I see rules about PP but I don't see any language about hard vs. soft inquiries. This leads me to think that CRAs came up with this concept and they can modify this anyway they see fit.
[color=0066FF]§ 604. (c) (1) In general. A consumer reporting agency may furnish a consumer report relating to any consumer pursuant to subparagraph (A) or (C) of subsection (a)(3) in connection with any credit or insurance transaction that is not initiated by the consumer only if (B) (i) the transaction consists of a firm offer of credit or insurance; (2) Limits on information received under paragraph (1)(B). A person may receive pursuant to paragraph (1)(B) only (A) the name and address of a consumer; (B) an identifier that is not unique to the consumer and that is used by the person solely for the purpose of verifying the identity of the consumer; and (C) other information pertaining to a consumer that does not identify the relationship or experience of the consumer with respect to a particular creditor or other entity.[/color] The pointer is paragraph (1)(B) ... this is what the "soft" inquiry is ...
vlad: isn't that the definition of a prm instead of a soft? i don't think there is any mention of a soft anywhere in the fcra, i think that the notion of soft was just done to allow the company requesting a file to do so in a way that didn't affect the credit rating.
Jam, you're right - the word "soft" isn't used anywhere in FCRA, but FCRA states the limits of information to be only about information received under paragraph (1)(B) which is, apparently, the PRM. The way I see it, if OC does a review or monitoring, they have the option to pull hard or soft, but if there is a PRM, they must pull a soft, i.e. - cannot receive anything but the name, address, etc. It's more complicated than this, I am preparing a special post about the inquiries - will probably be done by tomorrow ...
Well, since I just wrote a nasty letter to Hhld explaining this concept, here's the nice version just for you: The FCRA does not distinguish between Hard, Soft, and PRM inquiries like the CRAs do. This is an industry mechanism. The FCRA discusses two kinds of inquiries. 1. Those that provide limited, non-identifying information. The FCRA calls these non-consumer initiated transactions, with some other qualifiers. The CRAs refer to them as Promotional or PRMs. 2. All other inquiries. If they get more than non-identifying information (such as your social, or full credit report) these are all "other" inquiries. The CRAs distinguish between hard and soft out of the goodness of their hearts (blech!) not because of anything in the FCRA. If they pull for any reason other than #1 above, they better have a pp. HTH.
Re: Re: where in FCRA is hard vs. soft? Except for Experian, who likes to make us guess whether or not they provided more than non-identifying information and, consequently, whether or not the creditor had a valid PP. In other words, Experian does not distinguish between AR and PRM just to keep us in the dark and to protect its subscribers from potential lawsuits.
Re: Re: where in FCRA is hard vs. soft? LOL You tickle me. I thought the same thing at first too. Then it occured to me, out of WHAT kindness, and what heart? There MUST be a reason I thought. They know that [hard] inqs. cost points. So they reclassified PRM's and AR's as "soft" to avoid a point loss by removing them from the FICO calculation. It was probably a function of the advent of FICO, and became necessary. Just think, if a guy has 30 accounts he might have 30 or more AR's a month. Hell, with FICO the way it is he'd have a -18 score in no time, even tho his credit is perfect. Merely a computer classification mechanism. Makes sense to me anyway. Kindness, Schmindness - LOL .
