Fraud Alert on CR without my consent

[bichonmom]

I just discovered that a fraud alert has been put on all 3 of my credit reports, NOT by me. I need to know what steps to take at this point.

I think this is what happenend:

Barclay's did a second HP back in November, when I called for a recon/CLI the day after being approved. It was supposed to be soft, but it was hard. They said they would have it removed. Long story short, it took until this last week to finally have it removed. Barclay's required me to send a letter to them that they forwarded to TU, saying that the inquiry was not authorized (which it wasn't). Barclay's called me on Friday saying that the inq would be removed by today. I was thrilled when I checked and the inq was gone... until I saw that a Fraud alert had been put on all of my CR.

My EX report says:

At your request, we include the following statement(s) every time your credit report is requested.
ID SECURITY ALERT: FRAUDULENT APPLICATIONS MAY BE SUBMITTED IN MY NAME
OR MY IDENTITY MAY HAVE BEEN USED WITHOUT MY CONSENT TO FRAUDULENTLY
OBTAIN GOODS OR SERVICES. DO NOT EXTEND CREDIT WITHOUT FIRST VERIFYING
THE IDENTITY OF THE APPLICANT. THIS SECURITY ALERT WILL BE MAINTAINED FOR
90 DAYS BEGINNING 01-20-12.

MY EQ report says:

Initial Fraud Alert Contact Information
Expiration Date: 04/19/2012 Daytime Phone: Ext: 00000
Date Reported: 01/20/2012 Evening Phone: Ext: 00000
Address: Cell Phone:
Comments: RECVD FROM TUC FRAUD 3RD PARTY

I had to figure out what/who TUC was, and then it all clicked. TUC is Trans Union, and they must have done this in response to whatever Barclay's told them to have the inq removed.

This is REALLY not okay with me. Frankly, I am furious. First they do a HP when they said they wouldn't. Then they take 3 mos to remove (and lots of phone calls and a letter). Then they end up putting a fraud alert on my credit file, which it NEVER has had.

I really need to some advice here. Should I call the CRAs and tell them that there shouldn't be a fraud alert on my file? How is this going to mess up my score and my credit history? When I was considering this previously, the rep @ EX made it sound like it had negative reprecussions.

Plus this quarter is when I was planning my CLIs and possibly app for an Amex. Please help!!!

[Lel]

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@bichonmom wrote:

I just discovered that a fraud alert has been put on all 3 of my credit reports, NOT by me. I need to know what steps to take at this point.

I think this is what happenend:

Barclay's did a second HP back in November, when I called for a recon/CLI the day after being approved. It was supposed to be soft, but it was hard. They said they would have it removed. Long story short, it took until this last week to finally have it removed. Barclay's required me to send a letter to them that they forwarded to TU, saying that the inquiry was not authorized (which it wasn't). Barclay's called me on Friday saying that the inq would be removed by today. I was thrilled when I checked and the inq was gone... until I saw that a Fraud alert had been put on all of my CR.

...

This is REALLY not okay with me. Frankly, I am furious. First they do a HP when they said they wouldn't. Then they take 3 mos to remove (and lots of phone calls and a letter). Then they end up putting a fraud alert on my credit file, which it NEVER has had.

I really need to some advice here. Should I call the CRAs and tell them that there shouldn't be a fraud alert on my file? How is this going to mess up my score and my credit history?@ When I was considering this previously, the rep @ EX made it sound like it had negative reprecussions.

Plus this quarter is when I was planning my CLIs and possibly app for an Amex. Please help!!!

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This, unfortunately, is what people here are warned about when they consider disputing inquiries - it may inadvertently lead to a fraud alert being slapped across all 3 reports.

But on the bright side, the fraud alert has absolutely no effect on your credit score or credit history.  In 3 months, it will be dropped.  In some cases, an extended fraud alert is placed on an account, which I believe stays for 7 years.  I've had an extended fraud alert on my EQ for the last 3 or 4 years, I think.  On a couple other occasions, when my student loan servicer and my employer lost computers or CDs with my personal information, a 90 day fraud alert was put on all my reports (and they gave me a free year of credit monitoring - woohoo!).

The main hassle, of course, is that fraud alerts can be obstacles to obtaining new credit.  But it's not insurmountable, either.  I had trouble applying for an Old Navy card, but a phone call from their credit folks allowed it go through - added about 5 minutes to the instant application process.  I wasn't able to get an OSH card, though.  Refinancing my student loans and a home equity loan, getting instantly approved for a Home Depot card and a Shell MasterCard, and purchasing a new car all went through without a hitch, and both HD and Shell did pull EQ with the extended fraud alert.

I don't know how easy it will be to get your fraud alert removed.  I can imagine that it will take some time - and then perhaps by the time it gets fixed, 90 days may almost be up!

Perhaps you could wait the 3 months before requesting your CLIs or applying for a new card, but I don't think the CLI request would necessarily be hampered by the fraud alert.  Amex might require additional ID verification before approving your application, which is what Old Navy basically required when I applied in the store.

[bichonmom]

Well, it explicitly says to creditors, not to extend credit to me. How can I overcome that? 

It was Barclay's error, not mine. They even admitted it was their error, but now have made things worse. Not a good way of starting a relationship. I think I'm gonna SD that card.

Do you know if CCCs can still do a SP? Can existing creditors do a HP?

I've read the info on TU's website on fraud alerts, but they don't give very much info.

