Money lenders see Shrewsbury people as the safest bet and Wolverhampton as the worst
Banks view people living in Shrewsbury as the safest in the West Midlands to lend money to, while those in Wolverhampton are viewed the least favourably, according to new credit-score data.
New figures by financial advice website Money Supermarket looked at 200,000 credit reports across the country to see which postcode areas had the best credit ratings, which lenders use to assess credit risks when deciding whether to give out loans.
The research showed that people in the SY postcode area – which covers West Shropshire and Mid Wales – and the WR postcode, which covers Worcester and surrounding areas, had an average credit score of 579 out of a possible 710, some 17 points higher than the national average of 562.
The Dudley DY postcode, which also covers north Worcestershire and Tipton, scored 564, also came above the national average.
At the other end of the table, the Wolverhampton WV postcode area – which also serves Bridgnorth – scored just 555, making it the least favourable area in the West Midlands when it came to borrowing money, and the third worst in the whole of the UK.
The WS postcode, which covers Walsall, Cannock, Lichfield and Rugeley, and the TF postcode which covers Telford and eastern Shropshire, both came in the bottom half of the table with a score of 560.
The Birmingham postcode area, which also covers much of Sandwell, was found to be in line with the national average at 562.
The area looked on most favourably by lenders was the KT postcode area, which had the best average credit score in the UK at 586. The Sunderland SR postcode area fared worse, with an average of score of 552.
