GREEN BAY, Wis. — Trans Union's Vice President for Credit Unions Linda Moynihan Vance says that just because CUs have mostly "flown under the radar for the most part (likely due to member loyalty) doesn't mean the current economic trends won't affect them. They'll hit credit unions, maybe down the road," and so now is a good time for credit unions to do a portfolio analysis to segment the risks.

When members' credit scores go down they do so for a reason, and CUs need to be prepared for dealing with the eventualities. "Once you see that scores are migrating you can develop a plan, then put the policies and procedures in place. Every credit union needs a strategy for that," said Vance. That strategy should include providing tools for collectors.

The part of Trans Union's business (apart from the credit reporting agency side) is analytical, Vance said. "That's one of our primary focuses." Taking so many variables into consideration involves lots of information gathering, number crunching and then close study. "What if there is an unemployment effect at a credit union's SEG or at the city, county government levels? It's important to always look at the industries a credit union serves to get a jump on planning for a possible downturn."