Trust score is not shame — it is context.
The score reflects every serious commitment on Garder — support plans, Fund returns, and Susu contributions — including active load, missed commitments, and recovery over time. It rewards a genuine track record built over time — not quick moves — so good members can prove reliability that can't be faked.
What is the Trust Score?
Your trust score is a number from 0 to 100 that tells supporters how reliably you complete returns on support plans. A higher score means supporters are more confident lending to you — which means better offers and faster approvals.
It is calculated from your entire borrowing footprint on the platform — not just marketplace support plans. Fund loans (when you're the one who collected a Fund) and Susu contributions all feed the same score, treated as one unified record. It has nothing to do with how active you are on Community+; that's tracked separately as your community score.
The score is designed to be earned, not gamed. It rewards commitments you genuinely held and returned over real time — receiving support and instantly returning it doesn't build trust, and neither does a single quick plan. Reliability is something you demonstrate across real cycles.
What Counts Toward It?
Every component below draws from the same unified record — three separate activities, one book:
Marketplace support plans
Support you requested and received from another member, with a repayment schedule.
Fund loans
When you collect a Fund you created, the payout is a borrowing obligation just like a support plan — it carries its own return schedule, and missing it is priced the same way. See Funds.
Susu contributions
Susu can't create repayment history on its own, but consistent, self-paid contributions speed up how fast your score matures, and missed contributions — especially after you've received your pot — count against you. See Susu.
Trust Tiers
Your trust score maps to a label that supporters see when reviewing your application — whether it's a marketplace support request or a Fund backing decision.
| Label | Score Range | What it signals |
|---|---|---|
| Excellent | 80 – 100 | Outstanding repayment record over time, low active commitment, strong verified affordability. Easiest time getting approved. |
| Good | 65 – 79 | Solid history with minor gaps. Most supporters will approve. |
| Fair | 50 – 64 | Still building a track record, some late payments, or moderate active commitment. Approval is possible but terms may be stricter. |
| Poor | 35 – 49 | Missed payments, a missed commitment on record, or many plans open at once. Supporters will look closely before approving. |
| Very Poor | 0 – 34 | Significant missed commitments or high active commitment. Hardest to get approved. Focus on rebuilding first. |
The 4 Components
Your trust score is built from four weighted components that add up to 100, calculated across support plans and Fund loans as one unified record. Each one measures a different dimension of financial health. One extra factor — how many plans you hold at once — can then reduce the total.
Commitment History — 40 points
The biggest component. It measures whether you've completed your commitments cleanly — support plans and Fund loans alike — no missed commitments, no unresolved balances, on obligations you actually held.
| Situation | How it's counted |
|---|---|
| No borrowing history | Neutral baseline (20/40) — the system has nothing to judge yet, so you're neither penalised nor rewarded |
| Clean completion of a genuinely-held plan or Fund loan | Full 1.0× weight — counts completely toward your trust score |
| Returned the same day it was disbursed | Non-event — doesn't count for or against you. You didn't really hold it, so it builds no history |
| Recovered missed commitment | 0.6× weight to start. Improves over time as you rehabilitate (see below) |
| Reinstated after a missed commitment (via extension, still repaying) | −4 flat point penalty until it's fully completed, then rehabilitation takes over |
| Currently unresolved missed commitment | 0× weight, a −8 flat point penalty per outstanding missed commitment, and the neutral baseline is removed — a live default gets no benefit of the doubt |
Payment Behavior — 30 points
This component looks at your individual installment payments — on loan repayments and Fund returns, plus your Susu contribution record — not just whether you finished, but whether each payment arrived on time. Like Commitment History, it matures with evidence: one on-time payment does not earn full marks.
| Behaviour | Effect |
|---|---|
| Early payment | Counts as on-time. If 50%+ of your payments are early and you have at least 6 qualifying installments, +3 bonus points |
| On-time payment | Full credit toward your on-time rate |
| Late payment (≤7 days) | Reduces your on-time rate, mild score impact |
| Very late payment (7+ days) | Heavier reduction — additional penalty on top of the late rate |
| Payment on a reinstated (previously-missed) plan | Counts as on-time at best — never as "early", so a missed commitment can't be laundered into a bonus |
| Currently overdue installment (plan or Fund) | −4 points per overdue installment right now |
| Self-paid, on-time Susu contribution | Small bonus, hard-capped at +4 total — polishes a score, never substitutes for real borrowing behaviour |
| Susu grace contribution | −2 points each |
| Missed Susu contribution — before you've received your pot | −5 points each |
| Missed Susu contribution — after you've received your pot | −10 points each. You've already extracted the value, so walking away is priced like a default |
| Runner-covered Susu debt — before payout / after payout | −4 / −6 points each while pending. Clears fully — no lingering penalty — the moment the debt settles |
| Open Verified Earner bridge debt | −5 points per open (pending/partial) bridge debt — the platform fronted an installment for you and it hasn't been repaid yet |
| Open collections case | −6 points per case, and removes this component's neutral baseline entirely |
Verified Affordability — 15 points
Answers the question: "Can you afford the monthly payments on your current commitments?" It compares your total monthly payments — loan installments, Fund returns, and any open Verified Earner bridge debt — against your income.
