Renters and buy now pay later users may benefit from positive money behaviour

Credit information company Experian has unveiled an “enhanced” version of Experian Boost, designed to help give people greater visibility into some financial information which it said lenders increasingly consider when assessing applications.

The new version takes a broader view of how people use their money and reflects new ways of spending, such as buy now pay later (BNPL).

While traditional credit information remains an important part of the process, lenders increasingly look beyond a credit report to build a broader picture of an applicant’s financial circumstances, Experian said, with Boost now giving people insight into how a lender may view their everyday spending habits, as part of affordability checks.

It aims to help people understand how their regular spending impacts their chances of accessing credit.

Experian Boost is a free service that allows people securely to connect their current account via a technology called open banking to their Experian account.

The service analyses account information and organises it into categories that reflect information lenders may consider alongside traditional credit data when assessing an application.

These include rent and housing-related payments, household bills and short-term borrowing activity.

Experian Boost will allow tenants to add their rental payments directly to their credit report.

People receive personalised insights explaining what may be helping their financial profile, what may be affecting it and what actions they may wish to take in future.

At launch, the enhanced Experian Boost uses current account information only, with plans to introduce credit card spending data into Boost in 2027, giving people a wider understanding of how their overall spending behaviour may be viewed when applying for products such as mortgages, loans and car finance.

Experian Boost will start the new rollout this week and be available generally by the end of November.

When more than 113,000 existing Boost consumers were run through the new Boost product (excluding consumers with insufficient data to generate a score) in July, 71% received a positive uplift after signing up to Boost, Experian said.

Edu Castro, managing director, consumer services UK and Ireland at Experian, said: “We’re putting more power into people’s hands by giving them greater understanding of the financial behaviours that can influence access to credit.

“At a time when many households are looking for ways to make their money go further, helping people unlock better financial opportunities has never been more important.

“The latest Experian Boost update helps positive financial behaviours, such as paying rent and household bills on time, work harder for consumers.”