Credit Scores

Accurate recording of when a credit score is pulled and utilized for credit decisions is paramount, particularly in the context of credit applications.

This diligence is not just a best practice but is anchored in regulatory frameworks, most notably the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). The FCRA mandates the accurate and fair use of credit information, ensuring that consumers are protected from any misuse or misreporting of their credit data. Timely documentation ensures compliance with the FCRA and provides a transparent audit trail, safeguarding both the financial institution and the applicant from potential disputes or misunderstandings. Furthermore, since credit scores can fluctuate over time due to various factors, pinpointing the exact moment of retrieval guarantees that decisions are based on the most current and relevant data. This practice not only upholds the integrity and fairness of the lending process but also bolsters confidence and trust between lenders and consumers, ensuring that credit is extended based on precise, timely, and objective criteria.

A fintech shall provide all credit scores used for each credit decision during the lifecycle of a credit account: account opening, line increase request denied, penalty-based APR increase, account closure, etc. The credit score shall be always associated with a customer. If more than 1 score is used for a credit application, please add all relevant score IDs to the same application credit_score_ids field.

Example

1. Application to open a Line of Credit account with FICO score used for credit decision - POST /v1/credit_scores

Bash

   curl -X POST \
       -H 'Authorization: Bearer $apikey' \
       -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
       -d '
        {
        "customer_id": "{{application_customer_id}}",
        "score": 725,
        "score_requested_time": "2023-09-19T19:15:45.861687Z",
        "source_of_score": "ACCOUNT_OPENING",
        "type": "FICO",
        "vendor_name": "EQUIFAX",
        "version": "8"
      }' $baseurl/v1/credit_scores

Sample response body:

JSON

{
   "creation_time": "2023-09-19T15:48:24.10184Z",
   "customer_id": "4a666a01-d23a-47b1-8c20-2eb5a923da35",
   "id": "c387f46a-0a9e-44bc-82fa-aed68982e6a5",
   "last_updated_time": "2023-09-19T20:14:45.861687Z",
   "score": 725,
   "score_requested_time": "2023-09-19T19:15:45.861687Z",
   "source_of_score": "ACCOUNT_OPENING",
   "type": "FICO",
   "vendor_name": "EQUIFAX",
   "version": "8"
 }

Link credit score to the Line of Credit application - PATCH /v1/applications/{APPLICATION_UUID}

Bash

curl -X PATCH \
    -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
    -d '
    {
    "applicants": [
        {
        "is_primary": true,
        "customer_id": "4a666a01-d23a-47b1-8c20-2eb5a923da35",
        "credit_score_ids": ["c387f46a-0a9e-44bc-82fa-aed68982e6a5"]
    }' $baseurl/v1/applications/{APPLICATION_UUID}

Sample response body:

JSON

  {
  "account_type": "LINE_OF_CREDIT",
  "applicants": [
    {
      "credit_score_ids": ["c387f46a-0a9e-44bc-82fa-aed68982e6a5"],
      "customer_id": "4a666a01-d23a-47b1-8c20-2eb5a923da35",
      "is_primary": true
    }
  ],
  "purpose": "ACCOUNT_OPENING",
  "status": "SUBMITTED",
  "type": "CREDIT",
  "creation_time": "2023-09-19T19:14:45.861687Z",
  "id": "ebda67f0-e0a7-41e2-98ed-0617a1e815a6",
  "last_updated_time": "2023-09-20T00:31:10.255042Z"
}