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There’s no question the COVID-19 pandemic is contributing to a unique 2020 holiday season, but there are consistent truths that remain when it comes to the holidays and personal finance. While the season is known for being merry and bright, sadly, financial challenges and stress are equally common for many this time of year. According to our latest holiday spending survey, 60% of consumers feel stressed about their finances during the holiday season and half feel the extra expense of the holidays makes them hard to enjoy. More than half (52%) say COVID-19 has caused credit or financial barriers which are preventing them from doing their shopping the way they had planned. At the same time, 62% agree holiday shopping puts a strain on their finances. In an effort to alleviate some of the financial stress some may be facing, I wanted to share three ways you can protect your financial health this holiday season and prepare for a financially healthy new year: Start with a budget and a plan. It’s easy to lose track of spending and take on unexpected debt during the holidays, which is why creating a budget is an important first step to protect your financial health. Experian research shows the average American plans to spend $775 on holiday gifts this season, but your holiday budget will depend on your unique financial situation. Outline how much you can realistically afford to spend and try to factor in expenses that are sometimes overlooked, which can be a challenge. In fact, our research found four out of five consumers often run into unexpected expenses they hadn’t planned for, including buying unexpected gifts (25%), gift wrapping supplies (25%) and mailing costs for sending gifts (21%). Once you’ve outlined your budget, creating a plan for who you need to shop for and where you’re going to shop can be a helpful next step. Our survey showed 62% of consumers plan to shop more online this year due to COVID-19. If you’re planning to do more shopping from the comfort of your home this year too, tracking online sales and promotions can help you save money, and factoring in shipping costs can help keep your holiday budget on track. Setting a budget and sticking to it, and having a shopping plan to avoid impulse buying will help keep you from falling victim to the pressure of overspending around the holidays. Use credit as a financial tool. Over half of shoppers say they will use credit cards and not cash when holiday shopping. This is an 8% increase from 2019. While using credit wisely is important all year, this is especially true around the holidays. The key is strategic use of credit – whether using a card that provides low interest, rewards points, or cash back – to improve the shopping experience and stretch your dollars. Over a quarter of people say they plan to open a new credit card for the holiday season, which is a 5% increase year-over-year. The top reasons for wanting to open a new card include seeking a promotional no annual percentage rate (APR) credit card, wanting to get a retail store discount, and maximizing spending by getting a card with cashback rewards. If you’re considering applying for a new credit card, improving your credit score can help you take advantage of the best credit offers this holiday season. Experian Boost allows you to get credit for paying your telecommunications, cell phone, utility bills, and streaming services payments on time. More than 4.9 million consumers have connected to the service since March of 2019 and about 61% of those who use Experian Boost see their scores improve. When you’re ready to explore credit card options, Experian’s free Credit Match program can help you find personalized credit card offers based on your unique credit history. Remember, credit is a financial tool, debt is a financial problem. Debt you can’t repay will certainly bring down one’s holiday spirit. If you don’t have a plan for paying off your credit card, using credit may not be a good idea. Protect your identity. The holidays may be the riskiest time of the year when it comes to identity theft and credit fraud. Identity thieves of all sorts are aware that consumers spend significantly more during the holiday season. While many of us are hunting or scrolling for the perfect gifts for friends and family, fraudsters are hard at work too. The number of consumers surveyed who have been identity theft victims during past holiday shopping seasons jumped to 24% from 12% in 2019. The holidays are always a ripe time for cybercriminals with the increased online traffic and this is especially true against the backdrop of COVID-19. To protect yourself from identity theft while shopping online, avoid using public WiFi networks, create strong passwords for your online accounts, and only shop on secure websites you are familiar with. If you are shopping at a store, be sure to cover your credit card information when you enter it, or your personal information if you are applying at the point of sale. Shoulder surfers can use their phones to take a quick photo or video to steal your identity. Also avoid leaving your purse or wallet, or any documents in your car. Identity thieves stalk parking lots looking for opportunity that is just a broken window away. Credit cards offer more protection for both online and in-person purchases than your debit card or cash, so consider using credit for your purchases. If fraud occurs, the money is not gone from your checking account and you can file a claim with your card issuer. Pay the balance in full right away to avoid interest charges. Checking your credit report often can help you spot fraudulent activity. You can get a free credit report from all three bureaus at AnnualCreditReport.com through April 2021. Identity theft monitoring is an easy way to monitor your financial accounts and credit report to identify possible fraud such as a credit card account opened in your name. While the holidays may look a little different this year when it comes to protecting your financial health the same rules still apply. For more information about how to protect your credit history in 2020 and beyond, visit www.askexperian.com or join our weekly CreditChat every Wednesday on Twitter at noon PST/3 p.m. EST.
