Experian is launching the UK’s first service to give consumers the ability to instantly improve their credit score, using information such as regular video and music streaming payments and council tax payments.
Early analysis suggests over half of people (51%) using Experian Boost will receive an instant increase to their Experian Credit Score, meaning around 17 million consumers are set to benefit (1). Among this group, more than one in 10 (12%) will move up an entire Experian score band.
The new, free service will help people to take control of their Experian Credit Score by voluntarily adding new relevant and real-time information via Open Banking. This includes general information, such as total incomings and outgoings, as well as a range of popular, regular payments not traditionally factored into credit scores. At launch, Experian Boost will take into account regular payments to the following:
- Council tax
- Savings & investments
- Digital entertainment services such as Netflix, Spotify and Amazon Prime
The maximum amount people can boost their score by is 66 points. No one will see their Experian Credit Score go down as a result of signing up to Experian Boost.
Open Banking transactional data has never been factored into credit scores before. By including it, Experian Boost ensures that the Experian Credit Score recognises and rewards people for making regular payments to a broader range of organisations, helping credit reporting to evolve and improving lenders’ credit assessments.
The service follows a hugely successful launch in the United States where consumers are seeing the benefits of easily improving their credit scores.
Clive Lawson, Managing Director for Consumer Services at Experian, said: “Experian wants people to get credit where credit is due. We are always pushing the boundaries of innovation for two key reasons – to give consumers more control over their financial lives, and to ensure lenders have the information they need to make informed, responsible decisions. There’s never been a more important time for people to engage with their credit scores and Experian Boost will help them to do this. We are incredibly excited to provide this ground-breaking, free service now to help build better financial futures for consumers in the UK.”
Experian Boost can become an important tool to help safeguard access to affordable credit, especially given the current economic environment. Finding new ways to further improve the accuracy of credit scoring is incredibly important, to help ensure consumers have access to the right, affordable financial products for them. Improving accuracy also protects lender business models.
Lawson continued, “Access to credit is critical to keeping the economy going. By giving consumers more ways to improve their credit score, they are empowered to present the best possible version of themselves when applying for credit. Meanwhile, by providing broader, deeper insight into financial and credit histories, Experian Boost helps ensure lenders can provide affordable credit to more people. Crucially, this means Experian Boost further improves the accuracy of credit scoring, supporting fairer lending and including more people in the mainstream financial system.”
Personal finance expert from MoneyComms, Andrew Hagger, added: "I’m sure many customers will welcome the opportunity to boost their credit score in the current difficult financial climate.
“The Experian Boost service is an excellent example of how open banking can deliver tangible rewards for consumers. The potential financial benefits of this new initiative could see some customers having access to more favourable interest rate terms and improved credit limits.
“It’s refreshing to see this new partnership between Experian and key UK lenders and I hope it sets a precedent for the wider credit score industry”.
People can access and find out more information about Experian Boost at www.experian.co.uk/consumer/experian-boost.html 