ScoreWatch - No Alerts until new Credit Report is pulled

[My_dog_FICO]

From the ScoreWatch thread:

If a new Equifax report is obtained by the subscriber, and this new score represents a change from the previous score received via a Score Alert or Credit Alert, this new report is then considered the “Score Alert” for this score change and no other Score Alert will be sent for this particular change.  (This process will be changing shortly so that anytime there’s a score change a Score Alert will be sent, whether or not the subscriber has obtained a new Equifax report and score in the meantime.)

This thread was posted by MyFICO Barry on 5 - 11 - 2007!

I received 1 alert in two months from MyFICO ScoreWatch.  I decided to purchase the Credit Complete to get all 3 of my FICOs.  Low and behold, my EQ FICO score was different than my last ScoreWatch FICO.

I don't require a daily update of my FICO like some of the obsessed FICO junkies do, but 1 alert in 45+ days and then to have a full CR pull end up with a new FICO that SW didn't show is bogus.  If they knew this was a 'feature' back in May and said they were going to 'upgrade scorewatch', why haven't they yet?

I personally love MyFICO, especially the Forums and the great advice, but... they have GOT to fix the ScoreWatch Alert process.  It's the key product that drew me and I believe many others to MyFICO in the first place.

[Dawn]

When I had the 30 day trial, I did receive one alert when my score changed.  I never pulled a second report.  However, there are two settings that reference triggering alerts whenever the score changes and they seem to be duplicates of one another.

The "AnyScore Change" was "on" as a default when I signed up ... but the "Target Score" was "off."  Based upon something I read somewhere else (other than the following section of the support file) I turned the "Target Score" "on" and set it to be equal to the current score to trigger an alert whenever the score changed.

I'm wondering if the "Any Score Change" doesn't work and it requires setting the Target Score to be equal to the current score in order to get alerts with "any score change."

Anyone in a position to try it and wait the 7-10 days it might take for ScoreWatch to check things out ... assuming that you would actually have a score change during that time frame?

Score Alerts

Subscriber Control

Description

Any Score Change

Subscriber can turn on or off.

Triggered whenever the score changes from the score on the last Score Watch score update.

Target Score

Subscriber can turn on/off and set target score.

Triggered whenever the score reaches or crosses the target score set by the subscriber. The target score can be set above or below the current score. If the target score is set equal to the current score, an alert is triggered by any score change either up or down.

Message Edited by denbar2003 on 11-14-2007 08:14 PM

Message Edited by denbar2003 on 11-14-2007 09:12 PM

[Niki9]

I have all of my alerts on..

When I used to purchase the product by the month I would get alerts all the time (because I have been trying to repair my credit)

Now that I decided to pay for the year in advance, I do not get alerts when my score changes.  Within the last 30 days I purchased my report 2 times and both times my score was different and I did not get the alerts.

This is becoming annoying.  I purchased the full year to save $$$$ and I know that my score is changing due to the activity that I am doing.  I should not have to buy a report to find out that the score has changed.

[My_dog_FICO]

Bump to MyFICO Moderator

[haulingthescoreup]

denbar, thanks for the reminder. I just changed my target score to my new whopping three-point-higher score. Still can't figure out why they label it that way. If you want to be alerted when your score moves AWAY from a figure, why on earth would you call it your target score? I did have mine set to the old score, and it never alerted. Anyway, I have been ready to dump it numerous times, but it did explain my score drop from the bucket thing, which would have just floored me otherwise.

Interesting point about payment options! I have the yearly plan, but with monthly payments. I have had score alerts, but they're not exactly wearing out my text message beep.

[smallfry]

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@haulingthescoreup wrote:
denbar, thanks for the reminder. I just changed my target score to my new whopping three-point-higher score. Still can't figure out why they label it that way. If you want to be alerted when your score moves AWAY from a figure, why on earth would you call it your target score? I did have mine set to the old score, and it never alerted. Anyway, I have been ready to dump it numerous times, but it did explain my score drop from the bucket thing, which would have just floored me otherwise.

Interesting point about payment options! I have the yearly plan, but with monthly payments. I have had score alerts, but they're not exactly wearing out my text message beep.

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While very infrequent I do get the alerts probably a couple of days after Equifax posts the pertinent changes on my actual report. I think after the sub runs out in a bit under a year I won't renew. It's cheaper to just pull a full FICO every quarter really. If you have numerous changes and it is vital to know your score that week it is fine but if not just pull every now and again. FWIW I was told to use your current score as your target score to get every change as soon as possible. The graphs are nice to have but it costs a bit much.

[haulingthescoreup]

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@smallfry wrote:
FWIW I was told to use your current score as your target score to get every change as soon as possible. The graphs are nice to have but it costs a bit much.

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That's what I was told too, by a myFICO CSR, if I remember correctly. It just seems like a bizarre term to choose, very counter-intuitive.

[Dawn]

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haulingthescoreup wrote:
denbar, thanks for the reminder. I just changed my target score to my new whopping three-point-higher score. Still can't figure out why they label it that way. If you want to be alerted when your score moves AWAY from a figure, why on earth would you call it your target score?

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I can't figure out why it isn't enough to rely on the "Any Score Change" option. 

It is turned on by default ... why do you need to do something so counter-intuitive with the target score to get alerts for any score change?

[smallfry]

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@denbar2003 wrote:

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@haulingthescoreup wrote:
denbar, thanks for the reminder. I just changed my target score to my new whopping three-point-higher score. Still can't figure out why they label it that way. If you want to be alerted when your score moves AWAY from a figure, why on earth would you call it your target score?

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I can't figure out why it isn't enough to rely on the "Any Score Change" option.

It is turned on by default ... why do you need to do something so counter-intuitive with the target score to get alerts for any score change?

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Why ask why? This from the algorithm that likes balnces instead of totally paid off accounts. I mean its not like they don't know you use your credit cards anyway. You report a 0 balance and use the card that month believe me they know. You get negligible credit for paying off a car loan. People with 10K available credit can get 750 FICO scores while people worth well over 1 million dollars who PIF every month score lower. There are just so many inconsistencies in this scoring model I could hang myself. If you apply for 10 credit cards and use them responsibly why should you be penalized for looking for credit. Its too subjective and doesn't do a very good job of predicting default if you ask me but that's just my opinion.