I was recently invited to a panel discussion as a part of Money 20/20 titled Do Credit Scores Still Matter? Closing the Chasm through Data and Innovation with Lauryn Nwankpa, Head of Social Impact at Dave and Jay Moon, General Manager of Credit at Credit Sesame. We discussed how important data and innovation are right now to ensure that consumers get access to credit that they need. As the largest credit bureau in the country, and in service of our mission to be the consumers’ bureau, we at Experian have a responsibility both to consumers seeking credit and to lenders who seek to assess the risk that a loan applicant represents. As part of this, we’ll continue to extract value from the data that lenders are used to getting from us and we innovate by providing new forms of data that can help the many Americans who either face barriers or sometimes pay more for credit because of a lack of credit history or having a credit file that’s too thin. I’m especially passionate about this as I myself was an immigrant and a thin-file customer at one point. When I came to this country, it was incredibly hard for me to develop a credit profile that I felt accurately reflected my financial situation and the (lack of) risk that I, as a borrower, would represent. But I was lucky as my first lender at the time was patient, just as I needed to be. They spent months seeking additional information about my situation, eventually enough to extend a firm offer of credit. It is not only immigrants who may face this or similar challenges. The impact of COVID-19 has created a difficult economic reality for many Americans. At Experian, we’re dedicated to having a culture of continuous innovation, from the way we work to the solutions we create to help consumers on the road to recovery. Especially during times of economic uncertainty, finding innovative means to effectively assess the creditworthiness of these consumers is critical. That’s exactly what we focus on at Experian in order to help consumers gain financial access and stability. Alternative data plays a critical role in achieving this. We’re finding new ways to use consumer-permissioned and alternative credit data in the credit scoring process, which can help lenders identify consumers who are excluded from the traditional credit ecosystem, but who can fulfill their financial obligations. I’ve seen firsthand how our data and technology can help transform the way businesses operate and have spoken to many consumers who leveraged our innovative services to help them thrive in society. Consumers want to be in the driver’s seat of their credit journey and we’re seeing a greater openness to providing data, which in turn enables lenders to make more informed decisions. This change is disrupting the status quo. Experian Boost is a great example of this. It’s a free and first-of-its-kind financial tool that empowers consumers to add positive telecom, utility and Netflix payment histories directly into their Experian credit file for an opportunity to instantly increase their FICO Score and access quality credit. More than 2.5 million have seen their scores improve with Experian Boost. So, do credit scores still matter? My answer is that credit reports are more relevant than ever. They matter more than the score alone as they detail a consumer’s financial track record and deliver a historical view of how a consumer is managing and repaying debt over time. This information helps lenders determine who can fulfill their financial obligations and ensures consumers continue to have access to credit so I don’t believe credit reports are going anywhere. As we navigate the road to recovery, it will be critical that all of us in the financial ecosystem work together to safeguard consumers and to maintain the integrity and openness of the credit market. The credit report, augmented by consumer-consented and alternative data, is a foundational pillar to achieve both of those objectives.
If you’re anything like me, you’re likely spending much more time online these days. From online shopping to grocery and food delivery and thumbing through our social media feeds – the COVID-19 pandemic has many of us spending more time in our homes and “plugged in” than ever before. The COVID-19 pandemic has also contributed to an increase in fraud activity. According to the FTC from January to early October 2020, consumers have reported losing a total of more than $156 million to COVID-19-related fraud. At Experian, we are committed to protecting consumer financial health during the pandemic and beyond. Educating consumers about how to protect their personal information online is key to supporting this effort. As we prepare to enter the holiday season in our virtual world and in honor of National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, I’d like to share a few ways you can protect your financial health online: Shop Safely Online As I mentioned, the amount of shopping you do online has likely increased significantly since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is a trend that’s expected to continue. In fact, according to a recent report from Experian, as many as half of consumers globally expect their spending online to increase in the next 12 months. Practicing safe online shopping habits is always important. This is especially true now. While you may not be spending as much time in airports or your local coffee shops, it is a good practice to avoiding using your financial information to make purchases online if you are on a public WiFi network. Without a password protected network, you have a higher risk of fraudsters gaining access to your banking information which could significantly damage your financial health. Using a virtual private network or a VPN can be an added layer of protection when you are entering your financial information online. Using a credit card to make your online purchases is also a useful way to protect yourself against losses tied to fraudulent charges. According to the federal Fair Credit Billing Act if your credit card — the physical card — is stolen and used to make fraudulent purchases, your issuer can hold you responsible for up to $50 in fraudulent charges. However, if you report the card stolen