THE WINNERS AT THE BRITISH SOAP AWARDS MIGHT NOT BE THE WINNERS IN CREDIT RATINGS

Could upright Ken Barlow be heading for a poor credit rating, whilst Ian Beale continues to improve his!

London 22nd May 2007 – As the stars of Britain’s favourite soaps prepare for the British Soap Awards this Saturday 26th May, leading online credit information provider, Equifax, has been analysing the financial behaviour of the characters to work out their credit scores.

“Whilst the characters are, of course, fictional, their behaviour often reflects real life and that’s why we thought it would be interesting to try to work out their credit ratings”, confirmed Neil Munroe, External Affairs Director, Equifax. “The Equifax Credit Rating™ gives anyone the ability to check out their credit score before they make applications for credit and loans. Using information from an individual’s credit file, the Equifax Credit Rating™ also helps consumers identify areas they may need to address to improve their credit score. Based on our analysis, some of the soap characters could certainly do some work to improve theirs!”

Dispelling the myth that your neighbours could damage your credit rating, the residents of Coronation Street, Albert Square and Emmerdale village have a wide range of credit ratings, according to the Equifax analysis!

Ian Beale, EastEnders – Equifax Credit Rating™ – EXCELLENT
Despite Ian’s variety of business ventures over the years, he has a good head when it comes to money and has probably made sure that his credit file has stayed positive. It is most likely, therefore, that he would get an ‘Excellent’ credit score.
Eric Pollard, Emmerdale – Equifax Credit Rating™ – EXCELLENT
Eric Pollard’s credit rating is probably ‘Excellent’ at the moment. He’s a good businessman and has probably kept a close eye on his credit file. But his rating could take a serious nose-dive when he discovers that his new-found son, David, pretended to be Eric and withdrew a large sum of money from his bank account. To protect his identity, Eric could take out an Equifax Credit Watch™ subscription – although it could be too late to catch out David!
Tony Hutchinson, Hollyoaks – Equifax Credit Rating™ – EXCELLENT
Straight-laced Tony Hutchinson should have an ‘Excellent’ credit rating, having been a successful business man in the show for many years. Firstly starting with his video shop and now his restaurant, Tony has lived at the same address for several years now and wouldn't dream of paying a bill late!
Ken Barlow, Coronation Street – Equifax Credit Rating™ – GOOD
Ken’s score is probably ‘Good’ at the moment, although his recent move to hairdresser, Denise’s could dent his score. He won’t be registered on the electoral roll at his new, possibly temporary address so if he applied for credit, this could count against him. He also recently took out a loan to pay for errant daughter, Tracey’s court case. If he doesn’t keep up the payments that could also hit his credit score
Norris Cole, Coronation Street – Equifax Credit Rating™ – FAIR
Norris Cole is a good upstanding, albeit nosey, citizen of Coronation Street. But he doesn’t seem to be one to take too many risks and probably doesn’t have any credit cards. So, despite his responsible attitude towards money, he may only have a ‘Fair’ credit score because there’s not much activity on his credit file. Lenders like to see how an individual has paid off previous credit agreements when deciding on new applications.
Jessica Harris, Hollyoaks – Equifax Credit Rating™ – FAIR
Jessica Harris’s Dad hasn’t set a very good example – having hidden heavy debts and now being declared bankrupt. But his bad financial behaviour shouldn’t affect Jessica unless she took out any joint financial agreements with her Dad – then his poor credit rating would be viewed alongside hers. Having lived at the same address for a few years, Jessica’s credit rating would probably be ‘Fair’.
Donna Dingle, Emmerdale – Equifax Credit Rating™ – FAIR
Aspiring policewoman, Donna Dingle, probably has a fair credit rating. Despite the behaviour of other family members, she has always been the sensible one and has probably kept up to date with any credit agreements. The only slight risk to her credit rating could be the fact that she doesn’t currently have a permanent address!
Honey Mitchell, EastEnders – Equifax Credit Rating™ – VERY POOR
Honey Mitchell takes a simple approach to life – and that should mean she would have a fair credit rating. But, unfortunately, husband Billy has been running up some serious debts which he hasn’t yet told her about! Because they probably share joint financial agreements, these are likely to reflect badly on Honey, however, until he owns up to them Honey is in the dark. But if she decides to apply for a loan or credit, perhaps to help pay for things for the new baby on the way, she might discover her husband’s errant ways!

The Equifax Credit Rating™ dispels the mystery of credit scores. It comprises a copy of an individual’s Equifax Credit Report™ and their credit score. Using sophisticated data analysis and decisioning technology, the credit score is calculated using information in an individual’s Equifax Credit Report™, compared to the credit information of thousands of people in the UK. Each type of information in an individual’s Equifax Credit Report™ is given points, based on how that information compares to people who pay their credit on time. The more information that compares favourably to those people who pay their credit on time, the higher the score.

There are five categories of score:

Above 475	Excellent
400-474	Good
350-399	Fair
350-399	Poor
Below 299	Very Poor

Commentary is provided with an individual’s Equifax Credit Rating™, indicating how likely it is that they will be able to obtain credit, on the basis of their score. The Equifax Credit Rating™ also provides risk signals against each of the sets of data used to create the score, including the Electoral Roll, Credit Agreements, Searches and County Court Judgments. A ‘traffic light’ signal enables a consumer to quickly identify any areas of information on their Equifax Credit Report™ which may be affecting their credit score. Advice is also provided on how to improve the information so that consumers can improve their overall credit rating.

Providing instant, online access, the Equifax Credit Rating™ gives consumers immediate access to everything they need to know about their credit status. And the completely interactive system means that they can drill down to the information that makes up their credit score to identify how to improve their credit report and rating.

The Equifax Credit Rating™, comprising the Equifax Credit Report™ and score costs £14.95 (including vat) and can be purchased from www.myequifax.co.uk.

Top Tips to Improve Your Credit Score

Ensure you are registered on the Electoral Roll.
If possible make more than the minimum payment on credit agreements every month. You will benefit by paying back your debt quicker, paying less in interest and you will build a positive payment history.
If you have paid any County Court Judgments, make sure the settlement is recorded on your credit file. If not contact the court to get confirmation details and inform the credit reference agencies.
If you have been refused credit, obtain a copy of your credit rating. But DO NOT carry on applying elsewhere. Each search by a lender will leave “footprints” on your credit file, this may look like you are over-stretching yourself financially.
If your circumstances have changed then say so. You can place a Notice of Correction on your credit file explaining your financial situation, which a lender will review when accessing any credit applications you make. For example if you were made redundant or have recently divorced and have fallen behind on credit repayments.
Avoid carrying a balance that is more than 30% of your credit limit (creditors may view it as excessive debt and that you may not be able to keep up with repayments).

END

Notes to Editors

If you would like more information or would like to arrange an interview with Neil Munroe please contact Cecile Stearn, Claire Foster, Kate Clements or Elinor Puzey at HSL on 020 8977 9132 or email claire@harrisonsadler.com

About Equifax

Equifax Inc. is a global leader in information technology that enables and secures global commerce with consumers and businesses. We are one of the largest sources of consumer and commercial data. Utilizing our databases, advanced analytics and proprietary enabling technology, we provide real-time answers for our customers. This innovative ability to transform information into intelligence is valued by customers across a wide range of industries and markets. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Equifax employs approximately 4,600 people in 13 countries throughout North America, Latin America and Europe. Equifax was founded 107 years ago, and today is a member of Standard & Poor’s (S&P) 500® Index. Our common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol EFX. .

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