Experian announced Experian Credit Educator, a dedicated consumer-education service that is now available to consumers. Experian’s lending clients also can offer it to their customers as a valuable benefit.

“The economic recession has significantly changed consumer awareness and attitudes toward credit and we found that consumers were asking Experian for assistance in taking a more active role in understanding their credit. The Credit Educator program is our response to this consumer request and provides a dedicated one-on-one focus on credit education to increase dialogue and provide personalized tips for maintaining a healthy credit profile,” says Andrew Sheehan, senior vice-president, Consumer Information Services, Experian. “Our clients see this trend for credit knowledge growing as well and are looking to education as a way to improve customer loyalty, while providing an added-value to their customers.”

The Experian Credit Educator service provides a private, telephone-based session conducted by a trained, U.S.-based agent. The consumer receives a copy of his or her Experian credit report and VantageScore, the industry’s first credit score developed jointly by the three national credit reporting companies. During the session, the Experian Credit Educator agent will provide a detailed review of each section of the consumer’s credit report, how credit works, how items affect the credit score, an explanation of the VantageScore and score factors, national and regional score averages, and guidance for maintaining a healthy credit profile.

Experian is equipped to provide credit education in multiple capacities:

 

 

Experian Credit Educator for Consumers—This service is available for $29.95 to consumers who are interested in achieving their optimal financial health by receiving in-depth credit education for a variety of situations and assists consumers in answering credit related questions, such as:

•    I paid my bill in full, so why is it still showing up on my credit report?

•    How can applying for credit impact my score?

•    What are the factors impacting my credit score?

•    How do I know if my credit score is good or not?

•    What are some actions I can take to optimize my credit score?

 

 

Experian Credit Educator for Enterprises—This unique service is offered to banks, mortgage companies, credit unions or any other company that uses credit data to make lending decisions to provide an added-value and satisfaction to their customers. Those business clients will be provided with a dedicated toll-free number and can direct their customers to Experian for a personal education session that covers each of the topics listed above, as well as to inquire about their credit score and how creditworthiness can affect lending decisions. With recent regulatory changes, many lenders are faced with a growing number of customer inquiries about credit. The Experian Credit Educator for Enterprises service provides them with a resource to address those questions and enhance their customers’ experience.

To gauge consumers’ receptiveness to receiving credit education, Experian launched a pilot program earlier in the year that comprised consumers from several of Experian’s utility clients. Exit surveys were conducted, and the results showed that more than 96% of respondents indicated they were likely or very likely to act on the knowledge they received and/or would change how they use credit. Additionally, 98% of the consumers found the service “helpful” in understanding credit and how it impacts them.