The Credit Inquiries section of your credit report records a list of every creditor who requested your credit report within the last two years.
There are Two Types of Credit Inquiries
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‘Voluntary Inquiry’ or ‘Hard Inquiry’: This is a credit report request that you personally authorized for a creditor to make when you applied for a line of credit and this type of credit inquiry may or may not hurt your Credit Score.
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‘Involuntary Inquiry’ or ‘Soft Inquiry’: This happens when credit card companies or lenders request your credit report ‘without your knowledge’ to determine if you qualify for a ‘pre-approved’ credit offer, which you may receive in your mailbox. This type of credit inquiry DOES NOT affect your Credit Score.
Hard Credit Inquiries most likely will have a negative affect on your Credit Score, so it is critical to make sure that you recognize ALL HARD Inquiries on your credit report.
If you see any Credit Inquiries that you did not authorize, then it is time to file your dispute and include your demand for the CRA to remove the Credit Inquiry from your credit report.
