I have the same problem, in reverse. My lender is using Kroll to pull credit scores, and they are LOWER than my FICO. I challenged him on this, and he says that FICO is not real scores. So, I have essentially the same question. If FICO is pulling my score from say, TU, and it is lower than what TU reports and what FICO report, why is he getting a lower score?
Original Starting Score:553
Before people compain about the fact that this is an old post, keep in mind that I found it as others have and will continue to do so due to their specific search.
The reason I feel I must add to this topic is because all the incredibly false tales. Some people came close to being correct but I wanted to chime in with some factual data. If I'm not 100% certain on things I will state when or what on.
This answer is to not just to the original poster since hopefully by now they've moved on to the truth, but to the ones that find this after the fact. This will hopefully help.
No score you buy, even prescious myFico scores are "correct" scores. NONE. I know, how can this be? Not legal you say? Write your congressman\woman is all I can say. myFico I have found to be the better average, and that is ALL you can ever expect to get with these sites. Most of these sites provide you with what they'll call "Educational" an honestly, that's how you should view them and use them. You see the reports. So many people have no idea what a score is, or how it works. I'll explain that in factual detail in a moment, but first save your sanity and after the steam clears from your anger (mine took a long time but I learned slowly), look at what you can do and not put time limits into the equation. For now, forget your score. Want to improve it? Do this.
Get your report
Contact all accounts and collection agencies that you want off your report (via "Certified" mail), requesting validation of the account. Most collection agencies never show the date that matters which is the first date of delinquency, so that's enough to start with. I did this for 4 accounts. 3 in collection and one that was charged off. My letter never took ownership of the account (important), but never disputed it either. This is not the time for dispute. I asked each to please validate this account and send me the original creditor\lender and that account number. I also asked to be sure and send me my first delinquency date for said account. only 1 replied to me in 30 days. The other three I disputed (keep in mind that to dispute "I believe" you must have pull that report from somewhere in the last 30 days) and got removed from my report within 2 weeks. Thousands of dollars in depth for 3 certified letters and a phone call. The fourth did reply. They gave me the information I wanted and also agreed to remove it from my report if I paid it in full. I did and they eventually removed it a few weeks later. So your report (not your score) gives you enough to start repairing things. Once you've done all you can do, then rebuild, get a secured card (if you must) and do what we all do plus some extra tips that I do.
Scores - I never know what to do when ready topics like this. Laugh or cry. I think it's very sad actually that greed is what it is today and how much companies will take advantage of someone when they're vulnerable. I wish for the day of retaliation, even if that means total chaos and civil war. It really is getting that bad. If you're thinking that's an over reaction (meant to be), it's not far off when you learn how twisted it is that you cannot get the infamous "True score" anywhere directly to yourself.
The details I list here are facts, but rather than say what isn't fact, I just removed what I wasn't 100% sure on.
Experian sells reports. When you order from their actual site, guess what? You just bought your report from a sister company of Experian that even states it is for educational purposes. Experian pulled out from myFico a long time ago and refused to work with them at all. Then later, they allowed it but with the limitation of using an old model. Transunion and Equifax do the same thing (although 99% of blogs and credit articles say otherwise, keep in mind, they too have an agenda. I do not, nor am I affiliated with anyone). Experian you get your info from a company called "Consumer Info". When you then log in to view your report, you will be sent to freecreditreport to view it there because that too is an associate that buys data from Experian. Equifax is currently using a model for lenders called the 04 model, but you buy (from anywhere) the 98 model, fact. Very soon if not already, lenders will be seeing more and more data and credit agencies will be able to show more to lenders, such as spending habits for instance that current data fails to show. This is due to storage costs going down and demands from commercial industry increasing (growth progress I believe it's called). Transunion also shows old model data. So what does this mean and should you allow yourself to get worked up over it. I would say yes and no. Yes if you're going to actually do something about it, like write to Elizabeth Warren or your senate or congress person. No if otherwise because honestly after wasting hundreds in the last year+, I learned to go by myFico since it is more accurate, gives me the info I need, monitoring that does work great and does show when new things happen to my account such as a new account was added. The score? Haha, too funny that so many people say the Fico score is what lenders use. Not even remotely true. Before you say "Well, I read 100 people say that's true and only you are saying it's not", don't put anything to chance. Don't believe me even because times for credit reporting change are going to be changing quite a bit in the next year or two. Always revise your searches to show more current timelines, but for what I just mentioned, proving it is simple. Take a day and call every bank you can and ask for their card department, then ask what agency do they pull from. None will ever say myFico, not a single one. No credit union either. Does that make Fico scores or myfico a liar? No, people exagerate what they read and writers mislead when there's money to be made. Again, I prefer myFico, but not for the score.
