’s so perhaps it’s right, but it still only offers loans at high rates of 12% and above even up to 48% which I find strange.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
no this really does sound like a bug… ask ClearScore.
mark says
Thank you for clarifying the changes. In my case I think Clearscore are a bit confused themselves. My old score of 491 – Excellent has been converted to 773 -Very Good. But, Experion have me at 999 out of 999.
If Experion think I am perfect why would Clearscore (Equifax) say that I am only in the mid range of their second band?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
This is a different problem, nothing to do with the Equifax/Clearscore scoring change to be out of 1000. the change in your Clearscore from 491 to 773 sounds about right.
The reason Experian and Equifax scores are so different is that the two companies have two completely different sets of data.
so have a look not at the scores but at the debt details – there is something “bad” on your Equifax report which isn’t on your Experian report.
This is probably because many lenders only report to 1 of them not both. eg American Express only reports to Experian, Virgin Mobile only report to Equifax.
But the other possibility is that there is an error in the data.
mark Renaud says
Hi Sara, if there is something “bad” on my Equifax score they haven’t shared it with me. In the insights section I have 10 insights and all are marked as doing well. I have one missed payment 20 months ago caused by BT not reporting that the delay in making final payment when I changed to Virgin had been paid.
No hard searches, no long term debt – Short term debt is just whatever I have spent this month on credit cards.
I will have to wait and see if my new score out of 1000 improves over the next few months.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Does that late payment show on whatever experian report you are looking at?
To spot the reasons why the scores are different, you need to see what debts are on which reports – the difference in the scoring will be down to those.
Short term credit card spending – keep it to below 30% of your credit limit if possible.
Nick says
Credit score agency numbers are beyond bizarre. Most lenders use Experian for hard checks, so I have half a dozen checks there this year, and a Good score, which a few weeks ago was merely Fair. Experian and Credit Karma show no checks and a score of Excellent. All three agencies seem to use different scoring methods. Despite their different methods I have, if I chose to use it, a £50K line on my credit cards. Some lenders see me as dodgy and give me £500, others give me £15K. There’s no logic to it.
mark renaud says
Hi Sara. I don’t know if the late payment is registered with experian as I only have the basic free app. My utilization is fine….. over £40 k in available credit and at the moment less than a hundred quid owing.
Perhaps experian don’t know about ther late payment so have given me 999 and equifax do know about it so it has badly affected my clearscore. Oh well, I assume as the months go by it will become less relevant. Shame though that BT being inefficient has caused a blot on my credit history.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The basic Experian App is useless. You can see your full Experian report for free using MSE’s Credit Club: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/creditclub/
If BT made an error, you should complain, ask for it to be corrected and take the complaint to the Finacial Ombudsman if they refuse. Otherwise it is there for 6 years – although the hit to your credit score does drop a bit after 2 years and then a bit more after 4 years.
mark renaud says
Hi Sara. It was a few months after the swap from BT to Virgin that I found out that my BT account was marked as having two missed payments after the account was closed. I raised the correction and it took months of explaining and emails going back and forth. They wanted bank statements and proof of the end date with BT and the start date with Virgin. Eventually after 6 or so months they agreed that they were wrong and would remove the missed payments. They removed one but not both. I just couldn’t be bothered to go through all that again so I left it.
Now, 20 months down the line I am out of debt, with good credit scores – except for the disparity on the new 1000 system which has me a lot further down than I should be. I paid off my credit card today and will not use it again for a while to see if being zero debt has any effect.
The whole system is riddled with anomalies and I am pleased that I don’t need credit. I feel for people who have got into difficulties during covid and desperately need finance to survive. As usual it is the little people that get dumped on but at least they have you and Martin Lewis in their corner.
I did as you suggested and got the MSE club. It is laughable that experian have me as 999 if I look at it via the experian log in but 976 through MSE. Same credit reference agency – two different scores depending on log in method :-)
Chantelle says
My clear score went from 458/700 to 552/1000 since the Equifax change.
Does this seem like a fair conversion? Is this a bad credit rating?
As I think it says 585/1000 is the UK average?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That sounds like your credit rating has got worse… 458*1000/700 would be 644.
Michelle says
Hi,
I am a bit baffled (but also hopeful and pleased) with the new changes with clearscore.
I just logged on to check as I have been trying to improve over the last year and I used to be on around 350 out of 700 and I am now 903 out of 1000!
I had 2 defaults due to come off next year and I cant see them anywhere anymore. Rather than having defaults within the last 6 years it says ‘well done you have no defaults in the last 4 years’.
I did notice that when I looked at what credit cards were available it only came up with 3 that had high interest rates and were from the companies that are usually associated with poor credit, (vanquis etc).
I would of thought that more would of opened up to me with this new high score, anyone experienced similar? Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
I too am baffled … that sounds very odd.
Michelle says
I am hoping it’s not a glitch but on the other hand it hasn’t seemed to have helped with getting better APR etc x
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Well it does look like a glitch… as the article above says, these changes by Equifax should make no difference to your chance of obtaining credit, it’s just PR to get you to like the ClearScore report more.
