News Release
Contact:
Stephanie Watson
Press Relations Manager, Information Solutions
+44 (0)115 992 2515 Tel
stephanie.watson@uk.experian.com Email
Experian signs three year deal with ScottishPower
Experian set to power energy giant’s SME customer acquisition programme
Nottingham, UK, 13 August 2008 -The energy giant ScottishPower has appointed Experian®, the global information services company,
in a three-year deal to help it grow and maintain its business customer base in its key SME and Industrial and Commercial (I&C) sectors. The deal will see Scottish Power using Commercial Autoscore, Experian’s commercial credit application processing system.
Commercial Autoscore from Experian’s Business Information division is in the process of being rolled out to over 250 users in ScottishPower locations across Scotland, England and Wales. The system will mirror the energy company’s own credit evaluation policies and ensure that consistent decisions are applied to all commercial credit applications across its multiple Collections and Sales departments.
Providing ScottishPower with the ability to instantly accept, decline or refer decisions automatically, Commercial Autoscore will enable the energy giant to benefit from major operational efficiencies by reducing the time and costs associated with taking on new business.
To enhance the accuracy of Commercial Autoscore’s scoring capability, Commercial Delphi, Experian’s highly predictive risk index, is an integral part of the system. It provides risk scores for even newly established companies that have yet to file - or do not need to file - accounts, by blending consumer information on the people running the business with information on the business itself. The score is able to predict the likelihood of a business or its proprietor(s) defaulting, failing to pay their energy bills or even becoming insolvent or bankrupt.
ScottishPower selected Commercial Autoscore due to its ability to automate the commercial credit application processing system combined with Experian’s unique blending of business and consumer data to provide even greater insight...
Chris Jones, Head of Small Business Sales with ScottishPower, said: “We provide for the energy needs of more than 200,000 small businesses in the UK and in looking to increase this number and improve the service we offer to new business customers we needed a fast and effective application processing system. In addition to Commercial Autoscore, Experian had the edge due to its data quality and coverage in both the small business and I&C arena.”
Mark Fawcitt, ScottishPower’s Credit Risk Manager, commented: “One of the key benefits Commercial Autoscore is bringing to ScottishPower is its ability to blend information on businesses with insight on the people behind the businesses, to provide more accurate information on which to base our credit decisions. Commercial Autoscore is now an integral part of measures to strengthen our risk framework by improving our commercial analytics and decision making toolkit.”
Tony Pullen, Managing Director of Experian’s Business Information division, said: “As one of the largest energy providers in the UK, ScottishPower understands the importance of bringing new business customers on board quickly and setting appropriate credit policies. This project will enable them to take advantage of our powerful data and analytics, information and systems to further grow their customer base.”
This press release can be downloaded from http://press.experian.com.
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