Got a hard pull from AT@T....I think

[MidnightVoice]

Can I complain about Cingular (AT&T) again please?

[haulingthescoreup]

To the earlier posters who work for utilities and so forth: I agree that it is fair to run credit checks when someone is establishing an account for the first time. OP had a different situation: he was upgrading existing service. IMO, this deserves an internal payment history check, and maybe a soft inq under the Account Maintenance or Account Review prefix. Here's what OP posted:

I have AT@T internet. And 2 days ago, i wanted to upgrade my DSL to fiber optic broadband 6.0(the fastest speed). Anyway, they did a credit pull of EQ! That had only 2 inqs on it, now it has 3!!!

I think it's way overkill to do a hard on an existing customer.


Poor MV! Your tombstone will read: Here lies MV, an all-around good guy, except for that Cingular thing.

[jmbfl]

HTSU -

I agree - it is not a new account and he should complain. There is no call for a hard inquiry. I'm sure in their contorted thinking it is "new" because it is a new service. It really is account maintenance and he should have been soft'ed. On the other hand it is only one inquiry... AFAIK the only outfit that really has this right is BOA - you ask for a card you get a hard - you ask for a CLI you get a soft (usually) AND you can find out if you are likely to get a card with a soft. This is service!

As far as my comment on the Patriot Act is concerned: I don't necessarily agree with the Patriot Act at all. More intrusion! However, I do agree with FCRA - if someone looks at my credit files I want to know who it is. In fact I think they should be REQUIRED to NOTIFY you anytime anyone pulls a hard inquiry on a CRA file of yours. I have two hards sitting out there from CA's poking around on time barred debt that I did not know about for quite a while. When I get some spare time I will deal with that bit of nastiness!

[marty56]

I am a conservative and agrree 100% with the  Patriot Act  but I think CCCs use of the  Patriot Act is more along the lines of those cop shows were the cop smashes the rear tail light of a car and then says they have probable cause to serach the vehicle.

[jmbfl]

A conservative is a liberal who just got mugged.

A liberal is a conservative who's civil rights have just been violated.

I was once "profiled" when I lived in NJ. My plate was run and the return showed that I lived on the "wrong side of the tracks". As a result I was stopped because I was where I was. I asked - there was no other reason. NJ police agencies are notorious for profiling and many have been sued over it, some over and over again including the NJ State Police. Funny thing is the officer who "profiled" me could not have afforded to live on my side of the tracks on his income...

My strong preferences:

1) Leave me alone, but

2) If you are going to look at me I want to know that you are doing it!

[Anonymous]

yes, i agree now. I guess its just to check identitiy and all. I wish it could have been a soft pull. I also wish they had used TU or EX as they have more iqus. EQ only had 2 and now it has 3

But, at least now i have their U-Verse  and its so much better than  dsl.

Thanks for everyones opinions and thoughts. I guess i didnt really think about it that much, but everything here everyone said made complete sense. 

[MidnightVoice]

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jmbfl wrote:

Imagine how much fraud there would be out there if mobile phone companies did not attempt some kind of credit pull to verify identity and creditworthiness? A lot of hard pulls are not done so much over your credit, but rather to make sure you are who you say you are. Try joining a CU or opening a bank account - no credit involved - just opening an account that you are going to put your money in. The Patriot Act says they have to make sure you who you say you are and you get harded as a result. Rent an apartment - seek employment - on and on. Problem is that many of these inquiries should be softs, but those pulling the reports don't know a hard from a soft or don't care. There is a body of law out there designed to PROTECT YOU however, which is why inquiries are recorded. You don't like having an inquiry on your CR? How would you feel if there was someone out there offering access to a db of all kind of information on you that anyone could buy access to and when they did you would never know who it was who was nosing around? I'll suffer through an occassional inquiry. I don't like it but I'd far rather see it then have Big Brother out there inquiring and not know about it.

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Cingular pulled a hard inq on me when I added a line after I had been a customer for a year - that was not required and poor customer relations - they could have pulled a soft if they really didn't trust me

[MidnightVoice]

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jmbfl wrote:

The Patriot Act says they have to make sure you who you say you are and you get harded as a result.

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Yes and no.  The patriot act requires they identify you.  IT DOES NOT REQUIRE THEY DO A HARD INQ, OR ANT SORT OF CREDIT PULL.  It requires they know your identity.  Some places are just so lazy they use a credit pull when they do not need to

[athensguy]

I have 4 hards for utilities on my EQ report. It makes me pretty mad, and I think I'm going to have to call EQ up and ask them to remove them. The most annoying one is that I got a bundle from Windstream that includes TV, and Dish pulled a hard on me too! I do not have an account with Dish, and I had never communicated with Dish in any way. I pay everything through Windstream. I don't think I would win a lawsuit, but Dish's pull is non-PP.

Also, the PATRIOT ACT is fascist, which I guess is a form of "conservatism". Pulling my CR does nothing to confirm my ID. Until I told EQ where I lived the other day, they didn't even have my address, and none of my accounts had been updated for 2 months.

[fused]

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erchambers wrote:

Also, the PATRIOT ACT is fascist, which I guess is a form of "conservatism". Pulling my CR does nothing to confirm my ID. Until I told EQ where I lived the other day, they didn't even have my address, and none of my accounts had been updated for 2 months.

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Boy, do I agree! A passport or DL should be sufficient. Pulling CRs to confirm one's identity is ridiculous...CRs have far too many inaccuracies as it is.