Nick says
Based on personal experience, I would say that regardless of what Clearscore says you will have few if any decent credit card offers until your defaults are 6 years time expired. Experian is much more widely used by lenders for credit scoring. Last year I had an old default on file and lenders were reluctant to touch me. Now that it’s off they are falling over themselves to give me 15K lines. Good luck.
Ms L Crain says
Hi Sara, I have an account on my credit file called WDFC I think it may relate to Wonga. It was opened in Dec 15th 2015/updated 16th March 2016. How long can I expect this to stay on my credit report? Its paid off of course.
When Googling the result it says up to 10 years but I thought it 6.
Thanks
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Yes WDFC is Wonga. When was the debt repaid?
The debt will show for 6 years from the date is was settled OR 6 years from the date of any default if that is sooner.
David Farrell says
I have also jumped, though not quite as dramatically. I’m now “Very Good” from “Fair”. I still won’t get anything because of an IVA, but it’s confused me well.
Rhiannon says
I’m very confused because before the change, my credit score was around 563, and after the change has gone down to 271! But all of my insights say “doing well”, I’ve never missed a payment, I’ve got no insights to improve on according to ClearScore, and I can see no reason why my score has decreased so much!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That makes no sense at all. Have you asked ClearScore to explain what had happened?
What are your Experian and TransUnion credit scores?
Rhiannon says
Thanks for your suggestion. I emailed ClearScore yesterday and their only suggestion was my addresses on my account. Once I specified my current address, and explained the disparity between old and new scores, they generated a new report and my score is now 782 up from 271!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Result!
Nick says
I think that these strange scores, either going down a lot, or going up to 1000 must be Clearscore or Equifax system issues. My score was 531 under the old max 700 system and is now 808 under the max 1000 system. Both are about right, I think. These days my scores from all 3 agencies bob around between good and excellent. Anyone getting a genuine score of 1000 must somehow be ticking every box and I can’t imagine that many people will be in that category. Clearscore claim that the UK average is 585 out of 1000. One peculiarity of Equifax is that few lenders seem to use it for hard searches. My Clearscore report lists no hard searches whereas Experian lists half a dozen.
Nigel says
On the new affordability report with ClearScore, linkied to my account . I have debt collector fees 4 times in last 5 months I have no debts passed on to debt collectors
What are these and how can I remove them.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
That is interesting.
I suggest you ask ClearScore where this data comes from (Equifax probably) and how you dispute it. I would be interested to know how this goes.
Nigel says
I have sent a message to ClearScore and will call equifax later today as systems are down will keep you informed.
Nigel says
ClearScore poor reply, there responses are always bad., equifax said they don’t have access so take it up with ClearScore.
Thanks for reaching out about your affordability insights. We’ve passed along your feedback to our developers who are working hard to categorise these transactions better.
As we look into this for you, remember that these insights can only be seen by you and won’t be visible to banks/lenders. These insights can also change daily as we get your up to date information from your linked bank accounts.
I hope this clears things up. Let me know if you have any other questions.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Well that is useless.
I suggest you do three things.
1) send ClearScore a Data Subject Access Request. Email them at privacy@clearscore.com and say you want a copy of all the personal data they hold about you.
2) send Equifax the same. Email them at UKDPO@equifax.com and say you want a copy of all the personal data they hold about you. Give your name, date of birth and postal address. Ask them to forward your request for a SAR to the relevant department as necessary.
3) send Clearscore a complaint. Use the form here https://contact.clearscore.com/hc/en-us and select “my affordability score and report” and “other”. Say what information is incorrect on the report and say you want to be told the source of this so you can get it corrected. Because until you know where the information is, it is possible lenders may also be able to see it, even if not through the ClearScore report, so you do not want incorrect information about you to ve available. Say your complaint goes to the Finacial Ombudsman if ClearScore have not explained where they get this data from in 8 weeks.
Clare Archer says
Mine says this too about 4 times in the last 5 months but as far as I know I don’t owe any debt collectors and don’t know where this information is from.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Can you ask ClearScore? It sounds as though they are getting some simply wrong information from somewhere – and they should tell you where so you can dispute it.
Matt B says
My rating has jumped from mid 500s to 1000 on ClearScore. I can’t believe that this is a perfect score, not sure what has happened. There are even recommendations about what I can do better. Scaling up from 700 to 1000 does not make 500 into 1000!
Sara (Debt Camel) says
You aren’t the first person to say this…. clearly it is some error!
You could complain and ask ClearScore to explain it?
Frank Tetteh says
TransUnion has a score of 538 on me but I am not seeing any reports on ClearScore or Esperian. I moved to the UK in August. I am on the Electoral Register. I pay my bills on time too. What could be the problem?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
What lenders / bills show on your TransUnion report?
Frank Tetteh says
My rent appears on the report.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Nothing else? What bills are you paying? You don’t have any form of credit? Do you have a bank account?
Frank Tetteh says
I am paying rent from my account with Monzo. I got a Barclays account on the 3rd of December 2021. I have subscribed to Loqbox and have contributed twice since December without any default.
