Navigate page Get in touch The consumer problem The client problem The solution Impact Get in touch How Plata used Experian’s Work Report™ to increase loan conversionswith first access to payroll income data direct from the source The consumer problem – and why it matteredPlata is a leading UK digital lender recognised for responsible, customer‑first unsecured credit and smooth digital journeys.Customers applying for a Plata loan expect a journey that is familiar, low‑effort and unintrusive. At the same time, accurate income validation is fundamental for issuing credit affordably, sustainably and responsibly.Credit bureau income validation tools based on Current Account Turnover (CATO) are gold-standard across the industry, and provide Plata with fast, accurate and unintrusive income validation for many applicants. Unfortunately, prospective customers with joint accounts, irregular incomes or whose bank account data is not reported to credit bureaus are still particularly underserved by CATO.Proof-based income validation, using e.g. Open Banking, bank statements or payslips, is typically required where CATO is inconclusive or not available. Assessment of proofs is often manual and may be labour-intensive and inefficient, depending on the type of document. Moreover, proof submission is entirely dependent on customer action and can be perceived as time consuming and intrusive, often causing frustration and journey abandonment. “Customers expect swift, frictionless journeys. Anything that causes friction in the journey can cause them to go elsewhere.”Alberto Caenazzo, Credit Manager, Plata The client problem – and why it matteredPlata loan brands are recognised for responsible, inclusive lending supported by streamlined digital processes. But for some customers, additional income verification was becoming a core friction point, leading to inefficiency and missed opportunities.Plata needed a solution that would: Be as frictionless and customer friendly as a standard CATO search, actively reducing dropout rates and increasing loan conversion Increase the efficiency of the manual underwriting workflow, while fully retaining accuracy and decision confidence Be future-proof, allowing investment into automation down the line. What we provided and why it was differentExperian Work Report™ provided Plata with real‑time access to verified income and employment data, sourced directly from employers via their payroll system providers.Only consent + National Insurance number are required – a familiar, credit‑check‑like step – and the return contains the same data seen on a payslip (and some more), including: Annual Gross and Net income Pay period income data points over time Employment details (e.g. Employer address, start date)Experian Work Report™ brought a high‑trust, low‑friction alternative to manual document upload and Open Banking, while giving credit strategy teams and underwriters decision‑ready data instantly. Why Work Report™ felt different for Plata: A familiar and effortless user experience, built to reduce customer hesitation Broader support for non‑standard income patterns Instant, structured data that is both accurate and easy to assess “We built Work Report™ to feel like a familiar credit‑check step — consent and NI number, nothing more. That let Plata keep the journey fast, reduce the need to ask customers to do more and ultimately increase customer engagement and conversion”Sam Coe, Product Director, Experian The solution and the impactWork Report™ was introduced to complement CATO income verification exactly at the income validation stage in all Plata journeys. Where Work Report is available, it replaces the need to disrupt a customer journey and ask them to provide more, like Open Banking or document uploads. This allows Plata to measure real‑life impact on friction, completion, accuracy and, ultimately, conversion. “Having payroll data easily available negates the need for additional friction, allowing income validation for customers who would normally drop out of journeys involving Open Banking or document uploads.”Alberto Caenazzo, Credit Manager, Plata Impact Highlights: Significantly increased conversion through reduced frictionPlata saw a material improvement in conversion, with the most significant uplift among applicants who typically avoid Open Banking or document uploads. Work Report™ gave these customers a simpler, faster and non-intrusive way to verify their income. Willingness to supply NI supporting low friction value exchangeApplicants complete the NI + consent step confidently, and submission rates exceeded expectations. The results prove the journey implementation approach to be familiar and non-intrusive. Work Report data quickly deemed strong enough to accelerate deploymentPlata’s Underwriting Team reviewed and validated Work Report™ data during a pilot phase, comparing the returned data against other proofs. Feedback on the ease of use and the quality of the data gave Plata the confidence to promote Work Report™ to live decision use way ahead of schedule. More customers enjoy a faster and more instant frictionless experienceWork Report™ not only increased loan conversion overall, but also enabled faster, lower-friction decisions for those who would have been happy to provide Open Banking access or documents in the past. Their customer experience was enhanced with: No pauses in the customer journey No credentialled login No need to find and upload documentsFocused on automation to create capacity for more complex casesWork Report’s simple API structure allows digitised payroll data to be consumed into decisioning engines quickly and easily. This has allowed Plata to build robust income verification strategies, with a roadmap to automate straightforward cases and focus manual attention on more complex cases. Call to Action – Frictionless, Inclusive LendingFor customers that can be supported through Work Report™, a historically high‑friction step has been transformed into a competitive advantage for Plata.The outcome: More inclusive access for customers reluctant to provide open banking access or other proofs. Faster decisions with increased conversion Reduced manual effort with excellent decision accuracyAs coverage continues to grow across UK employers, Work Report™ can support wider use cases including employment verification, enhanced KYC, tenant vetting, and multi‑income assessments. “Efficient, extremely accurate, frictionless journey yielding a significantly increased conversion where CATO can’t be used. Should a lender invest in payroll-based income validation? Overall, yes!”Alberto Caenazzo, Credit Manager, Plata Talk to usTo explore how payroll‑verified data can strengthen your own lending journeys, speak to us today. ;