Does opening a new bank account cause a hard inquiry?

[Viper786]

I may be opening an account soon at Huntington Bank and was wondering if this will result in a hard pull. I am looking to purchase a car over the next few months and am trying to avoid inquiries at all costs.

[pizzadude]

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@Viper786 wrote:

I may be opening an account soon at Huntington Bank and was wondering if this will result in a hard pull. I am looking to purchase a car over the next few months and am trying to avoid inquiries at all costs.

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I would ask them to be certain, but usually banks will only run Chexsystems if you open a new account.

[Anonymous]

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@pizzadude wrote:

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@Viper786 wrote:

I may be opening an account soon at Huntington Bank and was wondering if this will result in a hard pull. I am looking to purchase a car over the next few months and am trying to avoid inquiries at all costs.

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I would ask them to be certain, but usually banks will only run Chexsystems if you open a new account.

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+1. If it's a credit union, expect it.

If it's not, ask.

[Viper786]

I really dont trust what reps say about hard pull vs soft pull because I have been told twice that something would be a soft pull but it turned out to be a hard inquiry.

[HoldingOntoHope]

Well the question to ask them is "Do you pull a credit bureau report for account opening?'. If the answer is NO problem solved. If the answer is YES expect a HP.

[Viper786]

You were right, they said they don't pull credit they just use chexsystems

[RobertEG]

I, personally, do not place a lot of fault on creditor reps who dont know the distinction between so-called "hard" and "soft" inquiries, or who state it will be one type and it turns out to be another.

This forum has numerous consumers who are very well versed on credit reporting, but to date I never seen a definitive explanation of the so-called hard vs. soft inquiry reporting system.  As such, I would hardly expect customer service reps to understand the process.

Start with an inquiry for new credit or a business transaction that has a clear permissible purpose under FCRA 604.  The credit reporting system is designed to record such inquiries for review by other creditors.  So how does a creditor report a legitimate inquiry that qualifies for CR inclusion in a manner that excludes it?

Do credtiors actually report codes, or do the CRAs record a code based on its permissible purpose?  If the credtior reports the coding, is there a code that allows them to report "for a consumer-iniitated request for new credit, but exclude this inquiry from the consumer's CR?"  Or must a creditor report an inaccurate code in order to get it recorded as a so-called "soft" inquiry?

I simply have NO idea how it works.  Perhaps someone does.

[marty56]

I would assume the worst and say that they will.  The worst hit I got for an INQ was 15 points so I would use that as a baseline and see what tier you would be  if you got a 15 point hit.  I would also check the bank and see if you would qualify for an autoloan there. don't apply of course since they possibly might offer you a better rate.

Having said this I would not opn the account now.