Are my thoughts about hard searches right or wrong?

UpDownLeftRight

My thoughts on hard searches are:

As long as the hard searches are successful and the open credit accounts is showing on and reporting to credit agencies then the successful hard searches becomes irrelevant to new lenders.

New lenders will check the history of the open accounts in deciding new credit applications.

Hard searches become an issue when you are being declined with no new credit accounts showing on credit agencies and new hard searches show to lenders no lender is willing to take the risk of you being a customer.

Are my thoughts about hard searches right or wrong?

MarchHare9

correct

No corresponding new account is a negative

Numerous new accounts however can also be a temporary negative but who cares if you got the accounts and in 6 months their relevance fades

born_again

Hard searches become an issue when you are being declined with no new credit accounts showing on credit agencies and new hard searches show to lenders no lender is willing to take the risk of you being a customer.

They are a matter of fact, approved or not. A search has been made.

CliveOfIndia

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82108084#Comment_82108084

Strictly speaking that's not true. A hard search simply shows that a search was made, the outcome is not recorded. A hard search with no corresponding new credit line could indicate that you were refused. It could equally indicate that you were approved but chose not to proceed with the application, for whatever reason.

A large number of searches in a short space of time may indeed lead a lender to infer that you're constantly getting refused. But a couple of searches, in and of themselves, mean very little.

MarchHare9

If a hard search by Lloyds bank and a new Lloyds account appears on your country it absolutely IS recorded !!!!

MyRealNameToo

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6680292/are-my-thoughts-about-hard-searches-right-or-wrong

Each lender makes up its own rules on how they treat the facts that are presented on your CRA record. A hard search simply shows an application for credit was made. It does not state what the outcome of that search was.

You could try to infer that if a hard search is done by AmEx and then 1 month later a new AmEx account appears that those are linked but only AmEx themselves can definitively say… they could be unrelated and if they are an existing customer the additional card could have been issued without an external check.

To play devils advocate… a lender could still be nervous… why are you suddenly needing 2 new credit lines in such a short time if you successfully secured the first? How are you going to be with the extended limits? Are you suddenly going to go wild or your behaviour unchanged.

A check without a new credit line could be more reassuring… if you are a sub prime lender and the search was from a prime lender then you maybe happier seeing they declined as you more closely fit into my target customer base and indeed if a prime lender had given you a £20k line I may be more worried why you are now asking for another line from me when I only offer initial limits up to £750

MarchHare9

why are you all so scared of CRA’s ?

A hard enquiry alongside a new account with same company is what it is, there is nothing sinister to read into ??

you can apply for 6 cards at once and get them all

ask me how I know…..

eskbanker

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82108322#Comment_82108322

I can't see anything posted above that would support a conclusion that anyone is scared of them?

Unless mistakes are made, CRA records of hard searches (etc) are simply factual data, and how that data is interpreted by prospective lenders is entirely up to each of them individually, not the CRAs.