Borrowers are misreading the new credit score scale, pushing advisers to handle more reassurance and triage
Mortgage advisers are bracing for a wave of client questions after Experian rolled out a major overhaul of its consumer credit score, a change expected to leave many borrowers facing lower numbers overnight, even where their financial behaviour has not shifted.
The agency’s move to a 1,250-point scale, along with new weightings for short-term borrowing, recently opened accounts, credit utilisation and behavioural markers such as rent and overdraft activity, is already raising alarms among applicants preparing mortgage cases.
For advisers, the issue is not the technical recalibration itself but what it is likely to trigger: a surge in worried borrowers, misunderstanding what the new score means and turning to brokers for reassurance. That, brokers say, is where the real workload begins.
Confusion expected
Carmen Green of Xpress Mortgages said she is already preparing for more upfront conversations with clients trying to interpret their revised scores. Too many borrowers, she says, believe the Experian number is the decisive factor in a mortgage application.
“We don’t focus too much on the credit reference agency credit scores as although it has a bearing, it isn’t the actual score a lender uses,” she said.
Green explained that lenders’ internal scorecards remain far more detailed than the single figure consumers see, assessing both the credit file and the structure of the mortgage itself. Lenders look at “missed/late payments, CCJ’s, Defaults etc,” but also take into account “the size of deposit, how close to the maximum affordable amount, time in current employment, term length, how close to retirement, debt to income ratio, use of funds (ie debt consolidation).”
This means cases can diverge sharply even when credit files look identical. Green notes: “You could have two clients with exactly the same credit profile, but applying for a different type of mortgage with one being accepted, and one declined.”
She also points out that lender appetite also plays a significant role in outcomes, with scorecard thresholds shifting depending on the type of business a lender is targeting. When lenders want to attract certain customers, such as first-time buyers, or move away from others, like debt-consolidation cases, their internal scoring criteria adjust accordingly.
From an adviser’s perspective, all of this has to be explained, often repeatedly, as clients try to reconcile Experian’s new scale with lender behaviour that hasn’t changed at all.
More triage, more reassurance, more case management
This disconnect between consumer scoring and lender rules is why advisers expect tangible increases in workload. Brokers anticipate:
- More inbound calls from borrowers alarmed by sudden score drops
- More time spent reviewing full credit reports, because clients may assume issues where none exist
- More preventative advice to stop applicants from making hasty changes
- More detailed explanation of lender scorecards and appetite
Many fear borrowers will try to “fix” their scores by taking actions that could harm mortgage prospects, closing accounts, paying off the wrong debt, or running multiple credit checks. Each of those triggers additional broker input, often mid-case, increasing case-handling time.
Tony Higham of Mortgage Success summed up the underlying issue: “To be honest, I always tell people to ignore the score. At best it is an indication, but most lenders use their own internal scoring systems. Good or bad score, there are lenders out there at both ends of the scale.”
His blunt assessment reinforces why advisers expect more effort will be needed to keep cases on track, especially when the public-facing score now looks different and feels unfamiliar.
An opportunity to reinforce the value of advice
Green believes this period of confusion also gives advisers a chance to strengthen their role in the process. With lenders’ preferences and scorecards varying widely, whole-of-market knowledge becomes even more valuable.
“The benefit of using a whole of market mortgage adviser is that we have knowledge and experience of the different lenders, what they do and don’t ‘like’, and ways to adjust the loan , sometimes just very slightly, to get the all important pass.”
Her recommendation is clear: “download and send a copy of their credit report and score to their mortgage adviser for review, rather than trying to figure it out themselves. Having these discussions early gives borrowers the time to understand the impact of their credit reports based on expert advice.”
For brokers, Experian’s overhaul may not change lender behaviour, but it will change borrower behaviour, and that alone is enough to increase advisory workload. The challenge now is helping applicants understand that the new score is a fresh number, not a fresh risk.
