# Going mad over credit check row



## vladmirgc (Jul 18, 2015)

Hello,

I don't know if anyone has ever experienced this, but I'd appreciate some tips on how to handle this situation.

Recently, I tried to apply for a credit card in Scotiabank. 
Everything was fine, until the branch manager told me that they ran a soft check on me, and there was something pending from BMO, negatively affecting my credit score. Since it was a soft check, there was no further information.
The only account I had at BMO was closed 2 and half years ago. I made sure I closed the account, and there was no pending balance. The only credit card I had with them was secured ( $1000 deposit), and had been cancelled as well. I was really surprised to find something related to BMO. They never contacted me about anything.


Then I decided to go in person to the BMO branch where my account had been closed to clear this. Could not find information about any pending balance (YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING ME!).
They suggested me to contact the credit reporting agency ( Equifax or TransUnion ), which I was trying to avoid, since they are both terrible. 
I was forced to spend $15 to get a credit report from Equifax ( not able to wait 1 month ). And for my surprise, did not find anything on the report. No pending balance, only one open account with everything paid.

Now I don't know what I should do. Take this report to the bank and rub it on their faces? Or seek legal advice?


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## MoreMiles (Apr 20, 2011)

vladmirgc said:


> Hello,
> 
> Now I don't know what I should do. Take this report to the bank and rub it on their faces? Or seek legal advice?


Seek legal advice? Are you an American? What damage or loss have you incurred? The bank has the final discretion to decide if they grant you any credit or sell you any product. I just don't see if one can sue if there is nothing lost. Please remember that a credit product is a privilege, not a right. Your human right was not invaded because people did not want to grant you that privilege. Many people in Canada do not have the privilege of having credit cards and that is perfectly acceptable.

Alos, lawyers charge $400/hour... and you were complaining that you were "forced" to pay $15 for credit report? I fail to see how it makes sense to spend more now. And by the way, nobody "forced" you like with a weapon or something. You voluntarily bought the credit report because you did not want to wait.

I think you should just move on.


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## fatcat (Nov 11, 2009)

apply for a different card


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## Synergy (Mar 18, 2013)

Why don't you just go back to Scotiabank and see if it was a mistake. No need to be rude, threaten to sue, etc. That's not going to get you too far IMHO.


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## vladmirgc (Jul 18, 2015)

Synergy said:


> Why don't you just go back to Scotiabank and see if it was a mistake. No need to be rude, threaten to sue, etc. That's not going to get you too far IMHO.


I am not really mad at Scotiabank, because I know these banks just buy these credit scores from the reporting agencies.
These agencies do not give a damn to people. There are reports of people waiting over an hour on the phone to talk to them.
You can search the forum, and you will find hundreds of complaints against them, so it is not just me. It is unbelievable how carelessly they treat people's credit profile, and how loose the government regulations are here in Canada.


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## Synergy (Mar 18, 2013)

I never disagreed. There's an abundance of uselessness, carelessness, etc. in just about every business, profession, etc.


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## wendi1 (Oct 2, 2013)

I would push Scotiabank for more info.

I once applied for a PCF Mastercard and was turned down. I asked why, and got the generic "credit report" response. So I checked both Transunion and Equifax, and saw nothing wrong. So I went back to PCF, went up a couple of levels, and finally found out that they couldn't find my name in the telephone book. No surprise there, our phone is under my husband's name. 

The first person I talked to was just guessing - they didn't actually have access to my file.

Just go back to Scotia and press a bit. Politely, but firmly.


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## marina628 (Dec 14, 2010)

print out your copy of the report and make an appointment with the bank but IMO no credit can be worst than bad credit ,they probably want to see more activity on your credit .Get more credit use under 5% of the available credit and in 6 months it will be 800+ and they will be kissing your *** lol


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## peterk (May 16, 2010)

marina628 said:


> print out your copy of the report and make an appointment with the bank but IMO no credit can be worst than bad credit ,they probably want to see more activity on your credit .*Get more credit use under 5% of the available credit* and in 6 months it will be 800+ and they will be kissing your *** lol


Under 5%? That's it?

That's $500 on a $10,000 limit card!

I always have $1-2k going on my Mastercard every month (paid off each month), and a couple times a year probably have 3-5k on the bill from big expenses (also paid off each month), with a $10k limit. Is this no good for my credit score??


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## Westerncanada (Nov 11, 2013)

peterk said:


> Under 5%? That's it?
> 
> That's $500 on a $10,000 limit card!
> 
> I always have $1-2k going on my Mastercard every month (paid off each month), and a couple times a year probably have 3-5k on the bill from big expenses (also paid off each month), with a $10k limit. Is this no good for my credit score??


I am only going to give my opinion on Credit Utilization from a perspective that for 10 months I checked my credit score weekly to figure out how it got where it was and what moved it etc. What I can tell you about utilization is that although anything under 30% is considered reasonable what really drove my score up or down was major swings. Ie, if i had 4% Utilization one month and the next month went to 20% my score would drop 5-10 points.. subsequently if I was at 20% and it went to 3% I would increase by that many points. If it stayed relatively close (2-5% swings) the impact was minimal. 

the net result was my score is always in the same 20 point range.. but once you past the 700 Mark the gains are much slower and the points are less. 

