No instant approval with a 792 Fico score for the Amazon Rewards Visa Signature card? What gives?

[Crowhelm]

So I applied for this card last weekend. They pulled Experian, 792 fico score, and no instant approval?? The first question, does that eliminate my $150 gift card? I hope not. Furthermore, since when does a 792 score not warrant instant approval? The only "negative" on my credit file is the length of accounts. We moved recently and sold and bought a new house. Obviously, that started a new mortgage. Duh, that should never be held against me in the first place. We got 2.5% on our 30-year mortgage. Does that sound like somebody who is a credit risk to you? However the 792 takes that into account anyway, in fact, I should be 830 if not 850 with 10 years of perfect payment, credit utilization if it wasn't for the length of accounts, or maybe because most are with a credit union is the problem? And yeah, I only have one credit card with my credit union that gives me 1.5% cashback on everything. So until I saw this one I didn't see the need for another card. But 5% off Amazon purchases, which I do a lot is very nice. 

[FinStar]

---

@Crowhelm wrote:

So I applied for this card last weekend. They pulled Experian, 792 fico score, and no instant approval?? The first question, does that eliminate my $150 gift card? I hope not. Furthermore, since when does a 792 score not warrant instant approval? The only "negative" on my credit file is the length of accounts. We moved recently and sold and bought a new house. Obviously, that started a new mortgage. Duh, that should never be held against me in the first place. We got 2.5% on our 30-year mortgage. Does that sound like somebody who is a credit risk to you? However the 792 takes that into account anyway, in fact, I should be 830 if not 850 with 10 years of perfect payment, credit utilization if it wasn't for the length of accounts, or maybe because most are with a credit union is the problem? And yeah, I only have one credit card with my credit union that gives me 1.5% cashback on everything. So until I saw this one I didn't see the need for another card. But 5% off Amazon purchases, which I do a lot is very nice. 

---

Hello @Crowhelm - welcome to the forums.

An item to keep in mind, "instant approvals" are never a sure thing nor guaranteed barring the lender.  Your score isn't a key driver for instant approvals either.  The first thing to be aware of is KYC policies -- those govern the application process -- not DYKWIA.  All lenders have them in place for a reason and for your protection.  You moved, this causes a variance in the process.  Risk is risk, regardless how you view it.  Just because you have a new mortgage doesn't mean all lenders can verify that's you. 

So, if approved, you won't lose the promotional GC tied with your application.  Always temper expectations in the event further verification may be required by any particular lender.   

That said, you can check the Chase application status line to check the progress of the app.  Sometimes manual reviews are necessary and not all lenders have the same internal UW policies.

[Crowhelm]

Well, the new address is on all our accounts, plus a recent lease of a new truck makes it very clear that we moved as well as the dealership that ran the credit check is in that same city we moved to. I find dealing with Fico scores very frustrating since we (my wife and I) often have drops in our scores with no apparent reason at all, in fact in most cases balances went down or no change at all and yet we lose 14 points here 10 points there. We always regain them quickly but it feels like one step forward and one back with no real reason. And reading people got instantly approved for this card with 700 or fewer scores makes you go wow when 792 and 2-3% credit utilization requires further review. The other thing that bothers me is zero contact other than the message on Amazon.com. No email saying we received your application and are working on your application. Without my alert sites that told me they immediately pulled the credit I would be sitting here and wondering if they even got it, did I misspell something, did I mistype my SS, and so on...lol. In contrast to that my credit union is in constant contact all the time. Makes me wonder how this relationship will work out and if 5% back will be worth it. 

[FinStar]

Well, Chase isn't like your (or any) CU.  Different lenders, different policies.  So, it's possible you may get an email notification in 24 hours or so regarding your pending application.  And, just because you read that someone was approved instantly on a lower score doesn't mean anything when comparing your situation vs theirs.  For one, you have no specific information about that person's profile and why their approval was instant vs yours.  Conversely, there are individuals who have much lower scores and they end up in a pending status like yours.

So, again, I'll reiterate KYC policies are detrimental to any lender.  So, AI (built into any UW algorithm these days) is what prompted your application for further review.  We can speculate all day and still not know the reason.  So, your options are to call the status line to learn more about the progress of your application or just wait until you receive formal communication from Chase on the final decision.

