D&B Credit Scores
Dunn & Bradstreet rates companies for their likelihood of repaying credit in a timely manner. Their credit scoring system is designed to predict if a company will become severely delinquent on loans. Severely delinquent is defined as paying at least 25 percent of a company's bills late and over 10 percent of loans more than 90 days past due. The D&B credit score is reviewed by many lending institutions prior to extending credit. Maintaining a high D&B score is important for your business success.
Instructions
1. Review your D&B credit report and ensure that all of your business information is current and correct. D&B provides a service called eUpdate which is included with your D&B account and allows you to access and update your account information online. Inaccurate information in your report can have a detrimental effect on your score.
2. Pay your bills on time. One of the most important factors in your D&B credit score is your record of timely loan repayment. Late payments have a significant negative impact on your score.
3. Add lines of credit to your D&B report. The more credit lines you have that have been re-payed in a timely manner, the better your score will be. Contact D&B and ask to have any lines of credit you have that are not reflected in your D&B report added to your account.
4. Resolve any legal matters in a timely manner. Open lawsuits or liens against your business will detract from your credit rating.
5. Improve your financial statements. Increase your cash flow and your cash on hand, collect debts owed to you on time and increase your net worth and your operating capital.
