CFPB Reports on Consumer Credit Scores

CFPB Dodd-Frank Consumer Reporting

On September 25, the CFPB published a report on credit scores and consumer reporting agencies. As required by the Dodd-Frank Act, the CFPB compared credit scores sold to consumers to those sold to creditors to determine the impact of the different scoring models used by consumer reporting agencies. Using 200,000 credit files obtained from each of the major consumer reporting agencies, the CFPB found that for a substantial minority of consumers, the different scoring models yielded meaningfully different results, i.e., the consumer and creditor purchased different credit scores from the same reporting agency. In comparing different models across various demographic subgroups, the CFPB found that different credit scores did not appear to treat different groups of consumers systematically differently than other scoring models. The CFPB cautioned consumers against exclusively relying on credit scores they purchase as a guide to how creditors will view their credit quality.  Additionally, the CFPB urged consumer reporting agencies to advise consumers that the scores they purchase could vary, sometimes substantially, from the scores used by creditors.