Deleting inquiries

THAT IS A GOOD QUESTION BECAUSE I SAW ON MY REPORT A COMPANY LOOKED AT IT SEVERAL TIMES IN A YEAR, BUT THE WEIRD PART IS I DON'T RECALL A REASON FOR THEM TO BE CHECKING

 

Are the inquiries "hard" inquiries visible to others by a CA, or are they "soft" inquiries invisible to others by a company that you have a credit account with?

 

Your credit report should say clearly whether an inquiry is visible to other users of your credit reports.

If it's a promotional inquiry, no big deal.

If it's an inquiry from a company you are not doing business with, or didn't apply to open an account with, send them a letter asking what their permissible purpose was. Someone may be attempting to open, or have opened, an account in your name. This is particularly common with cell phone accounts. The sooner you shut it down, file id theft reports, etc. the better and less damage. If you ignore it, you may end up dealing with the same mess with CAs after a delinquent account gets sold.

 

Ontrack is it possible to delete the hard inquiries if so what is the correct way in doing so.

 

If they didn't have permissible purpose to pull your report, you can sue under FCRA. If they claim they were made in error, they would have an interest in directing the CRA to remove them as being made in error, as part of settling with you.

 

The starting point, especially if you don't recognize the company, is to notify them that you are not aware of applying for or having an open account with them, and ask what permissible purpose under FCRA they had to pull your reports.

 

Did you have any cell phone account, possibly with a company that Cingular may have bought, such as ATT Wireless?

 

Physically, nothing stops companies from pulling your report. They are only legally required to have had a permissible purpose, either due to a request by you to open an account , a check on your credit for an open account, or collection activity. (See FCRA.) They may even be pulling your report, in connection with someone else's transaction, either due to a similar name, or due to id theft. However, unless you push the issue, the law is no protection.

To best protect yourself, obtain mailed paper copies of your credit reports showing the inquiries, dispute the inquiries with the parties making them, indicating "you did not initiate a transaction with them, so why are they pulling your reports", and also dispute with the CRAs for the same reason. Dispute with all parties, CRRR.

If the report users do not respond adequately, you can sue under FCRA for statutory damages.

If you have several inquiries from different companies showing up, in a short timeframe, it could indicate either that someone is using your identity, or that someone's identity (name and other identification information) is being merged with yours in the CRAs databases. Neither is a situation you want, and the sooner you force its correction, the better. Suing the companies may be your best tool. Also if they respond inadequately, file a complaint with your state's AG. This will also build a paper trail you may need later.

 

Did you move recently, perhaps a little before the inquiry dates? Did you, or do you now live in a situation with roommates, or ex-roommates, or where access to your delivered mail is not secure (roadside box with no lock, unsecured mail delivery i an apartment complex, etc.)? Have you moved, yet left intact or transferred a phone account to housemates who did not move? Have you had any family members who are suspected to have opened accounts in the name of other family members?

 

What are the types of businesses that made inquiries?

Cell phone companies have a relatively high rate of fraudulent applications involving id theft. Companies doing business by phone, Internet, and mail also do, since there is no way to physically verify identification, and perpetrators can commit fraud in relative safety at a distance.