Equifax Range: -93 to 558

[Anonymous]

Hi all,

A while ago I had applied for a credit card from Citizens Bank (RBS Citizns) and was not approved for the card.  I had forgotten about this until coming across the rejection letter today.  The letter, dating from last October informed me that my credit score from Equifax was 284 (yes, that's what it said)... somehow down from 689 just 6 months before.  The letter then explained that Equifax scores range from -93 to 558.

Anyone know just what the heck these people are smoking?

[starry1]

They are using a completely different scoring range. Fico is about 300-850.

[pizzadude]

Haven't seen the negative score range before ~ but this is certainly a FAKO score model, which can't be correlated to a FICO score.

[Anonymous]

Thanks, I understand that Equifax and FICO each use their own algorithm and have different ranges.  What I was more concerned about was RBS Citizens telling me that the Equifax score ranged from -93 to 558.  Per Equifax, their score ranges from 280 to 850.

I was just wondering if anyone could help me make sense of what Citizens told me about my Equifax score.

[Anonymous]

What do you mean by FAKO score?

I'm a newbie.

[Anonymous]

A FAKO is not a FICO.  It is a score derived from a scoring system for that company only and not Fair Issacs.

[Anonymous]

I see... should I have posted this question in another forum?  If so, would a moderator be able to move it?

I'm still very curious about this because, in the end, it was this FAKO score that was used to make a very real decision.

[Anonymous]

Different creditors use different scores from different places.  Though a FICO score is the most widely used, creditors don't have to use it.

If a Mod thinks it needs to be moved, they will.  Don't worry about it you're fine.

[pizzadude]

I'd also recommend taking a look at these links ~ they should help you understand the differences between FAKO and FICO scores.

Credit Scoring 101:

http://ficoforums.myfico.com/fico/board/message?board.id=ficoscoring&thread.id=29793

The Son Of Credit Scoring 101

http://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Rebuilding-Your-Credit/The-Son-Of-Credit-Scoring-101/m-p/718550#U718...

[Anonymous]

Thank you, sir!