| Monthly payments ÷ verified income | Points |
|---|---|
| Under 30% — comfortable | 15 / 15 |
| 30 – 39% — manageable | 12 / 15 |
| 40 – 49% — stretched | 7 / 15 |
| 50 – 59% — strained | 3 / 15 |
| 60%+ — high risk | 0 / 15 |
Active Commitment Load — 15 points
Answers the question: "How much do you already owe, relative to your annual income?" Total debt includes active loan balances, live Fund balances, open Verified Earner bridge debt, and any outstanding platform debt from a prior default.
| Total outstanding debt ÷ annual verified income | Points |
|---|---|
| No active debt | 15 / 15 — perfect |
| Under 20% | 15 / 15 |
| 20 – 39% | 11 / 15 |
| 40 – 59% | 8 / 15 |
| 60 – 79% | 4 / 15 |
| 80%+ | 0 / 15 |
Holding Many Commitments at Once
How many obligations you carry at the same time is its own signal, applied as a deduction to your total score — counting support plans and live Fund loans together. Taking a plan is never penalised — but juggling many open commitments simultaneously is exactly the pattern that worries supporters, so it costs you.
| Active support plans + live Funds at once | Effect on total score |
|---|---|
| 1 – 2 combined | No penalty |
| 3 or more | −4 points for each additional open commitment beyond two |
How Trust Matures
Your two biggest components — Commitment History and Payment Behavior — don't jump to full strength overnight. They start at a neutral baseline and blend toward your real record as you build evidence. "Evidence" means two things that money can't fast-forward:
Time as a member
How long you've been building a track record on the platform — counted from your very first support plan or Fund loan, whichever came first. Full time-maturity needs about 6 months.
Genuinely-completed cycles
Commitment History matures on clean completions (support plans or Fund loans, up to 6 for full maturity); Payment Behavior matures on qualifying on-time installments (up to 8). Neither counts quick same-day returns.
Missed Commitments & Recovery
Missing a commitment — on a support plan or a Fund loan — is serious, but it isn't permanent. Garder distinguishes between members who missed a commitment and never paid versus those who missed one but eventually recovered. Recovering is far better than leaving it open. A missed commitment stays on your record as part of your history even after you recover — but recovering meaningfully improves your standing.
Rehabilitation — Earning Back Trust
Once you've repaid a missed commitment — on a support plan or a Fund loan, both count the same way — the recovery is recorded, but the slate isn't wiped clean immediately. Instead, you earn your way back through a rehabilitation system that rewards consistent good behaviour after recovery.
| Stage | Weight | How to get here |
|---|---|---|
| Just recovered | 0.6× | Missed commitment repaid — recovery starts here |
| On track | 0.8× | 6+ months since recovery AND 1+ clean commitment completed after |
| Cleared | 1.0× | 12+ months since recovery AND 2+ clean commitments completed after |
- • 3+ clean commitments after recovery → On track gate drops from 6 months to 4 months
- • 5+ clean commitments → gate drops to 3 months (floor)
- • 4+ clean commitments after recovery → Cleared gate drops from 12 months to 9 months
- • 6+ clean commitments → gate drops to 8 months (floor)
When Does My Score Update?
Your trust score is recalculated automatically whenever something meaningful changes across your support plans, Fund loans, or Susu activity. You don't need to do anything.
New support plan disbursed, or a Fund loan collected
Score recalculates — a new open commitment adds to your active load, which can dip your score slightly while it runs. It recovers as you complete it.
Support plan or Fund loan fully repaid
Score recalculates — a clean completion on a genuinely-held commitment is added to your history.
Payment goes overdue — loan, Fund, or Susu
Score recalculates — overdue penalty applied per installment; missed Susu contributions are priced by whether you'd already received your pot.
Support plan or Fund loan marked as a missed commitment
Score recalculates — full missed-commitment penalty applies.
Verified Earner status approved or expires
Score recalculates — unlocks or locks the Verified Affordability and Active Commitment Load components.
Platform bridge debt opens or clears
Score recalculates — an open bridge debt costs points in Payment Behavior and Active Commitment Load; it clears fully once repaid.
