Experian : Entrepreneurs urged to take advantage of the new free Experian Credit Score

UK. 22 September 2016: Entrepreneurs are being encouraged to save money and get a fresh insight into their creditworthiness. Experian has made the nation's most trusted credit score available free, for everyone, forever, as part of a new credit comparison tool called CreditMatcher.

'Having control of your budget and understanding your personal credit history are great foundations for any new business, but a lot of people don't realise that your credit score is also a great barometer for your overall financial health,' said Experian's Ade Potts.

'By making the Experian Credit Score free, we intend to help entrepreneurs take their first steps towards better financial control when setting up or running a business.

'Good credit lines can be vital lifeblood for SMEs, in particular, and one of the main advantages of knowing your Experian Credit Score is that you will see what lenders are likely to think of your personal creditworthiness. Lenders can take company directors' personal credit histories into account when little information is available on a new business..'

By encouraging entrepreneurs to check their personal credit score for free, SME directors could adopt good financial habits as their business grows. Once a company is established, an Experian survey found 59% of financial decision makers at SMEs have never checked their commercial credit report.

The Experian Credit Score is available now as part of CreditMatcher, a new comparison service that gives people access to deals on credit cards and loans they're more likely to be accepted for.

'Each time you apply for credit, a hard search is recorded on your credit report. Multiple applications can damage your score and are visible to potential lenders, who may view these as a negative factor when assessing applications,' continued Potts. 'CreditMatcher leaves a soft search which lenders cannot see. So, searching and comparing credit products doesn't affect your creditworthiness in any way.'

Experian can now help people shop around to see how they can save money by comparing deals based on their financial profile. For example, looking at average borrowing on credit cards, many UK households could save upwards of £400 per year simply by switching to a 0% credit card.*

About CreditMatcher

CreditMatcher gives you the confidence to take that first step to achieve your financial goals safely and easily:

• Check the deals available to you before you apply: CreditMatcher matches you to products that fit your personal financial situation, without actually registering the applications or searches on your credit record.

• Find out the likelihood of being accepted before you apply, quickly, easily and with confidence: Showing eligibility ratings for loans and credit cards, based on personalised credit information, CreditMatcher tells you the likelihood of being accepted for these products. Products are shown with an Experian Eligibility Rating, giving people greater certainty when they apply for credit and helping to avoid unsuccessful applications.

• Understand your credit health: Together, the Experian Credit Score and CreditMatcher help you understand how lenders are likely to assess your credit information and how your credit history may affect your chances of getting credit applications approved in the future.

About the Experian Credit Score

The Experian Credit Score is a guide to help people understand how lenders are likely to view their creditworthiness. Everyone should know their Experian Credit Score to help improve their financial lives, but a lot of people in the UK don't know what it is or why it's important. One of the main advantages of knowing your Experian Credit Score is that you will see what lenders are likely to think of your personal creditworthiness. People now have the opportunity to see what most lenders think about their creditworthiness, for free.

CreditMatcher and the free Experian Credit Score complement Experian's full suite of products designed to help people to understand their credit health and take better control of their financial futures.

To see your Experian score free for life visit Experian.co.uk

ENDS

Notes to Editors

Media enquiries and interview requests should be made to:

Nick Jones

Head of Business PR

Mobile: +44 (0) 7976 734702

nick.jones@experian.com

Or

Ade O'Connor

PR Manager, Business

+44 (0) 115 992 2645

Mobile: +44 (0) 7583 085796

ade.o'connor@experian.com

Further information

Experian helped with over 40 million credit applications in 2015 in the UK.

Experian helped with over 1.9 million mortgage applications in 2015 in the UK.

Your credit scoremay differ at the three credit reference agencies (CRAs) because lenders share information on a voluntary basis and some choose to only work with one or two agencies.

CRAs like Experian do not decide who is given credit, contrary to popular belief, but the information we provide does help lenders determine which customers to accept, in conjunction with other information and based on their own criteria and policies. There is also no credit blacklist.

The information held by a CRA bureau on individuals' credit is purely factual and shows that the vast majority of people in the UK successfully repay their credit commitments.

*Total credit card debt in June 2016 per household was £2,413, according to The Money Charity. Assuming card-holders paid the average credit card interest rate of 18.9%, total savings over one year equals £456.06

Ade Potts is Managing Director of Experian's SME business.

About Experian

We are the leading global information services company, providing data and analytical tools to our clients around the world. We help businesses to manage credit risk, prevent fraud, target marketing offers and automate decision making. We also help people to check their credit report and credit score, and protect against identity theft. In 2015, we were named by Forbes magazine as one of the 'World's Most Innovative Companies'.

We employ approximately 17,000 people in 37 countries and our corporate headquarters are in Dublin, Ireland, with operational headquarters in Nottingham, UK; California, US; and São Paulo, Brazil.

Experian plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 index. Total revenue for the year ended March 31, 2016, was US$4.6 billion.

To find out more about our company, please visit http://www.experianplc.com or watch our documentary, 'Inside Experian'.