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Piggybacking Credit- Everything You Need to Know

- Jan 24, 2023 credit4 comments

What is piggybacking credit?

Piggybacking credit is having a third party, a creditworthy individual, add you to their credit card as an authorized user. This allows you to receive the credit benefits from that account, helping you improve your own credit score fast.

How does piggybacking credit work?

Once someone adds you as an authorized user to their credit card, then that credit card will show up on your credit report as well. And, it will backdate the history of the account to the date of which the primary cardholder opened the account. This will help you add years and years of credit history to your credit report in as little as a few days.

For example, let’s say you get added to a credit card that was opened 30 years ago. Even though you only got added to the account a few days ago, your credit history will show the full 30 years of history. This will give your credit score a nice boost.

Does piggybacking credit work with all credit cards?

Not every bank will report an AU to the credit bureaus, and not all report the complete history (back dates).

Check out this list:

REPORTS BACK DATES
Amex yes no
Barclay yes yes
Bank of America yes yes
Chase sometimes yes
Citi yes yes
Capital One yes yes
Discover yes yes
HSBC no no
US Bank yes yes

The use of piggybacking credit

Piggybacking credit is actually meant to give a parent/spouse, etc. a chance to help their child/spouse, etc. start building credit. By adding a child/spouse to a credit card, they give their child/spouse a great head start to building their own credit.

From what age can I add my child as an authorized user?

The minimum age needed to be added as an authorized user to your accounts depends on the rules set by each credit card issuer.

Here is a list.

Minimum Age
Amex 13 years old
Barclay 13 years old
Bank of America No minimum age
Chase No minimum age
Citi No minimum age
Capital One No minimum age
Discover 15 years old
US Bank  16 years old
Wells Fargo No minimum age

Does piggybacking credit work for credit cards?

Fico (the company which created the scoring models used by most lenders) did not like piggybacking. The reasoning behind their dislike of piggybacking is very simple; Piggybacking allows consumers who do not deserve a higher credit score to fool the system and pay a few dollars to some company to get added to an account, and reap credit benefits.

Therefore, in the newer scoring models starting from FICO 08, Fico stopped counting in accounts on which you are only an authorized user. Fico does have a legal obligation under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act to allow piggybacking in a case where it is done for a spouse. Fico claims to have a way of knowing if the piggybacking is from a legitimate source or from an unrelated third party.

But it’s important to note that even if you do get a good Fico score through piggybacking credit, most credit cards will still decline the application if they see the credit score was built through authorized users only. 

You can get approved for a basic starter credit card like the Capital One Journey, but a fancy credit card will usually decline you if they see only authorized users on your credit report. 

You may also be able to get approved for an Amex credit card after being added to an Amex credit card for 3-6 months.

Does piggybacking credit work for auto loans?

Most auto lenders or auto leases will decline the application if they see the credit was built only based on authorized users. 

Does piggybacking credit work for mortgages?

The only good news is that mortgage loans still use the older Fico scoring models. Therefore, piggybacking credit still works to boost your score when applying for a mortgage. Piggybacking credit can be a great tool to use to boost your Fico score by 100 or more points, in just a few days. This can potentially save you thousands of dollars in interest payments.

It’s important to note that even for mortgage loans, some banks started declining applications if they see only authorized users on the credit report.

How to build a 740+ credit score via piggybacking credit?

In order to build a solid credit score via piggybacking credit, make sure the card you’re being added to has the following requirements:

  • The card is at least two years old (the older the better) 
  • The card does not have any late payments
  • The card does not have high balances 
  • The card was used recently
  • For the best credit score make sure to get added to two such cards 
  • As pointed out above the card should not be Amex or Chase

Is piggybacking credit legal?

The Equal Lending Act (12 CFR § 1002.6 (b) (6)) states the following: “In evaluating the creditworthiness of an applicant, a creditor shall consider the history, when available of accounts designated as accounts that the applicant and the applicant’s spouse are permitted to use or for which both are contractually liable.” In other words, scoring models need to count into their scoring models the history from any account of which the applicant is an AU, as long as the primary cardholder is the applicant’s spouse. The problem with the older scoring models (still used with mortgage loans) is that they don’t know if the primary cardholder is a spouse or not. So for that reason, they will count in any AU account, no matter if it’s a spouse or not (There are banks who won’t report AU accounts to the credit bureaus if they know that the primary cardholder is not a spouse (Chase). In such a case, being an AU to a non-spouse account would not help you build credit).

Frequently asked questions
Whats the best card to add a authorized user in order to build credit?
I prefer Discover but other cards like Barclays, Citi, Bank of America work great as well.
Will Piggybacking Credit work even if the bank did not ask for the authorized users social security number?
Banks can possibly report information to the credit bureaus even if they don't have the social security number (as long as all other info matches). But it is better to use a credit card issuer that does ask for the social security number (some times you need to submit it by phone in order to add the social security number)
If I see my childs CreditKarma score shout up does it mean that piggybacking worked?
No. Credit Karma provides you with your Vantage Score, not your Fico Score. Lenders mostly use the Fico score models, so seeing the Credit Karma score shoot up doesn't mean much. As explained in the post above Piggybacking credit mostly only works for mortgage loans, not credit cards or auto loans.
If I make a late payment on my credit card will it effect my authorized users credit score?
Yes. the same way the good credit history helps your authorized user build credit so does the negative payments affect their credit. But, the good news is that the authorized user can at anytime request the bank to delete the AU account from their credit report. So if god forbid payments are late then they will be able to delete the account from their credit report.
Can it affect my credit score if I add someone to my credit card as an authorized user?
Your credit score will not be affected. Of course this is only if you trust that the person won’t swipe out your card and leave you with the balance.

Was this article helpful?

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Sam Sam has nearly a decade's worth of experience educating his many readers on everything credit. Sam spends his days checking out credit cards for a full report, from the minute benefit details to the shebang of welcome bonuses. Plus studying the ins and outs of building proper credit. It’s his favorite pastime and he loves sharing it with others.

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4 Comments

  1. So if I don’t have any credit and would like to start building credit, do I become an AU or apply directly for a low credit credit card? And if yes which one do you recommend?

    Reply
    • You can try the Capital One Journey. If you get declined just retry the same card in 30 days

      Reply
  2. Thanks! This was very informative.

    Reply
    • my pleasure

      Reply

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