Remember the computer named HAL in 2001: A Space Odyssey? The computer took it upon itself to start killing the crew because it determined it was necessary due to its calculations. All without a single human hand in the decision, until of course someone managed to turn it off in the end.
Today, some business owners feel like that crew member and want to turn off the computers that are now automating the processing of loan applications. They work through a program called credit scoring, and it’s something very important for everyone wanting to get business credit accounts.
Credit providers use these computers to make their jobs faster as they look at loan applications. They use these systems to cut processing costs, quickly adjust rates and terms, and decide on credit risks. It also adds objectivity to decisions. The computers decide, through special software, which borrowers pay back loans and which will not through a check of up to 20 factors that determine credit worthiness. Many creditors use it to decide on transactions under $100,000, with over 90% using it for business credit transactions below $ 50,000.
Fair Isaac and Company, a credit scoring service, did research on statistical credit modeling in the 1980s. They found out that individual credit behavior of a company’s key principals/owners can predict if they will be a good risk for a loan. It scores business credit scores ranging from 50 to 350, with above 220 considered to be a good risk and below 175 to be a high risk. The overruling factor in business credit scoring is a business owner or his principal’s credit history. They also use other factors when scoring smaller transactions.
Business-connected credit factors they score are: company’s time in operation; company size; trade; kind of business organization; debt history; net worth; average bank accounts; ratio of debt service to cash flow; and recent judgments, bankruptcies or collections. Some creditors come up with their own systems loosely based on the Fair Isaac model, changed to better meet their needs and desires. If your company doesn’t get their loan approved because of a snafu with these types of scoring models, get the lender to tell you why. They might redo the application.
Some creditors put high risk candidates into a special group and give them loans, but charge higher fees and interest rates or ask for more collateral or other guarantees. You can improve your score by developing better credit habits, paying all your taxes, settling any outstanding judgments, pay bills on time, eliminate supplier disputes, sell or factor accounts receivable to improve flow of cash, set up your company with the Secretary of State in your area, buy from places that report the activity, set up auto payment methods to pay bills, and keep good credit habits for 12 months or more.
Credit scoring isn’t always fair and certain, but it does a good job of figuring out the risks for some types of borrowers. The problem is that it may leave out those that don’t fit the computer’s mold, somewhat like the crew on HAL’s ship didn’t fit its idea of perfection. Should this happen to you, you many have a hard time getting business credit. If so, it’s time to try to find a creditor that still uses humans, instead of computers, for their business deals. Good Luck.