I am eager to grow my score.
My concern is why has TransUnion given me 538 as my score since August but the other CRAs, I can’t seem to find my score with them.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Experian doesn’t take rent into account when calculating your score.
A bank account will only show if you have an overdraft – I guess you haven’t?
Firms only report to CRAs once a month. I would expect LOQBOX to start showing from February. LOQBOX reports to all three credit reference agencies.
Martin says
Hi,
I took out a loan but didn’t require it then and withdrew from the loan agreement within 14 days and paid it off in full within the 30 days of the withdrawal notice. The loan is showing as settled under Closed Accounts in my credit file. What is the correct practice here can anyone advise please? I have no issue it showing as a hard search but as I withdrew from the agreement within 14 days of obtaining the loan am I correct in believing it shouldn’t show within closed accounts and should be completely removed from my credit file?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
withdrew from the loan agreement within 14 days and paid it off in full
Did you withdraw from the loan?
or did you repay it?
These are two different things.
Faz says
Hi, I’ve read your article on ClearScore moving to a 1000 score as each time I open my ClearScore app, it gives me a score of 1000.
I’ve reloaded the CS app and it still gives me a score of 1000.
Do you know if CS is actually working as there is no way I’d fall into 1000…… so something isn’t working!
Any thoughts as I cannot find a contact number to call ClearScore.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
if you read the other comments here, you will see that other people have had the same problem.
Here is how to complaint to them: https://help.clearscore.com/hc/en-us/articles/115005327369-How-can-I-make-a-complaint-
Or you could just give up on them – this systems error has been going on for months and they are just in denial about it. Instead look at your Experian and TransUnion credit scores instead, using the MSE Credit Club and Credit karma’ reports. Also free. links in this article: https://debtcamel.co.uk/best-way-to-check-credit-score/
Sean says
I have read through all the posts and what seems clear is a lot of people posting have not read the in depth explanation above the comments. If they had they probably would not have needed to post a comment/question.
I also have to say what a great job your doing Sara.
Having to repeat yourself so often without showing any signs of frustration is very impressive.
Well done 😁
Michael Levy says
Hi, I have a score of 960 out of a 1000 on clear score which they rate very highly yet I keep getting refused on my credit card applications, can you explain why please?
Sara (Debt Camel) says
have you always had a high credit score on ClearScore or has it gone up a lot?
have you checked the other credit reports, Credit Karma and MSE’s Credit Club?
Michael Levy says
I’ve checked Totally Money and also gave a good report
Sara (Debt Camel) says
Check MSE’s Credit Club – that reports Experian data.
Do you have a lot of credit limits at the moment that you are not using?
Do you have a lot of debt in relation to your income?
Michael Levy says
I have no debts. Idi have credit limits that I’m not using
Sara (Debt Camel) says
then why are you applying for more credit cards?
Michael Levy says
That question isn’t relevant
Sara (Debt Camel) says
If you have a lot of unused credit, other lenders may be reluctant to give you more.
Michael Levy says
Thanks for the info
Greg says
Hi. I have a “very good” ClearScore rating and a “good” (almost “excellent”) Experian rating. My TransUnion score is still “very poor” at 550, and has hardly budged for a couple of years since I’ve signed up. I am rebuilding my credit after having a Visa cc that I missed a lot of payments on in 2019/2020 (now closed), so I started out as “very poor” across all three CRA’s. Why is my TU score just not going anywhere? I have gone through all three reports with a fine toothed comb, and all the info (that I can see) is correct, and there’s nothing wrong or any discrepancies. I can’t figure it out, unless TU is hitting me much harder because of the late payments from 2019? My TU score has stayed pretty much the same for these last few years now, it’s not like it’s been knocked due to hard searches or anything.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The information on the 3 reports may be correct but is it all the same? Are any debts only showing on one or two reports and not all three?
The names the CRAs apply to the bands and the size of the bands are purely cosmetic – as the article above explains, Equifax made radical changes to its bands and names so almost everyone ended up in a nicer sounding category – that doesn’t mean you are any more likely to get credit.
Greg S says
I’ve just checked all three reports again and the information is the same across all of them – all debts are correct and the same info. I haven’t had any issues getting credit yet – I’ve opened four new credit accounts and a Barclays loan with Apple over the last 14 or so months. I haven’t been rejected for anything yet, whether it’s been with Virgin Atlantic or Amex (keep in mind NONE of these things have changed my TU score in either direction).
I just can’t figure out why my TransUnion score is staying so low, in such a static position, whereas my ClearScore and Experian continue to climb? I do realise that the actual numbers that these ‘credit scores’ show is actually pretty arbitrary, and that lenders are more concerned with what’s IN the reports, it’s just weird that TransUnion scores me so dramatically different? I don’t know if any of this even matters too much at the end of the day, it’s just annoying.
Sara (Debt Camel) says
The whole credit scoring system is weird and annoying. It doesn’t sound like the odd TU score is causing you practical problems so you could try to think of it as an oddity.