Oakbrook Loans builds UK lending's first Generative AI credit scorecard
24th March 2026
At Oakbrook Loans, we've built a new tool to help us understand your application better. It uses AI to spot things in your credit information that older methods can miss. The aim is a more accurate decision and a fairer chance for people who deserve one.
Every year, lots of people are turned down for a loan not because they can't afford to repay, but because the tool assessing them doesn't see their whole story. We wanted to change that.
Built for real lives, not perfect ones
Life doesn't always run in a straight line. A job loss, a medical bill, or one difficult year can leave a mark on your credit file. That mark doesn't always show who you are as a borrower today.
Older assessment tools struggle with this. They only look for the things they've been told to look for. So they can miss the bigger picture.
Our new tool works differently. It reads the same credit and application information but it looks deeper. It finds patterns that older methods would miss, or take far longer to find. The result is a richer, more complete view of your finances. One that's closer to your real situation, not a simplified snapshot.
This is the first tool Oakbrook has built using Generative AI. It's designed for everyday borrowers looking for a personal loan of up to £5,000.
What our Head of Data Science says
Jamie Ownsworth, Head of Data Science at Oakbrook, said:
"Behind every application is a person trying to improve things — cover an unexpected cost, get a bit of breathing room, or bring their debts together. They deserve a decision that reflects their real situation, not one that fails them because the tool can't see past the surface.
"Our new scorecard narrows that gap. By using AI to read the same information in a smarter way, we've found signals that older methods always missed. I'm proud of what the team has built, and I'm confident it'll mean better outcomes for the people we're here to help."
What this means for you
A more accurate assessment means a decision that fits you better. If you're creditworthy but have sat just below the line before, you've got a better chance of being seen clearly.
It works the other way too. If a loan would put your finances under real strain, we're more likely to spot that early before borrowing makes things harder.