Credit bureau Experian has launched a new employment verification product, Experian Verify, to more accurately convey employment data to lenders and increase their pool of potential customers.
The new solution was launched among Experian clients in April, in conjunction with the acquisitions of data providers Tax Credit Co. and Emptech. The suite of products offers Experian Verify and Experian Verify Premium, according to Michele Bodda, president of Experian Verifications, Employer Services and Mortgage.
“Our clients had been seeking a solution to some of the legacy systems out there,” Bodda said. “Leveraging the most accurate traditional credit data, and then expanded data like verified income and employment, allows lenders to form a really precise picture of an individual’s financial situation so that they can lend responsibly.”
The solution can be used across credit products, including credit cards and mortgage, auto and personal loans, but also for tenant screening, Bodda said.
Experian Verify allows lenders to find data such as a borrower’s employer, salary and starting date. Experian Verify Premium offers a deeper dive into the borrower’s employment data, including pay records over the last two years. The products increase credit access to consumers with limited credit histories by allowing lenders to instantly verify income and employment status, Bodda said.
The suite is part of Experian’s new Employer Services business line, launched last November with the acquisition of a third company, Corporate Cost Control. The business line also includes unemployment claims management, tax credit management, I-9 certification, other services related to mergers and acquisitions, and income and employment verification.
The Experian Verify suite currently contains the employee records of 40 million U.S. consumers. Verified income and employment have become more critical than ever in areas outside mortgage, where those items have been required for years, Bodda said, largely because of the pandemic.
“A lot of dealers and lenders have traditionally relied on an applicant’s stated income, but given the situation in the past 12 to 15 months, recognized a need to confirm the data that they were getting on the application in a similar way to how they confirm a consumer’s credit risk,” Bodda said.