Turn your pint of milk into a credit score boost

Building a good credit score can feel like a slow and complicated process. Whilst there’s no way of getting round the fact that you’ll need to get your financial commitments in check to see positive results, there are some other little things that could help give you an added boost if you’re doing everything else right.

For example, BuildMyCreditScore is a credit building tool that allows you to transform your everyday spending into a credit score boost, with the average user adding 52 points to their score in the first 3 months!*

Before we get into building up your credit score – and how the BuildMyCreditScore tool works – let’s have a quick look at what a credit score actually is and why you should care about it. 

Your credit score is provided by one of the three national credit bureaus. In the UK, this is Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. Your numerical score will be a little different with each one as they all use different scales, but you should be able to get an indication of where it ranks using the descriptions from ‘very poor’ all the way to ‘excellent’.

Broadly speaking, your credit score is a reflection of your relationship with credit. It usually improves if you credit commitments that you pay on time each month, for example a mortgage or credit card. Your credit score will usually be lower if you have missed a few payments, use a large percentage of the credit available to you, or even if you don’t have credit at all!

Having a great credit score isn’t exactly going to go on your Tinder profile and no one else can see it except you, so why even care at all? It’s just a number, right? 

Well, not exactly! Your credit history is the main factor that lenders will take into account when assessing if they want to lend to you in the future. They want to check that you are trustworthy when it comes to credit, and therefore they know their money will be paid back. Whether they deem you trustworthy or not will affect the interest rates you are offered, whether you’ll be approved for a mortgage, can take out car finance, and sometimes even rent a property.

So, if your credit score is a reflection of your credit history, then it’s a pretty important number to keep an eye on!

Using BuildMyCreditScore is simple. Once you have the BuildMyCreditScore daily spending card, you can just treat this as a regular debit card that is used for small, everyday purchases – think grabbing a coffee, buying a pint of milk, or paying for your commute. You’ll have a fixed upper limit on this card, so you won’t be able to use it for big spends – but that’s the whole idea!

The magic happens each day when the amount you spend on your BuildMyCreditScore card is paid off from your current account. BuildMyCreditScore then reports this to the credit bureaus as a credit repayment, which can help to demonstrate financially responsible behaviour. If this, in line with your other use of credit, shows that you’re consistently managing credit well then it could result in a positive change to your credit score.

BuildMyCreditScore can be particularly useful if you rent – rather than own – your property or you live with friends and family. Without a large monthly credit repayment like a mortgage, you’re missing out on an opportunity to show the credit bureaus that you can manage your money responsibly and build up a positive credit file.

When it comes to achieving a credit score boost, the number one thing you can do is focus on reducing your debts and keeping on top of your monthly payments.

If you have maxed-out credit cards and default on monthly repayments, then you’re much less likely to see a positive impact from using credit building products such as BuildMyCreditScore. Remember – your score is a reflection of all of your financial commitments and therefore you’ll need to make sure all of these are check before seeing positive changes.

BuildMyCreditScore also reports late payments which means that missing your repayments can have a negative impact on your score – so make sure you only ever spend what you can afford to repay. 

It’s worth being aware that there is a small fee to use BuildMyCreditScore which starts from £6.25 per month.