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The original was posted on /r/ukpersonalfinance by /u/rosedetokyo on 2023-07-02 18:48:31+00:00.

At the start of the year I was unemployed. I had lost my job just before Christmas and I was able to secure a job but it didn’t start until mid-February. I had various bills to pay, lived off the essentials only, and as a result maxed out my £500 credit card. This was a bit stressful as I’d only ever used it for one off purchases to then pay off straight away, but anyways, at the time it was needed. In February, just before it maxed out, my credit score was 559. Everything, as always, completely in the green.

It then dropped to 515 in March citing the 100% utilisation rate. I paid £150 into it and my score dropped in April to 488. In May, everything was looking up and I paid the remaining balance and closed the card. It was the only product I held with the bank. Once it was closed, I was approved for a card of the same limit with my existing bank. I’m now back in a position where I can just use it for one off purchases to pay off straight away.

However, my report for both May and June both showed a score of 488 citing the utilisation after paying off the card and closing it. I waited for 6 weeks, as Clear Score advises, and it still hadn’t updated so I reached out to them. They ran a new report with the provider of the card, confirmed it had been paid and closed, and updated my report accordingly.

My score is now 395 and I don’t really know why.

Everything else is in the green and I don’t have any hard searches. I still have a credit card with a very low utilisation (currently 0%) and the same limit. Can anyone explain why this happens?