The FICO Auto Score is a credit score used by car loan lenders to evaluate potential borrowers. It is composed of two parts: the base FICO score and the industry-specific overlay score cards. The industry-specific overlay scoring cards target auto debt risk. While the base FICO score is an indicator of financial health, it's not a comprehensive measure of financial health.
Variables within your FICO auto score
Lenders use the FICO auto score as a way to assess whether you're eligible for auto loan approval. Although it has many variations, the FICO auto score is still the most commonly used score by lenders. FICO 9, the latest version of FICO's auto score, was introduced in 2014. It can be obtained from all three major credit agencies. To improve your score and get better deals, you should be able to identify the weights of each variable.
Credit bureaus provide information via a variety sources. These include creditors, loan companies and debt collectors. Be aware that not every company reports to all three bureaus. Your FICO score may not accurately reflect your credit history.
Variables in your VantageScore Credit Score
Your credit score is calculated based on several factors, including payment history and age. These variables contribute 61% to your total score. By contrast, FICO gives 35% of the weight to payment history, 10% to new lines of credit, and 15% to overall credit history. Both credit scores penalize late payments equally. Your credit score can be improved by using credit responsibly and paying your bills on time.
VantageScore 4.0 is the latest VantageScore credit rating model. It uses a longer historical to show a complete picture of the borrower's credit history. TransUnion, Experian, and TransUnion have different reporting requirements. Your VantageScore score will be more reliable.
How to access your FICO Auto Score
FICO can be helpful when you are trying for a new vehicle. It is also a useful tool to monitor your credit history. The base FICO score measures your creditworthiness. However, the FICO auto score focuses on auto loans. It is available in several versions and ranges between 250 and 900. The most recent version, published in June 2016, was based on TransUnion's CreditVision Data trend data and covers up 30 months.
A higher FICO credit score can increase your chances of getting approved for loans and may also result in a better interest rate. Signing up for credit monitoring may help you improve your FICO auto score depending on your financial circumstances. But, these services may not always be the same as your lender's. Many lenders use one or more of these credit bureaus for their auto scores. You need to find out which one is available.