Are you playing your cards right? Confused.com reveals credit risk winners and losers

Despite the UK national debt hitting an all time high, the UK credit picture is not all bad news. New research from confused.com into how credit profiles vary across the UK identifies the most lendable regions across the country and the UK’s credit risk capital, where residents are least likely to be able to obtain credit. Findings from the comparison site include: • Residents in the Channel Islands are the most attractive for lenders, topping the table with the highest average credit profile; • People from the South West are the worst credit performers in the UK; • The East of England and Southern England made the biggest improvements, both increasing their average scores by over 10%; • Dorchester wins the ‘credit risk capital’ award, with the worst average credit profile of any town or city; • Stevenage has seen the biggest improvement in the last quarter, making it into the top ten most lendable towns and cities, a list topped by South West London; • Unsurprisingly, younger people are deemed to be the highest risk for credit, with those in the 18-21 age group considered the riskiest. Those with a little more money management experience, in the 61-65 age group, are the least risky. Compare without concern For customers concerned that making multiple applications in the hunt for the best deal will leave a mark on their credit file, Confused.com has a nifty tool that can work out the likelihood of them being accepted for a credit card without the need to make a formal application. The tool, available on Confused.com, uses some basic information about the customer combined with checks from a credit reference agency to determine how likely they are to be offered a card. It then displays the results (as both an overall percentage and individual marks out of ten) alongside a range of cards so the customer can review and compare the range they are interested in, and select which one to apply for. The credit reference agency checks are administrative only and do not leave a mark that lenders can view, on a customers credit record. Joanne Garcia, head of credit cards at Confused.com, said: “For financially savvy customers, like the people of the Channel Islands, it can be used to identify a better deal than they have at the moment, saving them both time and money. In addition, for those people who are worried about the effects of failed credit card applications our tool can offer peace of mind, by working out the likelihood of being accepted before a full application is made. The tool does not leave a detrimental mark on a customer’s credit file. ” The tool can be used across a range of credit cards Confused.com offers, whether customers are looking for a new rewards card, a balance transfer deal or a purchase card for shopping. By performing an administrative search on an individual’s credit file the tool offers a strong prediction of whether an application will be accepted, without a full credit check which would leave a permanent record on file. Joanne continues: “It’s always good practice to be aware of what affects your credit record and do what you can to manage it. Things like making sure you meet credit card payments, not borrowing too much, not remaining too close to your credit limits and not making multiple credit applications will all help.”