Free Business Credit Scores Set To Empower SMEs

Check Business gives small businesses easy to interpret insight into customers and suppliers

An innovative new business website, www.check-business.co.uk, has been launched to give the burgeoning small business community easy and cost-effective access to valuable business information.

Launched by business finance specialist, Funding Options, and powered by data from business insights expert, Equifax, Check Business makes it simple to look up any UK business and see what information is being published online.

Many business owners are unaware of how much information about them is on the web. With Check Business they can not only see this data, but take steps to enhance their online profile.

Check Business provides the facility for small businesses to access credit scores for any UK company free of charge. The free basic membership also means up to three customers, suppliers or prospects can be monitored for any changes in their business credit rating.

With new data* revealing that late payment was a key factor for a fifth of corporate insolvencies last year, this new service is vital for smaller businesses who don’t want to delay signing up new customers with lengthy business checks. It can also help them avoid falling foul of bad debt.

“Small businesses are the lifeblood of the UK economy and we are committed to doing what it takes to help them thrive”, explained Conrad Ford, founder of Check Business. “Anybody can look up a business credit score on www.check-business.co.uk. It’s freely available and you don’t need to register with the site.”

The easy to understand Check Business credit and risk scores, powered by Equifax, provide insight into the likely risk of trading with a new customer or supplier. The Check Business dashboard includes basic business information and contact details as well as information on company directors – current and previous. This is all available free of charge.

For £25 per month, Check Business users can monitor an unlimited number of customers and suppliers. They can also access detailed financial information, including Companies House and CCJ information, on as many companies and sole traders as they wish.

“Credit information is used extensively by larger organisations, but small business owners typically aren’t credit control specialists”, continued Ford. “It is, therefore, more likely that they will take a risk signing up a new customer without doing checks. But this could cost them in the long-term.

“With Check Business, small businesses have a new way to get the information they need to assess a trading partner, understand their own credit profile and even generate lists of sales prospects. It’s specifically tailored for how SMEs use online services and is a new way of providing vital insight on partners, suppliers and customers to the businesses who need it most.”

With many UK businesses relying on trade credit, the insight delivered by Check Business means SMEs can prioritise their credit control resources on the customers that are showing signs of financial stress, as well as identify those likely to be receptive to new sales and marketing offers. Check Business also connects with accounting software packages such as Sage, Xero and FreeAgent so that cloud users can gain valuable additional insight into their debtor book.[signoff predefined=”Enjoy this?” icon=”icon-users”][/signoff]