NEW YORK (MainStreet) — Citi Cards (Stock Quote: C) has finished testing the new FICO 8 model, a credit scoring tool launched in 2009 that does away with the conventional FICO model. The company plans to make Fico 8 official very soon, which should translate into good news for consumers.

FICO says FICO 8 is more accurate and up-to-date in properly calculating consumer behaviors, and notes that half the consumers already using FICO 8 have more accurate credit scores than previous FICO scoring models. That accuracy, FICO says, is what should help creditors differentiate between consumers with good or bad credit risks.

According to the FICO website, here's what has changed significantly with FICO 8, compared to FICO's older credit calculation models:

High credit card usage. The FICO 8 score is more sensitive to highly utilized credit cards. So if your credit report shows a high balance close to the card's limit, your score will likely lose more points than it would have previously. You may want to consider keeping any monthly credit card balance low for this reason.

Isolated late payments. If a lender reports to the credit bureau that you were at least 30 days late with your payment, your FICO 8 score will likely lose points. If the late payment is an isolated event and your other accounts are in good standing, the FICO 8 score is more forgiving compared with scores from previous FICO formulas. However if your credit report shows numerous late payments, the reverse will hold true and your FICO 8 score will likely lose more points.

Authorized user of credit card. Every generation of the FICO score formula has included authorized user credit card accounts when calculating a person's score. FICO 8 score continues that policy, which can help those sharing a credit card account. It also helps lenders by providing scores that are based on a full snapshot of the consumer's credit history. To protect lenders and honest consumers, the FICO 8 formula substantially reduces any benefit of so-called tradeline renting--a credit repair practice that entices consumers into being added to a stranger's credit account while misrepresenting their credit risk to lenders. (Credit industry professionals call this“piggybacking.”)

Small-balance collections accounts. The FICO 8 score ignores small-dollar "nuisance" collection accounts in which the original balance was less than $100.

FICO’s accuracy claims and changes reflecting consumer credit behavior seem to suit Citi Cards well. The banking giant has been arduously testing FICO 8 since late 2009. The result have been positive - FICO says that Citi agreed with its premise that FICO 8 has improved the prediction of customer risk and is now using the score across many of its lending decisions.

Shanan Bentley, senior vice president at Citi, backs that sentiment up. “The FICO 8 Score will complement our ability to manage and responsibly grow our portfolios,” she says. “In addition, with FICO 8’s increased effectiveness and consumer-friendly features, Citi can use the score across a wide range of portfolios to provide a more consistent view of the customer, make better lending decisions and improve the overall customer experience.”

With Citi already in its back pocket, and 3,500 other creditors already committed to FICO 8, it looks like FICO’s credit coring formula is here to stay, and could well become the new model for assessing consumer credit risk.

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