topic Do insurance companies report to credit bureaus? in General Credit Topics

Do insurance companies report to credit bureaus?

DannyC990 — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 19:29:54 GMT

Just wondering if insurance companies REPORT to credit bureaus. I know that insurance companies will PULL your credit report.

I am looking for non-credit ways to help out my credit report... Just wondering if taking out renter's insurance would help it at all.

Re: Do insurance companies report to credit bureaus?

pizzadude — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 20:08:14 GMT

Nope, they do not report. Neither do utilities, such as gas, electric, phones, etc....

If you were to go deliquent on these accounts then they would likely report negatively.

Credit Cards and installment loans are the TLs that will show on your reports.

Re: Do insurance companies report to credit bureaus?

RobertEG — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 22:03:53 GMT

They can, if they choose. They also have permissible purpose for access to your CR.

They may not have a regular regime of reporting monthly, but like most utilities, may choose to report when things go south as a debt collection measure.

Re: Do insurance companies report to credit bureaus?

IOBA — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 03:08:48 GMT

pizzadude - in some areas, some utilities do report monthly and bi monthly and quarterly, depending on their billing cycle.

I am trying to remember which electric company use to report bi-monthly....I don't remember which one it was. I know when I had a credit application, I had to explain why the utility company was reporting AND get a letter from the electric company stating the account was current. This was back in 2003 and 2005.

In the old days, the utility companies never reported.

For the most part, people should not think of the utility companies reporting and count on that to build credit.

Re: Do insurance companies report to credit bureaus?

pizzadude — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:21:34 GMT

@IOBA wrote:
pizzadude - in some areas, some utilities do report monthly and bi monthly and quarterly, depending on their billing cycle.

I am trying to remember which electric company use to report bi-monthly....I don't remember which one it was. I know when I had a credit application, I had to explain why the utility company was reporting AND get a letter from the electric company stating the account was current. This was back in 2003 and 2005.

In the old days, the utility companies never reported.

For the most part, people should not think of the utility companies reporting and count on that to build credit.

Ok cool ~ thanks for letting us know. I just haven't ever seen any of my utilities pop up on my reports, but in general I think it would be great if they would do it. Certainly it could help a lot of people raise their scores if FICO would consider these accounts - but I don't know if they are just ignored by FICO or how they would be viewed.

Re: Do insurance companies report to credit bureaus?

aussiesareforever — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 03:55:48 GMT

I had a utility company (electric) report on my CR when I lived in Milwaukee. It is stil on my CR as a tradeline.

Re: Do insurance companies report to credit bureaus?

MattH — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 15:49:38 GMT

I have never seen any insurance company report on my credit. Nor have most utilities. The one exception is my electric company, United Illuminating in Connecticut reports every month. For some reason, though, UI appears as "Installment Account" rather than as a utility. Southern CT Gas, AT&T (landline phone), Virgin Mobile (portable wireless Internet device), Comcast (cable TV and Internet), and Sprint (the cell phones my wife and I carry around) have never appeared in my credit reports.

Re: Do insurance companies report to credit bureaus?

MattH — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 15:53:21 GMT

Also,while my personal AMEX Gold Card appears on my credit history, the AMEX Corporate Card from work never has appeared on my reports. I suppose my AMEX from work doesn't appear because it is strictly for business purposes and my employers make electronic payments directly to AMEX.

Re: Do insurance companies report to credit bureaus?

pizzadude — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 16:07:40 GMT

@MattH wrote:
Also,while my personal AMEX Gold Card appears on my credit history, the AMEX Corporate Card from work never has appeared on my reports. I suppose my AMEX from work doesn't appear because it is strictly for business purposes and my employers make electronic payments directly to AMEX.

That's interesting that your Electric bill reports as "installment" ~ I would assume that FICO scores it as a regular installment loan if that is the case. IME most utilities won't report unless you stop paying, then they become COs or collections.

AMEX is similar in that doesn't report corporate cards unless you become seriously deliquent ~ I guess it makes sense because companies are reimbursing your account directly, and it keeps your other creditors from become nervous if you happened to rack up $20,000 in travel charges in a month.

Re: Do insurance companies report to credit bureaus?

seattletravels — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 04:18:20 GMT

I used to have a tanning membership that reported as an installment, lol. Still on my CR as a postive tradeline!

Re: Do insurance companies report to credit bureaus?

pizzadude — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 04:34:19 GMT

@seattletravels wrote:
I used to have a tanning membership that reported as an installment, lol. Still on my CR as a postive tradeline!

funny, maybe it qualifies as an electric bill....

Re: Do insurance companies report to credit bureaus?

Repo-ed — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 13:39:23 GMT

So insurance co. do not report, but don't they check your CR now, to determine your rate?

Re: Do insurance companies report to credit bureaus?

pizzadude — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 14:49:54 GMT

Yes ~ unless specifically prohibited by law, insurance companies can check your credit and factor that into their risk model to determine your rates. They use a soft pull though, so there is no score impact.

Re: Do insurance companies report to credit bureaus?

MattH — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 00:12:43 GMT

@pizzadude wrote:
Yes ~ unless specifically prohibited by law, insurance companies can check your credit and factor that into their risk model to determine your rates. They use a soft pull though, so there is no score impact.

I do not recall seeing State Farm among the soft pulls of my credit and I have been checking my annual free reports for some years. I dunno if CT prohibits insurance companies pulling credit, or maybe they feel they know me well enough based on my history with them: I've been covered by State Farm since 1988.