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Jun 04, 2007 -- Insurers checking your credit

The Supreme Court has just made a new ruling that insurers can check your credit report to determine your insurance rate. Insurance companies think that how you handle credit is a good indicator of how you will act with them. To make sure that you are ok, pull one of your free credit reports at annualcreditreport.com. Clean it up if there are strikes against you because you don’t want insurance companies hiking your rates when you could have prevented it.

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What others are saying

  • Insurance Score
    My husband and I have the same problems. We have excellent credit but the insurance companies say we don't. I just got one auto company to go back on their original claim that our insurance rates were higher because of our credit. This particular company referenced Choicepoint as where they got their information. I called Choicepoint and found out that the company had never even requested our credit report!!! They reduced our rate!!! Now, I am trying work with another company and I can't get any information about our "insurance score" and what is actually is. Transunion says it's the insurance company and the insurance company say they got the number from Transunion. No one answers any phones or gives any help to consumers. How is this legal with the "Fair Credit Act"? My husband and I have worked very hard to have excellent credit. This is so crazy!!! HELP CLARK!!!
  • Homeowner Insurer wants permission to check my credit
    Insurer states that credit will only be used to lower my rate never increase it. I am leary of the motives here.
  • Insurance Score
    I am just learning about the Insurance score. My husband and I just switched our auto and homeowners insurance to a different company at a $700 a year savings.

    I got a Notice of Adverse Action from the insurance company notifying us that our policy was offered at a higher premium.

    We ordered a credit report from transunion it shows that have never missed a payment. We had four regular inquires into our credit: Apr 2008-We replaced a 22 year old bed and took out a loan for 12 months without interest. May 2006- I took out a loan for a gently used car (got a great deal). April 2007 - We moved our home equity loan to a bank offering a lower interest rate (1 pt below prime). May 2006 - possibly a second inquiry done while I was shopping for a car.

    The listed factors which had significant influence on our insurance score are: Number of credit checks - listed above; Accounts opened in the last three years - yes, we look for the best deal on credit because I refuse to pay interest; low credit limits - yes, I like it that way. I got nervous a few years ago when I added up the amount of credit we had out there on credit cards and closed accounts we had forgotten about. High use of available revolving account credit limits. We use one credit card for all expenses except the mortgage and insurance and ALWAYS pay the balance at the end of the month. I don't pay any credit card interest, ever! So why is this effecting my insurance score?

    My husband and I have great credit scores. We have a credit history going back to before credit scores and always pay on our bills on time.

    I don't understand how our credit habits could flag a higher degree of risk to an insurance company.
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