# Your business credit score: how it works and how to improve it

*Source: https://credicorp.co.uk/support/business-credit-score-how-it-works/*

Your business credit score is a number that tells lenders and suppliers how risky it is to extend credit to your company. A stronger score can mean easier access to finance, better terms, and more generous supplier credit. The encouraging part is that much of what feeds the score is within your control. This article explains how a business credit score works and the practical steps to improve it.

## What a business credit score is

A business credit score is a rating, produced by a business credit reference agency, that summarises the likelihood your company will pay what it owes. Each agency has its own scale and its own model, so your company can score differently with different agencies — there is no single universal number. The main UK agencies are covered in [business credit reference agencies explained](/support/business-credit-reference-agencies-explained/).

Crucially, this is a score on the **company**, not on you as an individual. It is built from the business’s own record, not your personal consumer credit history.

## What feeds the score

While each agency weighs things differently, business scores generally draw on:

- **Payment history** — whether the company pays suppliers and lenders on time. Late payments reported by suppliers can pull a score down; consistent on-time payment supports it.

- **Companies House filings** — filing your annual accounts and confirmation statement on time, and keeping company and director details accurate. Late or overdue filings are a visible red flag.

- **Public records** — county court judgments (CCJs), which signal unpaid debts that ended up in court.

- **Credit utilisation and commitments** — how much credit the business is using relative to what it has available.

- **Business age and stability** — a longer, steady trading history generally reads as lower risk than a very new one.

- **Director information** — for small companies, agencies may consider data about the directors, since a micro-company’s risk is tied to the people running it.

## Practical steps to improve it

You will not change a score overnight, but steady habits move it in the right direction:

- **Pay on time, every time.** Settling supplier invoices and any borrowing on or before the due date is the single most influential habit. If you are heading for a missed payment on borrowing with us, tell us early — see [early repayment: how and what you save](/support/early-repayment-how-and-what-you-save/) for how settling sooner reduces interest.

- **File at Companies House on time.** Submit your accounts and confirmation statement by their deadlines and keep your registered details current. Overdue filings are easy to fix and visibly damaging.

- **Check your own file.** Review what each agency holds, and challenge errors. Checking your own file does not harm your score.

- **Deal with CCJs.** If your company has a CCJ, paying it and having it marked “satisfied” is better than leaving it outstanding.

- **Build a track record.** Using modest trade credit and repaying it reliably helps establish a positive history, especially for a newer company.

- **Keep utilisation sensible.** Routinely maxing out every facility can read as strain; leaving some headroom reads as control.

## How your score relates to borrowing from us

When your company applies, we run a business credit check as part of how we assess it. But the score is one input, not the whole decision. We also look at the company’s turnover and bank-account history to judge whether the borrowing is genuinely affordable. You can read about our approach on [how we lend](/how-we-lend/).

It is also worth repeating that borrowing from us is assessed on, and recorded against, the **company** — not your personal consumer credit file. A strong business credit score helps your company across the board: with lenders, suppliers and partners. Treat it as a long-term asset of the business, build it with consistent, on-time payments and tidy filings, and check it regularly so you can fix problems before they cost you.

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Credicorp Limited — UK lender to limited companies (Company No. 16093826). credicorp.co.uk