A low number
isn't the whole picture.

There's no single number — Experian, Equifax and TransUnion each score you differently, and lenders build their own model on top of that rather than reading the score directly. A score that one app calls ‘poor’ can still pass with a lender whose criteria weigh things differently.

Comparison apps use their own simplified scale to make the number easy to understand. Lenders pull the underlying data and score it with their own model, so the number you see is a guide, not the actual decision.

Getting on the electoral roll, registering stable addresses and reducing existing credit utilisation all help over a few months. But if you need finance now, applying through a lender suited to your current file beats waiting and hoping the number moves.

No — we start with a soft search, which is invisible to other lenders and doesn't affect your score. Only a hard search, made once you choose to proceed, is recorded.

A thin file is a different problem to a poor one, and some lenders specialise in exactly that — first car, first finance agreement, limited history to go on. Tell us your situation honestly and we'll point you at the right panel.