So im slowly grinding my way to 850 as more of a hobby now then a necessity..


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## scorpion_ca (Nov 3, 2014)

Westerncanada said:


> So im slowly grinding my way to 850 as more of a hobby now then a necessity..


What is the highest credit score n Canada?


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## Synergy (Mar 18, 2013)

scorpion_ca said:


> What is the highest credit score n Canada?


900, ranges from 300-900.


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## MrMatt (Dec 21, 2011)

I'd just not deal with Scotiabank, there are lots of other credit cards out there.

Also a pending issue that you don't have? I'd have asked Scotiabank to confirm that they have the right report, since you don't deal with BMO.


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## Beaver101 (Nov 14, 2011)

Westerncanada said:


> I am only going to give my opinion on Credit Utilization from a perspective that for 10 months I *checked my credit score weekly to figure out how it got where it was and what moved it etc.* What I can tell you about utilization is that although anything under 30% is considered reasonable what really drove my score up or down was major swings. Ie, if i had 4% Utilization one month and the next month went to 20% my score would drop 5-10 points.. subsequently if I was at 20% and it went to 3% I would increase by that many points. If it stayed relatively close (2-5% swings) the impact was minimal.
> 
> the net result was my score is always in the same 20 point range.. but once you past the 700 Mark the gains are much slower and the points are less.
> 
> So im slowly grinding my way to 850 as more of a hobby now then a necessity..


 ... I assumed the credit points readings was done each month? Wouldn't that be an expensive undertaking, even for 10 months where you have to request (aka pay) to get your credit scores? If not, how did you you do this experiment/exercise?


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## GreenAvenue (Dec 28, 2011)

Beaver101 said:


> ... I assumed the credit points readings was done each month? Wouldn't that be an expensive undertaking, even for 10 months where you have to request (aka pay) to get your credit scores? If not, how did you you do this experiment/exercise?


I was wondering the same thing.
This is an interesting story by the way, I have a credit card that is maxed out to $500 and wonder if it would work the same way (since the max amount is only so low).

I'd like to add that paying mortgages, overdraft protection and monthly utility bills in time also affects your credit score.


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## marina628 (Dec 14, 2010)

My score is 821 and I have one card with $30,000 Limit (zero owing) and another one with $13,300(zero owing) plus one credit line on house $200,000 (balance $2100),a couple years ago I had a 6 cards , two mortgages and a credit line and fico was probably low 700s.We paid everything off and when i was doing ppc for my business I wanted to get all the aeroplan points so i could spend some months 50k so would pay the card off before the month was over sometimes resulting in credit card statements with a 20k credit balance .Now I do not use the cards often maybe $2000 in a month ,the only reason I checked my fico recently was because I was cuious what paying the mortgage off did to my credit .As long as you dont carry more than 30% of the credit limit supposedly you will get top points ,seen this from debt to it part one time but reality is that banks will likely loan you as long as you pay your bills but dont expect to go from 500 credit up to $10,000 unsecured overnight.


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## Westerncanada (Nov 11, 2013)

Beaver101 said:


> ... I assumed the credit points readings was done each month? Wouldn't that be an expensive undertaking, even for 10 months where you have to request (aka pay) to get your credit scores? If not, how did you you do this experiment/exercise?


I have the unlimited package due to the home depot breach situation so i actually checked it every few days and my score changed twice per month. Once on the 1st (when the average age of my credit history increased) and again when my credit card company reports my statement balance (therefor my utilization). 


My understanding is utilization % dictates the increase.


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## dougboswell (Oct 25, 2010)

Equifax and TransUnion have complicated mathematical formulas to determine your score. Credit utilization has been discussed at length but it only accounts for 30% of the overall score. Your past payment history ie late payments etc make up 35% of the score. The remaining 35% is 15% for time of established credit, 10% for recent inquiries (each credit card inquiry can drop your score by 7 points) and 10% for the type of credit. Another important point is your score can move up or down (as discussed) depending on what day your creditor reports and the day that it is pulled. Keeping your balances to under 30% of the limit, making sure all payments are received by the due date and not applying for a new cc every other day are the bests way to keep your credit score healthy.


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## RCB (Jan 11, 2014)

Just curious. Does anyone know how multiple mortgages in good standing affect credit rating? We have four residential mortgages.


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## OhGreatGuru (May 24, 2009)

You should probably follow up with ScotiaBank. If their decision was based on incorrect information, it will follow you around until they correct their records. Because instead of re-checking original source documents, they will now have a note on their own files that says "Credit card application rejected in July 2015 due to poor credit report".

If, on the other hand, they had other reasons for rejecting your application, you are entitled to know what they are. (Be polite though - no one is obligated to give you a credit card.)


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