Credit tier

The credit 'category' in which a consumer is placed by credit-rating companies, based on the consumers personal credit history. A consumers credit tier helps predict how financial institutions will view that consumer as a financial risk (i.e., the likelihood that he or she will make payments on time and ultimately repay the loan). Edmunds.com uses five tiers: platinum, gold, silver, bronze and unclassified. For more information, visit http://www.edmunds.com/tmv/about_finance.html.