In this new post lockdown era have you considered how your lockdown spending could have affected your Credit Rating? With many people paying the minimum balance on their credit cards, taking mortgage holidays or pausing financial commitments have you checked if they have affected your Credit Rating?

We at ScoresMatter are here to help, we offer a 10 day free* trial and a suite of tools to help you take back control of your financial now and financial future. Allowing you to check your current credit score and full credit report, check your loan affordability before you commit to debt you may not be able to afford and give you hints and tips on how to improve your financial standing. Sign up here!, 

Our Top 5 essential tips to get you started are:

Firstly, Know your Score;

Without knowing what your current score is, you can’t work to improve it. Although the main three Credit Reference Agencies (CRA) in the UK have their own score ranges, here at ScoresMatter, we use TransUnion’s scale, which ranges from 0 – 710. Check out the rating system below: 

Secondly, Check your details and Correct errors;

As many as one in five credit reports have errors in them! So before you make other changes, make sure your report is correct. This includes not just looking at basics like your name and address, but also,  whether there are accounts listed that aren’t yours or any late or missed payments that you don’t recognise. Keep proof of payments so you can provide evidence of payments made if needed.

Thirdly, Pay on time!;

Lots of factors affect your score, such as your debt-to-credit ratio, but paying your bills on time is essential. You could ensure you have a direct debit set up to pay the minimum payment on your card/cards each month for you. This ensures you are paying some of your credit off and also means you never miss a payment so a win-win. You can also ask your bank to update your payment dates so they correspond with when you get paid to also ensure you do not miss any payments and you have the funds available when you need them. 

Fourthly, try to lower your credit utilisation ratio;

Most lenders like to see a debt-to-credit ratio of less than 30 percent (i.e. what you are able to spend on total credit and what you have actually used).  Remember to try to keep your debt-to-credit low and this will help to raise your credit score depending on your situation of course! A great tip is to try to pay off what you owe little and often as soon as you do have some spare cash available as this will help to slowly bring your credit utilisation down. 

Tip Five, Don’t close accounts!

One of the many things that does impact your credit score is how long you have had an account with a lender.  So although it may be tempting to close accounts that you don’t use, our advice is to try not to, unless necessary of course. 

These are only some hints and tips and not essentials. 

Try our top 3 tips for 2022 below:

Tip 1:  Budgeting:  The 50/ 30/ 20 rule

The most important of all the rules; Budget, Budget, Budget. The aim here is to spend 50% of your income on needs (housing, bills, food and travel for work costs); 30% on wants (your fun money) and 20% on saving. A way to do this is at the start of each month, every pound of income is allocated to different categories, from rent and car money to shopping and saving.Once each ‘pot’ is empty, you don’t swap money around and if you’re left with any at the end, put it into savings.

Tip 2: Power Hour: 

Take an hour each month (after pay day is a great time) to sit down either alone or with your partner to check out your bank statement, check what went in, what went out and did it match up with your budget. Did you reach the 50/30/20 rule? If you did not, where did you go wrong? If you did, Well Done you! Try again next month! By the end of the year you will be surprised how much that 20% saved and how it can help you to pay off debt and save towards your future. 

Tip 2: Switch Providers?

During your monthly power hour, take a look at your essential spending. Would switching providers save you money? Are there any new deals for your phone/gas/electric? Being aware of the costs of your utilities and where and what you can save can have a big impact on your day to day living costs. Never be afraid to switch providers if it will save you money!

Lastly, if you are struggling with debts help is available :

We hope that by listing out some great hints and tips for you it will help you to take back control of your finances and help set achievable and realistic goals for yourself.

Remember, Sign up here!, to take a look at the current Financial You and how we can help you

* A fee of £19.95/month is charged after the 10-day trial. Cancel at any time.