Most of us have never heard of the TRIAD score, and yet, if your creditor asks, Fair Isaac will sell it to them. TRIAD is a transaction Score that takes into account credit risk, attrition, potential revenue, and patterns in your charging behavior that may indicate higher or lower risk.

TRIAD generates 3 numbers – the credit-risk score and the attrition scores -which each range from 50 to 999, with higher being riskier – plus a dollar figure that indicates how much money your lender might make on your account.

You’re familiar with the credit-risk score, but what are these others?

The attrition-risk score refers to the probability that a user will stop using a card. It’s used in combination with other scores to help your creditor decide if they should try to keep you. If you’re low risk, they’ll give you more credit and even lower your interest rate, while filling your mailbox with cash advance checks and enticing offers. If you appear to be a high risk, they’ll just let you go.

But this is just the beginning. For instance, credit card issuers use Response scores to decide which consumers are more apt to respond to offers – and make their marketing/mailing dollars pay off. But before they mail to you, they’ll also take a look at your Revenue score - which tells them how much money your account is likely to generate.

Two scores that are troubling to most consumers are the Application score and the Behavior score.

The application score pulls data from your credit application that’s not included in your credit report. This includes your income, length of time on the job, how long you’ve lived at your current address, and other personal information. It is freely sold to lenders, who may lower your credit limit on a current card based on information you’ve given in a new application. (Oh-oh – income has gone down!)

Behavior scores are based on only one account and used only by the card issuer. Unlike your credit report, this score tracks how much you pay on your account each month, and where you use your credit. So if you decide to take your annual visit to the nearest casino, don’t pull money from the casino ATM machine for gambling. They’ll know it, and your score will be adjusted to show you’re becoming a greater risk.

Interestingly, collection agencies also use scores. This is the Collection score – which agencies use to determine the likelihood that you’ll be able to pay them. They sort their list of debtors according their potential profitability, and may make small effort to collect from individuals who have little hope of paying off their debts.

However, if a debtor’s credit report suddenly shows old accounts being paid off, then their efforts will increase, because it shows the creditor’s situation is improving.

These are just a sampling of the scores being kept on you and your life. Lenders consider these scores proprietary information, and right now, you have no federal right to see them.

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