How to Improve Your Score
The most effective actions, ranked by impact:
Resolve any outstanding missed commitments
An unresolved missed commitment costs you the most, on a loan or a Fund loan alike. Pay it off — even if the recovery weight takes a while to climb back, the flat −8 point penalty disappears immediately.
Never miss an installment — loan, Fund, or Susu
Payment Behavior is worth 30 points and folds in Susu grace, missed, and runner-covered-debt signals too. Consistent on-time payments across all three are the most reliable long-term builder.
Complete commitments cleanly — and actually hold them
Finishing a plan or Fund loan without defaulting is the foundation of the whole system. Let it run and repay on schedule (or a little early) — returning support the same day you receive it builds no history at all.
Apply for Verified Earner
A self-declared income no longer earns points. Verified Affordability and Active Commitment Load — 30 points combined — only score against a reviewed Verified Earner salary. It's the single biggest lever if you have no verified income on file.
Build a track record over time
Your history and behaviour scores climb as you accumulate genuinely-completed plans and Fund loans across months. There is no shortcut — it is earned over real cycles, and a recovered missed commitment rehabilitates fastest by completing more clean commitments.
Keep your Susu contributions clean
Self-paid, on-time contributions add a small capped bonus. Missing one after you've already received your pot is priced like a default — settle any runner-covered debt as soon as you can, it clears the penalty in full.
Don't carry too many commitments at once
Beyond two open commitments — plans and Funds combined — each additional one reduces your total score. Pay down what you have before taking on more.
FAQ
Does my trust score affect what support offers I can see?
Not directly — all marketplace offers are visible to everyone. But supporters can see your trust score when reviewing your application, and many will factor it into their approval decision.
I just joined and have no support plans or Funds. What's my score?
You start at a neutral baseline — the system has no real history to judge yet, so it neither rewards nor penalises you. Without a verified income you'll land around the low-50s (Fair); with an approved Verified Earner status you can sit higher. Your score then climbs as you genuinely complete commitments over time.
Why doesn't my declared monthly income raise my score anymore?
Self-declared income is exactly as informative as no income — anyone can type in a number. Verified Affordability and Active Commitment Load (30 points combined) now only score against an approved Verified Earner salary. Apply for Verified Earner to unlock those points.
Does collecting a Fund affect my trust score the same way a support plan does?
Yes. Fund loans sit in the exact same borrowing book as marketplace support plans — a clean Fund return builds Commitment History and Payment Behavior just like a loan repayment does, and a missed Fund return is priced exactly like a missed commitment on a loan, including the −8 flat penalty and rehabilitation path.
Can Susu alone build my trust score?
Not on its own. Susu can't create Commitment History or push you past a neutral baseline by itself — it needs a real support plan or Fund loan for that. But self-paid, on-time contributions add a small bonus to Payment Behavior, and a fully clean completed cycle speeds up how fast your existing history matures. Missed contributions, especially after you've received your pot, do count against you.
Why did my score dip when I took a new support plan or collected a Fund?
Opening a new commitment adds to your active load, so your score can nudge down slightly while it's open. As you complete it cleanly, that recovers — and your history grows. Taking support is never penalised; carrying many open commitments at once is what costs you.
I returned the support almost immediately — why didn't my score go up?
Returning support within the same day you receive it doesn't build history — you didn't really hold it, so it's treated as a non-event (it doesn't hurt you either). Let commitments run their course and repay on schedule or a little early; that's what genuinely builds trust.
I repaid a missed commitment. Why is my score still low?
Recovery sets your repayment weight to 0.6× — not zero. Your trust score improves compared to having an unresolved missed commitment, but it won't jump to where it would be if you'd never missed one. Use the rehabilitation path: complete clean commitments afterward to move to 0.8× and eventually 1.0×.
What's an open collections case or bridge debt, and why does it hurt so much?
A Verified Earner bridge debt happens when the platform fronts an installment for you from its reserve — it's a live obligation until you repay it, and it also feeds into your debt load. An open collections case means an unresolved platform debt has escalated further; it carries the heaviest penalty and removes your Payment Behavior neutral baseline entirely. Both clear in full — no lingering penalty — the moment they're resolved.
Why does holding several commitments at once lower my score?
Carrying many open support plans and Fund loans simultaneously is a risk pattern supporters watch for. Up to two combined is completely free; beyond that, each additional one trims your total score. Finishing commitments before taking new ones keeps it healthy.
Does KYC verification affect my trust score?
KYC is a gate requirement for creating a virtual account and receiving disbursements. It doesn't directly add points to your trust score, but without it you can't take support plans — so it indirectly blocks you from building history.
Can I see a full history of my score changes?
Yes. Your Profile page shows your score change events with the old score, new score, and the reason for each change. We only record an entry when your score actually changes, so the history stays clean and meaningful.