Credit searches by Aviva Central Services

Msharif

JimmyTheWig wrote: »

On what grounds did they remove 4 of the 7?
On what grounds did they not remove the other 3?

I just argued that the price comparison websites were carrying out renewal quote searches unauthorised (on a few ocasions twice within a month) and that this information should not be hidden in their terms and conditions. It also states in the terms and conditions that the financial services quotes we request will only do a credit check once you have decided on a particular supplier, which was not the case.

I admitted that I searched for a quote every year at renewal time for the last three years, hence the 3 reports were left on, but the automatic renewal quotes were removed.

As I have learned something from this. I will not be using these price comparison websites again, unless things change in the future.

Msharif

meerkat1980

I am planning to get a quote from confused.com.

Will they search Experian and Equifax?...

If so, will these be soft searches or credit searches?

Many thanks:)

Experian_company_representative

meerkat1980 wrote: »

I am planning to get a quote from confused.com.

Will they search Experian and Equifax?...

If so, will these be soft searches or credit searches?

Many thanks:)

As long as it's just a quote, whether for insurance or a more traditional form of credit, the footprint left behind should not be the type that can impact credit scoring. Only 'credit application' searches can be fed into credit scoring calculations. 'Credit quotation' or 'insurance quotation' searches do not count.

James Jones

MsCabbage

Dear Mr/Mrs Experian Company Representative,

Your post

"As long as it's just a quote, whether for insurance or a more traditional form of credit, the footprint left behind should not be the type that can impact credit scoring. Only 'credit application' searches can be fed into credit scoring calculations. 'Credit quotation' or 'insurance quotation' searches do not count."

seems to imply that if meerkat1980 uses confused.com to do an insurance quote that he won't get a credit search against his name.

So let me make this clear if you use confused.com for an insurance quote

1. You will get a CREDIT SEARCH from AVIVA CENTRAL SERVICES. Not a soft search or an enquiry but a 'proper' credit search that can be seen by other lenders and thus can be used to reduce your credit score.
2. In addition even if you never use confused.com again after this you will get another CREDIT SEARCH every year for eternity when confused does an automatic re-quote.

If like me you have used confused.com for you car and house you will have 2x credit searches and then 2 more each year.

I think this is an absolute scandal and rather than trying to confuse things Mr Experian Company Representative you should be on our side. But then again each time a search is done by Aviva Central Services on OUR credit files your company gets paid!

This is the sort of scandal that Martin Lewis used to fight on our behalf - where is he? And why doesn't his website put a warning on the confused.com link that THEY recommend us to use?

JimmyTheWig

Well said, MsCabbage. I think what the representative described is how it is supposed to work, not how it does work.

As to what Martin Lewis is doing, there was a post a little while ago saying that MSE were looking in to it.

[Deleted User]

Thank you to all customers who have commented on this forum around credit searches undertaken by Aviva. We constantly monitor feedback from customers and review our service accordingly and have therefore recently changed the way we use credit searches.

Since May 2012, when someone requests a quote either directly from Aviva or through a third party such as a price comparison site, we will carry out a quotation search. This will leave a quotation footprint and though visible to the customer and other credit providers (on request of the individual’s file) it will show that a quote only has been requested. We understand that such quotation searches will not adversely affect a consumer’s credit rating.

If a customer then goes on to take out a policy and chooses to take Aviva monthly instalments, the status of the footprint will change from a quotation search to an application for credit search. This will reveal to other credit providers that an application for credit has been made rather than just a quotation.

As highlighted previously in this thread, we're happy to look into your credit search queries. This can be done by emailing our team at [EMAIL="UKDISUPPORT@aviva.co.uk"]UKDISUPPORT@aviva.co.uk[/EMAIL]

Many thanks,

Dave Hyam
Aviva Social Media Support

JimmyTheWig

Great news, Dave. Thanks for the update.
Presumably, now, if we contact Aviva they will be able to change the status of searches carried out before May 2012?

Roger1

Thank you, Mr Hyam.

This is an improvement but still not good enough because:

• Using comparison websites, we do not know whether Aviva will make a search.
• Even if we take up an Aviva quotation, there is no need to make a credit search UNLESS credit is requested. If I pay by cheque or credit card, there is NO element of credit requested!

Of course, I understand that a principal would want to make a search if it is granting credit. Where no credit is sought, it is wrong to make a credit search.

NeverEnough

How can Aviva be stopped from making these credit searches which blight the credit files of many a consumer? Surely it is not lawful for a company to do a Credit Search on someone who has not applied for credit and from whom permission has not been sought in the first place? The deeply hidden T &C on the price comparison websites surely do not give these parasites open seaon to conduct creditmsearches whencno credit h.as been appliedmfor?

It seems they are simply a law unto themselves and can trash your credit file with impunity- my file is blighted by these Aviva Central Services credit searches which pop up randomly on an ad hoc basis when I have not made any enquiries even - probably due to having made the "mistake" years ago of daring to ask for a quotation for insurance on a price comparison site!

Experian and Equifax refuse to do anything about the ruinous credit searches that keep popping up from the maverick Aviva Central stating it is a matter between the person and the company, not their problem, and will merely contact "their client" to ask "their permission" to remove the creditmsearch you never gave permission for inthe first place.

Placing Notices of Correction on credit files to point out Aviva's disingenuity is actually quite negative for your credit rating in as much as you may get automatic declines if there is a NOC on your file as it has to be manually processed, so that is not acceptable either.

Why on earth do consumers have to be punished like ths for merely asking for an insurance quote? Not credit, not loans nothing of the sort, just a QUOTE !!!!! I certainly will NEVER buy insurance from Aviva just on principle due to their damaging and arrogant behaviur in this regard, not that it will bother them as they can seemingly do as they please and search your credit file even when you haven't asked for credit , with complete impunity.

JimmyTheWig

Roger1 wrote: »

Thank you, Mr Hyam.

This is an improvement but still not good enough because:

• Using comparison websites, we do not know whether Aviva will make a search.

Well, they've said they won't.

• Even if we take up an Aviva quotation, there is no need to make a credit search UNLESS credit is requested. If I pay by cheque or credit card, there is NO element of credit requested!

The company rep said a credit search would only be done on someone wanting to pay monthly. That is buying on credit. So that should be fine.