Experian Boost Offering Thin-file Customers a Look Over the Credit Horizon

Since its launch, a million people have tried Experian Boost to perk up their credit scores. It is free. It allows improving your credit score pretty quickly and to make things even better; it allows you to jump up credit tiers. No wonder, many users are not so much happy as ecstatic. In a credit-driven economy, how well are you perceived by the lenders is of great importance.

The great paradox

For those who have a thin credit history, it becomes impossibly difficult to exhibit their intent to the creditors. The creditors need something concrete to trust you. The lending fraternity- not that they don’t want to extend loans (it’s their job!)- are apprehensive to extend credit to those who have not had any experience with it. Experian Boost has turned out to be just that thing, many believe.

Experian has long felt terrible about the paradox that unless people have credit histories, they don’t get credit and in the absence of being extended credit, they don’t get to build a credit history. So, in many ways, Experian Boost is an attempt to blow away this paradox. Those who don’t have any credit history can use their timely utility and phone payments to push their cases.

Boost pushes your case with only your “timely bill payments” as proof of your financial accountability

Conventionally speaking, credit bureaus don’t pay heed to the phone and utility bills. According to them, paying these bills on time does not exhibit financial responsibility- it’s a thing people do. No great shakes! But for those getting their first look into credit or rebounding from a monetary setback, such small displays of financial accountability also matter. So, Boost does not sidetrack your timely payment of phone or utility bills. It uses these to make your case.

Boost seeks your permission to use those telecom and utility bills that you paid on time, and once it has your permission, it posts the same on your credit report (if you have missed a payment or two, don’t worry, Boost does not put them up). Most of the time, 5 minutes (time taken for the items to reflect on your credit report) is enough to enhance your credit score.

How has the Boost performed since its inception?

Since August 8, 2019, 61% of Experian Boost users have got an uptick on their FICO score. An average of 13 points! The situation has been even better for those with poor FICO scores. For them, the average improvement is 22 points (about 86% benefitting from a score hike). Boost can be called relatively ineffective for those who already have a high FICO score but even for them, it has brought about a positive change. About 6% of Boost users have jumped up a tier from Good to Very Good and about 2% from Very Good to Exceptional. For those who already have a good or very good FICO score, this relatively small improvement is also worthy because they have a decent credit history in place and thus many more avenues through which to be perceived positively by the credit bureaus.

Can your creditor access your improved credit rating?

Experian Boost is noticed by multiple models of credit scoring. So if your creditor tracks your creditworthiness through the Experian report or the Experian’s data of VantageScore3.0, VantageScore4.0, FICO 8 or FICO 9, they can very well access your improved credit ratings.

Get going

Looking to get started! Go to the Experian Boost page and sign up with Experian for free. Next, connect your bank accounts to Experian (those that reflect your timely bill payments). Give Experian the go-ahead to add these accounts to your credit file. Don’t worry a bit! your private information is concealed by multiple layers of protection.

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