Also, if I were to app for Amex @ Costco, they could verify my ID, but I'm wondering if the fraud alert would be a red flag to Amex. They are SO fussy, it seems.

Thanks!

[Lel]

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@bichonmom wrote:

Well, it explicitly says to creditors, not to extend credit to me. How can I overcome that? 

It was Barclay's error, not mine. They even admitted it was their error, but now have made things worse. Not a good way of starting a relationship. I think I'm gonna SD that card.

Do you know if CCCs can still do a SP? Can existing creditors do a HP?

I've read the info on TU's website on fraud alerts, but they don't give very much info.

@Also, if I were to app for Amex @ Costco, they could verify my ID, but I'm wondering if the fraud alert would be a red flag to Amex. They are SO fussy, it seems.

Thanks!

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The fraud alert says not to extend credit without first verifying the identity of the applicant.  That's what Old Navy did before approving my application.  I can't remember exactly what questions they asked me.

Yes, your existing creditors can still pull your credit report for their account reviews.  And for Home Depot at least, they were able to do a hard pull when I requested a reinstatement of my credit limit after a CLD.

Yes, it was an error on Barclay's part.  However, I'm not entirely certain that the fraud alert was necessarily their doing.  There's limited ways in which a CCC can report data to a credit bureau - they can't write letters explaining the situation and expect someone to read it, interpet it, and make the necessary changes.  They probably sent some sort of indicator code saying that the inquiry was not authorized, which TU then interpreted as potential identity theft/credit card fraud.

This is not to excuse Barclay's or TU, because you were told that your recon inquiry should have been soft.  But I suspect that the battle to remove the fraud alert is going to be difficult and unnecessarily time consuming for something that is not affecting your score and is going to expire in 90 days.  It's not like an incorrect 60 day late that needs to be removed.

I agree about Amex's fussiness.  But your mention of Costco Amex actually just reminded me that I also got approved for that very card with the EQ fraud alert in place.  But that was back when credit was easier to come by.

Also, to correct what I mentioned earlier about my extended fraud alert - it has actually been nearly 6 years since it was put on my EQ report.

[bichonmom]

Thank you for the explanation. I just really feel sick to my stomach. I worked so hard to get my credit where it is now and had a plan for the next few months, and I feel like it kind of all just went up in smoke.

At least, it's good to know that my CCs can pull for a CLI, so hopefully it won't prevent me from getting CLIs like I had planned.

Not sure about Amex. It might just be better to wait, so they don't have any excuses to either not approve me or to FR me later.

[RobertEG]

You are correct in that fraud alerts can only be placed in your credit file at the request of the consumer.  FCRA 605A(a)(1).

So they blew it there, by representing that it was requested by you.

Under FCRA 605A(a)(1)(A), a fraud alert can be removed simply at the request of the consumer at any time before the end of the 90 day period, so you clearly have the right to have it removed simply by requesting it.

As for how hard it should be, FCRA 605A(d) clearly states that congress intended that requests for fraud alerts be conducted "in a simple and easy manner, including by telephone."  I would presume the same would apply to their removal.  The only impediment to rapid removal might be if the CRA first requires written proof of your identity.

[bichonmom]

Thanks, Robert. I'll call the CRAs tomorrow.

[llecs]

OP, I know you have/have had myFICO products in the past. A FA might be an issue in receiving alerts/reports. Seems like Barry mentioned that a few times, IIRC. I don't know how it impacts other CMSs.

Ditto to everyone else,  there's no impact to your credit or FICO. In our dark repair days, before seeing the light here, DW disputed a TL as "not mine". A fraud alert was automatically placed on EQ only and I don't know why it never spead to the other two as it should have. I recall calling EQ with her by my side and was able to get that removed fairly easily over the phone.

On the inquiry...do you know how to tell if a credit-related CSR is lying? Answer: they are speaking. Never trust what they say because they are usually wrong. Sounds like that CSR coded it as fraud-related in requesting the inquiry to be removed. You were lucky they didn't close the CC.

[bichonmom]

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@llecs wrote:

OP, I know you have/have had myFICO products in the past. A FA might be an issue in receiving alerts/reports. Seems like Barry mentioned that a few times, IIRC. I don't know how it impacts other CMSs.

Ditto to everyone else,  there's no impact to your credit or FICO. In our dark repair days, before seeing the light here, DW disputed a TL as "not mine". A fraud alert was automatically placed on EQ only and I don't know why it never spead to the other two as it should have. I recall calling EQ with her by my side and was able to get that removed fairly easily over the phone.

On the inquiry...do you know how to tell if a credit-related CSR is lying? Answer: they are speaking. Never trust what they say because they are usually wrong. Sounds like that CSR coded it as fraud-related in requesting the inquiry to be removed. You were lucky they didn't close the CC.

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Funny and true, unfortunately.

Thank you both for all of the info! I spent an hour on the phone this morning and called all 3 CRBs and they're removing the fraud alert. It is beyond me how they can put this on my CR without my knowledge! Anyway, it should be off all 3 in the next few days. Thank you!

[mousefai]

my story is quite simiilar.

a lender pull my experian report and said there is no score for review for my credit card application. so the manager tells me that he can pull my equifax for a score.  and it comes up that there is a score on equifax.

ok, the manager told me he would remove the inquiries. however, due to the fact i had some disputes (BEFORE the card application) and there is a fraud alert on experian right now

do any of u know that is it possible to remove inquiries on experian if the fraud alert is there?

thansk.