Credit building shows lenders you can borrow money and pay it back responsibly.
Quick summary
- Your credit history matters because it gives you access to greater borrowing options
- Credit history is built based on how you manage your borrowing payments, your credit utilisation (more on that later), and other factors like frequency of credit applications and other records, like court orders
- Your credit history is in motion. With time and good, healthy habits, you can make it stronger
What is a credit score?
A credit score is a simple number that sums up how the UK credit reference agencies (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion) think you manage credit, based on the information in your credit report.
Think of it like a record of trust. You build your credit by proving you’re a safe pair of hands, in lots of ways, that we’ll explain.
Your credit history and score are not set in stone. You can work on them and improve them.
Who helps track your credit building?
There are three credit reference agencies (CRAs) in the UK: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion.
These agencies create regular, personalised reports on your credit, known as credit reports or credit files.
These reports simply record your credit history, so whether you’ve made payments on time, missed a payment, or lack an official address.
Building your credit means improving the information on these reports. It’s about showing the credit reference agencies that you can access credit and use it responsibly.
Lenders assess your underlying credit history rather than the score itself, so steady, on-time payments and well-managed accounts matter most.
What influences your credit building?
There are many ways to improve your credit rating. Some may work more quickly than others, but it’s important to focus on a few areas over time:
- Consistent, affordable repayments help build a positive history
- Using credit responsibly (credit utilisation, loan/credit card history), keeping utilisation low (ideally under 25%) is a healthy signal to lenders
- How long you’ve held accounts for
- Applications for new credit (hard searches)
- Public record information (e.g. CCJs, insolvency)
What doesn’t influence your credit building?
Your credit score is based on how reliable the credit reference agencies believe you are. The number is determined by a range of factors, but it will never be influenced by:
- Your income or savings
- Checking your own credit report
- Your marital status
Why your credit score can change
Your credit score often changes.
For example, it may change when you open new lines of credit, or if you move house and update your details on the electoral roll.
Credit reference agencies update your reports regularly, and these updates affect your score. Changes may also happen if the agencies update their scoring models, which are the systems used to calculate your score.
A quick note on timing: new accounts and limits are typically reported monthly and can take a little while to appear.
It may take up to three months for a new Loqbox Grow account to show on your file, and credit-limit changes are reported at month-end for the previous month, so they can take a couple of months to display on your reports.
When you start using Save, you might see a small dip in your credit score at first. That’s because it’s a new credit agreement on your credit file.
The positive change comes once you begin making your regular payments. That’s when your score should start to improve. A new Save account may take three months to show on your record.
On average, members who use Save alongside other tools like Grow and Rent have seen their scores rise by up to 200 points over 12 months.
How to strengthen your credit building
You can improve your credit score, and it moves all the time.
The key is understanding what makes it change and how you can influence it, so you stay in control. Here are a few steps to get started:
- Register on the Electoral Roll
- Make repayments on time
- Keep credit utilisation low (ideally under 25%), raising your available limit or reducing balances can help keep this number down.
- Confirm your personal details match across Loqbox, lenders and the three CRAs
- Check your credit report with all three CRAs regularly, and if there are errors, flag them up. It’s free to check your report
Some top tips from Loqbox:
- Pace yourself and focus on affordability. Choose payment amounts you can stick to even if you hit a bump in the road. Missed payments can harm your history and your score.
- Give changes time to land. Many members start to see meaningful improvement after using Loqbox for over six months; combining tools like Grow, Save and Rent could help you progress faster (some members see up to 200 points within 12 months).
- Want extra information? Loqbox Learn emails can help you manage the factors beyond Loqbox that affect your reports and scores, and Nooli’s new app offers personalised challenges to build financial confidence.
Where to check your progress
All three credit reference agencies display your score on their statutory credit reports.
They are free to access, and importantly, checking them will not harm your score.
It’s usually a good idea to check them regularly to make sure you’re moving in the right direction with the changes you’re making.
A few expectations to set:
- Reporting isn’t instant. New accounts and limits are reported monthly and can take up to a few months to appear on your files.
- Every credit profile is different and improvements aren’t guaranteed.
Progress depends on many factors, and missed payments may harm your progress.
Need help?
If you have questions about your score, please reach out to our member support team.
- If you're already a member, log in and tap the purple help button to chat with us.
- If you can’t log in or you’re not yet a member, you can submit a request here.