Today I applied for a car loan. The car company worked with 2 banks and a credit union. This was told to me when I mentioned that if they were going to run a report on me that I wanted both my score and report from that bank (ask for both or don't expect both). I would not allow them to run it until that was agreed and the salesman was annoyed because he had to of course run that by the banks first (don't delay a salesman and his commision!). All the reports had the same info, the only thing I'm now talking about is the score. The first bank pulled from EQ. Score was 621. myFico score was 643. EQ score I bought fomr Transunion was 696. First bank denied the financing. Next was the credit union which was my first choice. They pulled from Experian. Score was 607. myFico score was 617, Expian's "Consumerinfo" crap, was 674. Loan negotiated, paid a larger deposit than I anticipated, got the loan with no need to do the third bank (which I was told pulled from Experian as well). By the way, a few weeks ago, the first day I spoke with this salesman, I asked him if he ever got a FICO score, "NO". Now yet again, I still use myFico, but the poin is, it's the closest that I've seen and it has what I need. Having my score in a rough ball park for me is now fine because I lost that burn we all get when first anxiously looking for results. I learned to fix what I could and stay diligent and on track.
Understanding scores.
People think that they have a score somewhere. That is probably the best place to start since that's not even true. You never have any one exact score anywhere. Sounds crazy huh? Well, it's a fact. In fact if I were a lender, I could pull your score 10 times in 10 minutes and each may vary a point or 2,,, or 10. How? Well, the more you know, the better so here goes. Keep in mind, the last thing I want to do is anger people. I want to educate you which is why I'm not an hour passed my sleep time 
Credit scores are updated when the scoring software is accessed. Your credit score is a calculation based on the data in your credit report. So when your credit is "pulled" and a score is requested, that score is calculated through the software, Beacon (software) for Equifax, FICO for Experian (don't confuse Fico software for myFico) and Empirica for Trans Union. Your credit report changes month to month, mostly by means of automated updates to your file from creditors who report to the bureaus. The differences reflected in that raw data causes changes in your score, but only when those calculations are performed in response to a request for a score.
Easy to prove if you have a myFico account. When you sign up and buy a report, did you ever wonder why on earth is it already asking me if I want to update my score when what I bought is merely a day old? Well, there ya go. I use myFico and whenever humanily possible and I apply for credit. I do so by demanding up front that they give me what they see, 100% or no dice. This won't work with credit card companies in my own experience, but loans, mortgage, you bet.
Getting to the close, keep in mind there is nothing free. Site like credit karma for instance. Great site and I go there as often as I come here, although their score is way over what my actual score ever was. Still though, free doesn't make sense. If you like fairy tales then believe what you wish, but companies are trying to make money. myFico makes money on selling you services and reports. Credit Karma does from credit card companies. Does that make them bad? Well, in my eyes originally, yes, but not now because I know what their agenda is my eyes are open.
I hope this is helpful and sorry I basically told most that posted that they were wrong. It's my intent to educate, not humiliate. I'm no better than anyone, just lucky to have learned what I have. I do not have an agenda. I only say to take anything you read with a grain of salt. Companies love vulnerability. Next blog or article you read, at least look at the site you're on. Did the person spam any one particular company? OR did they do the much more effective approach of nonchalantly mentioning someone? In my case, if anything I would see how people thought I was selling myFico haha. I've called them and told you all the truth, but also said I still prefer them over the rest, so you decide. For what it's worth, I promise my sole intent is for you to take the red pill and wake up to a better understanding is all. You're researching greatly needs current times, so looks at dates. I see new blogs written last month though based on info the author copied from things before the fair credit act even took place though, so it's always a scary ordeal if you allow yourself to focus on that "Score".
