Hey there, to answer your question: yes, Nordstrom, as well as all your creditors, are legally permitted to pull your report without your authorization. However, what is odd about your situation is that it appears they performed a "hard" inquiry--meaning, an inquiry that usually should only occurr when applying for new credit. They should've "softed" you instead.
If you pulled your credit reports using the myfico.com web site, chances are that only hard inquiries are listed and not the soft ones. If you pull your reports from the bureaus themselves (experian.com; truecredit.com [TransUnion]; equifax.com), you will see that all of them will list both soft and hard inquiries. You will likely notice that for the last five years, all of your credit card companies have been "softing" you at one point or another just to see how you're doing with your other financial obligations.
The best advice I can give you is to contact Nordstrom and explain to them that they pulled a hard inquiry when it should've been a soft one. You need to speak to someone who knows what you're talking about. Try speaking to a manager or account supervisor or a credit analyst. Equifax is the ONLY bureau that permits you to dispute inquiries using their web site. You can dispute by mail for Experian and TransUnion, but you have an uphill battle ahead of you.
Message Edited by emartin82 on 01-05-2010 08:12 PM
