Consumers trying to get access to credit now have a little more riding on the fate of financial reform legislation.

The Senate s move Monday to amend the financial overhaul bill, could give riskier borrowers an opportunity to not only view their credit scores, but also see how they could improve them. That amendment, which was proposed by Sen. Mark Udall (D., Colo.), would allow consumers to see their credit score for free any time they re denied a loan, rejected for a job, or charged a higher interest rate based on their credit history.

My goal is to level the playing field for consumers to ensure they have all the information they need to make smart decisions about their finances, Udall said in a statement. The Senate is expected to vote on the full reform package as early as this week.

Udall had originally proposed letting consumers see a credit score along with the free annual credit report everyone is entitled to access once a year through AnnualCreditReport.com. Currently, that report is free, but consumers must pay to also see a credit score from one of the three credit reporting bureaus. Credit specialists say the current version of the amendment, which ties access to scores to adverse events, may actually offer consumers more useful information than an annual peek at a score.

It s not as if your score is sitting there in a computer changing all the time, says Gerri Detweiler, a personal finance advisor for Credit.com. When someone requests that score, whether it s you or a lender, that s when the score is calculated, Detweiler says. Seeing the actual score the lender sees when they decide you re a high risk for a loan makes more sense than letting consumers see an educational score that s not generated when applying for credit, she says.

Some consumer advocates say individuals tend to focus too much on their credit score and not enough on the credit report on which the score is based. (The credit report includes information on the balance and payment history for outstanding lines of credit.) Even though consumers have to pay to see their credit scores, two-thirds of consumers know their scores, but only 35% have ordered their free credit report in the past year, according to an April 2010 survey conducted for the National Foundation for Credit Counseling. It s important for consumers to review that report for accuracy and to identify problems to address in improving their creditworthiness, says Gail Cunningham, a spokeswoman for the NFCC.

, the company whose mathematical formula the three major consumer reporting agencies (Equifax (, TransUnion and Experian) use to determine consumers scores.

When you access your credit score, you ll also see reasons why it isn t higher providing helpful interpretation that isn t in a credit report, Watts says. Without both parts of that picture, it s like playing poker with half a hand, he says.

Here are four tips to improve your credit score now:

Pay Your Bills on Time

As if late payments weren t costly enough, 35% of your credit score is based on just on paying your bills on time, Cunningham says. If you re a procrastinator, if you re disorganized, if you travel a lot for work, I highly recommend setting up automatic bill paying, she says.

If you ve had trouble with late payments in the past, keep in mind that time does help heal the wounds when it comes to your credit score, Detweiler says. Those late payments won t disappear from your credit report, but provided you continue to build a positive credit history, they ll become less important over time, she says.

Don t Max Out Your Cards

Another 30% of your score is based on your debt utilization ratio, the amount you owe in proportion to your total credit limit. A good rule of thumb is not to use more than 30% of the credit available on any one card, Cunningham says. Because your credit score is actually only calculated when a lender requests it, paying down balances and achieving a better debt utilization ratio is the quickest way to improve your credit score, Detweiler says. That lower balance will be factored into your new score the next time it s calculated.

The debt utilization factor also means a consumer trying to pay down debt could unintentionally hurt his or her credit score by closing out a card entirely. If you think you can keep multiple cards open without giving in to the temptation to overspend, keep multiple cards open but watch for fees, Cunningham says. Some lenders now require you to spend a certain amount on a card each year to avoid an extra dormancy fee. If one of your credit cards carries such a fee -- but you want to keep the card to avoid damaging your debt utilization ratio -- consider using it to make an automatic monthly payment like a subscription, Cunningham says.

Have a History

The length of your credit history, and the average length of time you ve maintained your various lines of credit, is another factor used to calculate your score and another reason to be careful about closing out old credit cards, Cunningham says.

For some consumers, becoming an authorized user of a parent s or spouse s credit card could help boost a credit score. But the longevity factor could have a slight impact on parents who co-sign for a child s credit card by reducing the average age of their accounts, Detweiler says. In general, parents should be aware that every aspect of a child s debt is their full responsibility when they co-sign for a card.

Don t Shop Around Too Much

Multiple inquiries into your credit can damage your score. But consumers don t need to worry that shopping around for a good deal on a mortgage or auto loan, or going through a job search where employers are pulling their credit scores, will hurt them, Detweiler says. It s just applying for multiple credit cards that will tarnish your score, she says. Those inquiries also only stay on your credit report for two years, she says.

Read more about factors that determine your credit score and little-known ways you can damage your score.