The helpful thread with the backdoor numbers is listed below (see the section under Chase):

https://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Credit-Card-Applications/Backdoor-Numbers/td-p/408066

[growthadvocate]

@Crowhelm Unfortuantely your new address being on all of your new accounts isn't a variable in the equation when hoping for an instant approval, nor is the address of the dealership that you purchased from.  What is part of the equation is the new lease you just mentioned, as well as any new inquiries that you recieved in the process.  Score doesn't always dictate credit decisions--there are many factors.  

It may be helpful to update your adress with each of the credit bureaus directly if you haven't already.  I wouldn't take it personal that they didn't give you an instant approval.  With more and more fraud activity, it's becoming more normal for lenders to take additional precautions.  Many of the instant approvals that you might here about, have some type of existing relationship with the lender...though not always the case.

It also may help if you take the initiative to reach out to Chase directly via phone.  This may trigger a decision after some additional verification.

[Remedios]

---

@growthadvocate wrote:

@Crowhelm Unfortuantely your new address being on all of your new accounts isn't a variable in the equation when hoping for an instant approval, nor is the address of the dealership that you purchased from.  What is part of the equation is the new lease you just mentioned, as well as any new inquiries that you recieved in the process.  Score doesn't always dictate credit decisions--there are many factors.  

It may be helpful to update your adress with each of the credit bureaus directly if you haven't already.  I wouldn't take it personal that they didn't give you an instant approval.  With more and more fraud activity, it's becoming more normal for lenders to take additional precautions.  Many of the instant approvals that you might here about, have some type of existing relationship with the lender...though not always the case.

It also may help if you take the initiative to reach out to Chase directly via phone.  This may trigger a decision after some additional verification.

---

An individual cannot "update" demographic info with CRAs. One can only dispute incorrect demographic info but previous address isn't incorrect, and it's used in ID verification.  

There is a reason why most applications ask for additional address if you haven't lived at the new one for certain period of time. 

[growthadvocate]

@Remedios I'm not sure what you mean by "demographic info," but that isn't what I mentioned.  I simply suggested updating "current address" with each bureau...which can be done.

[Crowhelm]

Understood, I have two inquiries on my report, now three I guess. First two, new mortgage, second truck lease. Done, nothing else. As I said there is nothing that really should spook anybody but I will call that number and report back.  Was I irresponsible many years ago, oh yeah, but that should be not a factor since it is long gone of any report and 10 years of toeing the line should be more than enough even for Chase. Wonder if I am too little of a possible profit for them? On my current CU credit Card, I paid not one cent in interest but already made $1600+ in cashback. But let me call that number and find out.

[Remedios]

---

@growthadvocate wrote:

@Remedios I'm not sure what you mean by "demographic info," but that isn't what I mentioned.  I simply suggested updating "current address" with each bureau...which can be done.

---

From OPs post "Well, the new address is on all our accounts, plus a recent lease of a new truck makes it very clear that we moved as well as the dealership that ran the credit check is in that same city we moved to"  

Since it's already reporting, updating it is not needed. If it's not reporting, it will soon, but it magnifies the need to establish identity. 

Additionally, addresses are updated with lenders who in return report them via normal process. 

If you send a proof of new address to CRA without a single lender reporting it and they change it, they just broke their own rules, unless one doesn't have any open accounts in which case CRA allow submitting documentation. 

It doesn't mean it cannot happen, but it shouldn't be happening. This isn't in place to inconvenience us, CRAs leave it up to lender (refer back to KYC policies) to establish facts, they are repository only (or should be). 

This is a short version for the public https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/updating-the-mailing-address-on-your-credit-report/

but there is a more extensive white paper plus CRA reporting manual describing proper course of action when there is address change, name change etc. 

That's what I meant. 

[growthadvocate]

Understood.  I appreciate you providing further explanation.  I was simply making a suggestion based upon personal experience.  I moved a few years ago, and even though my creditors had my updated address, not all of the CRA's updated my current address promptly.  Not that it was necessary, but I decided to update this information with them directly.  Specifically because when I contacted them to discuss an item on my report, they asked me my address as part of the verification process--so it seemed important at the time.  During the process one of the bureaus didn't even ask me to provide documentation, they simply changed it via phone once I was authenticated. 

So while I know that it isn't necessary, it could possibly be helpful to have your "current address" updated when submitting new applications.  It certainly doesn't hurt.  I beleive it's fair to say that we can't always rely on the CRA's to report our personal information without error, which is why I'm an advocate of taking iniative when and where it's possible.