There were 10 new inquiries on my credit report in the last 2 days from all the different banks and retail card cos. Well, someone got my SSN apparently. The interesting thing is that while on the phone with banks I was told that some inquiries and applications were done using not only my SSN but also name and address, and some only had SSN matched.
So I called all the banks and cos and thankfully none has yet approved applications or opened accounts (express alerts do work indeed). Couple banks refused to remove inquiries saying that they were done in my name therefore I need to work with the credit bureaus directly. Which I did - put a fraud alert, filed a police report, sent requests to CBs blah blah blah.
In the end there were 10 additional inquiries on my reports, 3-4 on each (among Equifax/Experian/Transunion). Scores dropped from 780 to 740 on Experian, haven't seen updated scores for the rest two.
The problem is that I am set to apply for a mortgage in 2-3 weeks. Does the knowledgeable all have any suggestions, bits of wisedom, actions to take I haven't taken yet to ensure that 1) the damage is contained to what has already been done and 2) what can be done to get these inquiries out of the reports quickly and get the score back up at least a little bit.
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Since he referenced Experian, he's probably talking about a FAKO score. Depending on what company he uses, it might very well be telling him that it dropped 40 points. The scores are bullshit, not the OP's post.
OP, seems like you've done about all you can. The banks are probably correct in that they don't have the ability to remove the inquiries, and they probably don't have much incentive to bother to try anyways. Your best bet for getting the inquiries removed is to keep pestering the credit bureaus. Good luck with that. :/
And if they can find your nephew, oops I meant stranger, that stole your identity you can sue the bugger for damages. Even if your mortgage rate didn't change, sue for .25% interest of your mortgage rate. Drumroll for new thread, "Setting myself up for ID theft for fun and profit!"
So I called all the banks and cos and thankfully none has yet approved applications or opened accounts (express alerts do work indeed). Couple banks refused to remove inquiries saying that they were done in my name therefore I need to work with the credit bureaus directly. Which I did - put a fraud alert, filed a police report, sent requests to CBs blah blah blah. Any suggestions are highly appreciated
One thing I'd add is to send a certified letter to all places where inquiries were made, with cc to the CB's, explaining what happened and requesting an investigation to remove the inquiries and immediately close all accounts in question.
The problem is that I am set to apply for a mortgage in 2-3 weeks. Does the knowledgeable all have any suggestions, bits of wisedom, actions to take I haven't taken yet to ensure that 1) the damage is contained to what has already been done and 2) what can be done to get these inquiries out of the reports quickly and get the score back up at least a little bit.
If you are getting flack from the CRA's or anyone that pulled your report as far as removing the inq's, I would sue them all and tell them that you are applying for a mortgage and if they don't get off your report in the next 48 hours you'll be amending your complaint and adding a zero to your demand. Notice, I did not say threaten to sue, send an intent to sue, or anything of that sort, just sue them.
DOCUMENT everything. All calls, all emails, all letters.
IF you have probs getting your mortgage, ask WHY (and document).
pre-emptively, you could supply your lender with an older credit report, the latest credit report, and the Police report. And tell them it is being taken care of, but you will be willing to take this as far as it needs to go...
qcumber: no, nothing was stolen from the wallet. I kind of suspect that this might be a consequence of a year old security breach at the UT at Austin when thousands of students SSNs were stolen. Can't think of anything else.
Got old reports and scores stored. Will see how it goes, will be applying for a mortgage in a couple weeks.
There's a great book by Frank Abagnale (the subject of the movie "Catch Me If You Can") that he wrote several years back called "Stealing Your Identity" or something like that. Just do a search for his name on Amazon. Anyway, the book is a treasure trove of advice in situations like this. Having your Soc. number, bank account information (like I did), or identity stolen is a pain in the butt, but there ARE things you can do to fight back.
connorzen said: Having your Soc. number, bank account information (like I did), or identity stolen is a pain in the butt, but there ARE things you can do to fight back.
chrishaw said:Bullshit. Your score did not drop 40 points on 3 inquiries. green to counter reds, because I (think I) understood what you meant. no, 3 inquiries won't cause a 40 point drop, even with buckets in consideration; and it usually won't do it even to FAKOs. so something else is going on with the credit scores, be they FICO or FAKO. something else deeper is going down with the credit reports.
MoonlitHollow said:And if they can find your nephew, oops I meant stranger, that stole your identity you can sue the bugger for damages. Even if your mortgage rate didn't change, sue for .25% interest of your mortgage rate. Drumroll for new thread, "Setting myself up for ID theft for fun and profit!" It's too bad that the bottom line is most identity theft is a lot closer to home than stranger theft.
XBOHDPuKC said:thanks for replies and suggestions. qcumber: no, nothing was stolen from the wallet. I kind of suspect that this might be a consequence of a year old security breach at the UT at Austin when thousands of students SSNs were stolen. Can't think of anything else. Got old reports and scores stored. Will see how it goes, will be applying for a mortgage in a couple weeks. That was a year ago? Why now? Maybe something else HAS happened. I wouldn't rule it out. It'd be nice if that was the case, but don't be surprised if something else more recent has happened.
Good luck with getting this all straightened out. It appears you're doing the right thing in contacting people, and filing police reports regarding this. The consequences can last for a long time. Everyone's advice about documenting EVERYTHING can not be stressed enough.
So if anyone is interested in a quick update. Talking to banks was a major pain of course. Well, some of them weren't that bad at all, helpful and such. It appears that CrapOne pulls reports from all 3 bureaus. Some banks wanted a mailed in or faxed letter in order to start looking into it - they got it, along with the police report and all that jazz.
In most cases it appears that the bastard used my name, street name and number, but wrong apt #, wrong phone, and place of employment. The kicker is that my previous employer name is totally misspelled on my Equifax report - only there, and this spelling was used in all applications. Not sure if I can make any conclusions outta this though. Most of the applications were for retail credit cards (but through banks, except one through Nordstrom). In all but one case applications were submitted through internet, in Wachovia case they tried to apply over the phone and "were referred to the local branch as the CSR wasn't able to verify the identity."
No losses so far, from pretty much everyone I got an oral consent to remove the inquiry from the credit report.
As far as FICO/FAKO - I used to have 782 on experian through Citi identity monitor, when I got the score through Experian itself it showed 740. Maybe these are two completely different beasts, but for an uneducated consumer (ahem) they look as completely comparable numbers.
No losses so far, from pretty much everyone I got an oral consent to remove the inquiry from the credit report.
"Oral Consent" means nothing. Have you verified that indeed the inquiries were removed from the CB's and your report, and most importantly; have you checked the reports after the "oral" consent?
Did the FI's close the accounts in question and sent you proof that the did so?
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