What effect does a dormant Credit card have on my credit rat

[Z064life]

Hi guys,


What effect does a credit card not heavily used have on your credit rating? My CC went through a dormant period but is now heavily used (but well within the credit limit!!). Noddle (though it's relevancy is debated) gave me a 5/5 and 650 score (Excellent).


Years ago Experian gave me 992/999 but then dropped to 850 for no reason or change in circumstances (ok I have always changed jobs every 12 months, but broken that pattern now!). This was even before I paid significant monthly recurring payments or everyday expenses on my CC.

Any advice appreciated!
Thanks!

[Stu R]

850 is the max on experian now, so I'd say not much!

[Z064life]

Stu R said:

850 is the max on experian now, so I'd say not much!

Ha well it was around that mark, I'll double check!


RE the question if a credit card not used for some months matters, what's the consensus on that?

[Stu R]

Z064life said:

Stu R said:

850 is the max on experian now, so I'd say not much!

Ha well it was around that mark, I'll double check!


RE the question if a credit card not used for some months matters, what's the consensus on that?

I've got zero balance on 2 cards with 17k available. I've not used either since I moved to the US getting on 2 years ago and a quick look on Experian tells me my score has stayed about the same. Not exactly a huge sample size, but I honestly hadn't even thought about it until this thread appeared!

[Pheo]

Depends entirely on the credit scoring model of the bank / lender you want money from. They will all have a different risk tolerance (Which may well change daily!) and this will impact what they see as a problem.

[Gareth79]

A friend who works as a risk analyst for a very large credit card company (writing their internal scoring) said that after the electoral roll, the ages of the *oldest* lines of credit was one of their most important factors. ie. always keep your oldest credit card open, even if you never use it.

[matty g]

Stu R said:

850 is the max on experian now, so I'd say not much!

I've just checked and mine is still 995 with the OH @ 999