In an effort to strengthen finance companies’ underwriting of potential customers with soft credit histories, TransUnion and FICO on Wednesday rolled out the availability of FICO Auto Score 9 XT based on TransUnion CreditVision trended data. The firms highlighted the new score is specifically catered to the auto finance marketplace and includes several new features, including trended data from TransUnion’s CreditVision.

Whereas a traditional credit report offers a glimpse of a consumer at a snapshot in time, executives explained trended data assets leverage an expanded view of credit data with up to 30 months of historical information. This includes available information on each loan account, including payment history, such as dollars paid, amount paid versus minimum due and the total amount borrowed over time.

“The use of trended data from CreditVision in FICO Auto Score 9 XT gives our auto finance customers an in-depth view of borrowers that they previously could not access,” said Steve Chaouki, executive vice president of TransUnion’s financial services business unit.

“We are excited to collaborate with FICO to make their score available through CreditVision for the auto finance community,” Chaouki continued. “Now, lenders and dealers will have a familiar FICO score through which to communicate the predictive power of TransUnion CreditVision. The score will help lenders fund more auto loan transactions at competitive rates, benefitting consumers, dealers and lenders.”

In addition to the use of trended data, the new FICO Auto Score 9 XT ignores collection agency accounts that have been paid off. And like other scores in the FICO Score 9 family, it differentiates unpaid medical accounts that have gone into collections from unpaid non-medical accounts that have gone into collections.

“FICO Auto Score 9 XT is the latest innovation from FICO designed to address the interests of both lenders and consumers,” said Jim Wehmann, executive vice president of scores at FICO. “We’ve worked with TransUnion on a score that examines the way a consumer’s behavior is evolving.

“This helps creditworthy consumers qualify for the best credit terms available to them, and helps auto lenders expand their portfolios safely by making more precise decisions about loan terms,” he added.

The firm went on to mention the expanded view of data from TransUnion CreditVision can reveal trends and behaviors, such as consumers making on-time payments, paying more than the minimum amount due, reducing total amounts borrowed or decreasing utilization over time.

“The inclusion of CreditVision in FICO Auto Score 9 XT enables dealers and lenders to take these behaviors into account. This is especially important because a traditional credit report may tell you a consumer has $7,000 in credit card debt, but one using trended data will show you whether they have built up or paid down that balance over time,” Chaouki added.

FICO Auto Score 9 XT based on TransUnion CreditVision trended data will also be made available by national credit reseller ProMax Unlimited.

“CreditVision and FICO Auto Score 9 XT are evolutionary leaps forward and will allow lenders to make better decisions and give dealers tools and information to close more auto loan transactions at competitive terms,” said John Palmer, president and chief executive officer of ProMax Unlimited and ProCredit Express.

“TransUnion CreditVision is already available now to any dealer through ProCredit Express, and we will make FICO Auto Score 9 XT available in 2016,” Palmer went on to say.