If your credit score has gone down, the UK agencies’ guides name the usual causes: a missed payment, higher balances or a lower limit, several applications, closing an old account, a move off the electoral register, or a financial link. Each agency scores you separately.
This desk read the three agencies’ pages and the ICO’s on 15 October 2026; the question is evergreen.
Why has my credit score gone down at one agency only?
The ICO names three main consumer credit reference agencies: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. TransUnion’s guide says each runs its own databases. A fall in one app is that agency’s score alone.
What each agency’s page names
TransUnion’s column comes from its turned-down-for-credit page; its score-change page could not be read in full. A dash means the page read does not list it.
| Cause | Experian | Equifax | TransUnion (turned-down page) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missed payments | Forgotten account in arrears | Listed | Listed |
| Balances and limits | Card balances | Utilisation; cut limit | — |
| Applications | Repeated searches | Hard searches | — |
| Closing an account | Oldest account | Listed | — |
| Moving house | Electoral register not updated | Join roll at new address | Electoral register |
| Financial links | Joint accounts, guarantor, joint CCJ | — | Shared card |
| Defaults, bankruptcy, IVA | — | Up to six years | — |
Equifax’s figures are its own: a score out of 1,000, poor below 438, and utilisation under 25% called good industry practice. For arrears, see what happens if you miss a personal loan payment.
What if the drop comes from an error?
The ICO says to raise an inaccuracy with the agency whose file you hold, or with the original lender. If neither corrects an obvious inaccuracy, you may complain to the ICO, which does not decide financial disputes. Experian and TransUnion let you ask to remove a stale financial link.
FAQ
Why is my credit score going down when I pay on time?
Paying on time is one input. Experian’s guide also names higher card balances, repeated applications, closing your oldest account, an address not updated on the electoral register and financial associations. Equifax adds a lender cutting your limit, which raises utilisation even if spending is unchanged.
Why did my credit score go down when nothing changed?
The file may have changed rather than your behaviour. A lender can lower your limit, a forgotten account can slip into arrears, or an error can appear. Equifax tells readers to check what the agencies hold, dispute any mistake, and be wary of identity theft.
Why does my credit score keep dropping?
Repeated drops often follow repeated applications. Experian says lenders may read many applications in a short period as desperation, while eligibility-tool searches will not affect your score; Equifax says soft searches don’t. Check each agency, since TransUnion says many lenders search only one.
Our soft-search piece covers eligibility checks. Loan Herald is a publisher, not a lender or broker, and is not authorised by the FCA; nothing here is advice.