before any fraudulent charges are made, you have no liability. If your card number is stolen but you’re still in possession of the card, you’re not responsible for any fraudulent charges. Avoid Falling for Phishing Emails Phishing is an attempt to obtain sensitive information for criminal and fraudulent purposes through email. Against the backdrop of the pandemic, there have been increased reports of phishing attempts around COVID-19 testing, vaccines, treatments and cures. Keep in mind that generally if something sounds too good to be true, it likely is. To prevent damage to your identity or your financial health avoid opening any suspected phishing emails and never click on included links. While phishing emails are getting more sophisticated, there are a few clues that can help you identify one in your inbox. If you receive a suspicious looking email, look at the sender name or email address. Phishing emails tend to have suspicious email addresses that are often different than the name of the sender (it could be anything from a slight misspelling of the senders name to an email address that is completely different). It’s also common for phishing emails to use urgent language and include unusual attachments or links. While reputable organizations may sometimes ask for personal information over email, pay close attention to the details of the email before sharing any of your information. It may be a better idea to call the requesting organization and find out if there is a more secure way to do whatever it is they may be requesting. Always think twice before clicking any links. When in doubt, type the organization’s name into an internet search and visit the site directly. Protect Your Passwords This is a basic point, but one that is commonly overlooked. Using complex passwords can be your first line of defense against potential cyber threats. I know it can be challenging but avoid using the same password for multiple online accounts. When you’re creating unique passwords, it’s best to include a minimum of eight characters with a variety of letters, numbers and symbols. Keeping track of your passwords for your online bank accounts, email, social media, shopping apps and online medical portals can be a lot to manage. A password manager subscription can be a convenient and secure way to manage your passwords. They are affordable and more secure than writing down all your passwords or using the same password for multiple accounts. Avoid Over Sharing on Social Media Oversharing on social can lead to unwanted implications. For example, fraudsters and criminals can learn a lot about you from the data included in the photos you share online, including where you are and when you are there. Avoid photos of items that can be used to determine more information about you such as your license plate or the front of your home. Keep in mind, that while it may be tempting to share photos of your family vacations on your social networks, this may also tell unwanted visitors that you are not home. Use tools to Combat Fraudsters Checking your credit report regularly can help you stay informed about potentially fraudulent activity. In an effort to encourage consumers to monitor and understand the information in their credit reports, Experian joined forces with the other U.S. credit reporting agencies, to offer free weekly credit reports to all Americans through April 2021 via www.annualcredreport.com. Credit monitoring services can help you spot potential fraud early. Experian offers free and paid services that provide daily credit monitoring alerts for things like new inquiries and accounts opened in your name, changes to your personal information and suspicious activity detected on your Experian credit report. You can find more National Cybersecurity Awareness Month resources to protect yourself online here.
At Experian North America we pride ourselves on supporting a positive work environment for employees. It’s one of the reasons we launched The Power of You, a companywide initiative that aims to provide transparency into our commitment to diversity and inclusion, and our Employee Resource Groups in which 900 employees participate. The next natural progression of this evolution is to bring on a leader dedicated to be an agent of change and strengthen our commitment to a workplace culture in which all employees are celebrated for bringing their whole selves to work. Wil Lewis, formerly of Bank of America, will be joining Experian as our first ever Chief Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging Officer. In this new role, Lewis will build upon our award winning programs to reflect the employees, clients and communities we serve, further our commitment to diverse representation and continuously evolve the workplace culture where all of our employees are celebrated for bringing their whole selves to work. He most recently served as Senior Vice President, Global Diversity and Inclusion Executive for Bank of America. The creation of the new role highlights several critical components of our commitment to diversity and inclusion: Building a company where inclusion fuels collaboration and innovation to develop products which enable financial inclusion for all Ensuring that every employee feels emotionally connected to the company in an environment that is safe and supportive Attracting, developing and retaining talent that represents the communities in which Experian North America operates Institutionalize processes that will increase the number of diverse suppliers, disability accessibility tools and enhance the impact of external diversity partnerships You can read more about our ongoing commitment to diversity and inclusion in our “Power of You” annual report, now in its third year. We’re also proud to have recently received recertification as a Great Place to Work for the third year in a row, and rank in the top 20 Fortune Best Workplaces in Financial Services and Insurance and the Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For 2020. Additionally, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation granted Experian a perfect score in its Corporate Equality Index. You can read more about all of our diversity and inclusion initiatives here.