Credit Agencies Launch Joint Score

The three national credit reporting companies have launched a jointly developed credit scoring system designed to simplify the credit granting process by providing a consistent score to the marketplace.The system, called VantageScore, was developed as a result of market demand for a more consistent and objective approach to credit scoring, according to Costa Mesa, Calif.-based Experian. The system uses score ranges from 501 to 990 and assigns letter grades of A through D and F to each range. The top grade of A will be assigned to a borrower with a score of 901 to 990, and the other grades and score ranges are as follows: B, 801-900; C, 701-800; D, 601-700; and F, 501-600. "The new scoring system addresses the potential weaknesses in existing scoring solutions in the marketplace because any variances in credit scores between credit reporting companies will be attributed to data differences within each of the three consumer credit files and not to the structure of the scoring model or interpretation of the data," Experian said.