Consumer complaint received 2018-03-17
Company: BANK OF THE WEST
State: CA
Product: Credit reporting, credit repair services, or other personal consumer reports
Sub-product: Credit reporting
Issue: Improper use of your report
Sub-issue: Credit inquiries on your report that you don't recognize

Complaint:
On XX/XX/XXXX I went to XXXX XXXX XXXX looking to purchase a car with a credit score just over 700 and a single hard inquiry on report that was slated to fall off this year, when I left my credit would drop over 80 points and I would end up with more than 10 inquiries added to my history. Before I even arrived at the dealership, I made it known to the salesman, XXXX, that credit may be an issue because of the high amount of student loan debt I carry, but more importantly - I also stated clearly and reiterated several times, that if it was going to be difficult, I could hold off on the car because I had been working diligently to boost my credit and stave off excessive inquiries - which I EXPLICITLY said I DID NOT want more of. I was assured they could work it out and would run it maybe twice ( by myself and with my partner ). That evening - unknown to me while they had me sit in a waiting area - XXXX ran my credit more than ***6 times***. Never once letting me know they were having issues with lending and instead making it seem like they were just hashing out details with a single lender. I was approved by XXXX XXXX XXXX and left with the vehicle that night. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, 5 days after taking possession of the car with all trappings of ownership, etc., I received a text from XXXX XXXX of XXXX stating that the lender needed additional confirmation of income and some other details. After that call, I got a call from a financier at XXXX XXXX also confirming my information and asking questions. At this point in time I was under the impression that this was my lender I was speaking to. It wasn't. 

This same day, after the above communications, I received a credit alert, XXXX had run my credit another 5 or 6 times WITHOUT MY KNOWLEDGE OR CONSENT. I only knew because one of the several credit tracking apps I used alerted me to suspect activity. I reiterate 3 things : 1 ) I made clear in my initial interaction this was against my wishes 2 ) This is 5 days after I had already been approved by a lender. 3 ) I was not made aware by anyone at XXXX that this was happening at this time. I texted XXXX and XXXX letting them know this was not okay - no reply. When I reached out that evening to speak the dealership manager ( who now I'm not even sure it WAS the manager because everyt ime I've asked who I spoke with or who's managing I'm given a different name ), the " manager '' stated they were shopping for a better interest rate for me. I stated that this was without my knowledge, against my will, and asinine because I already had the car under the false pretense that everything was settled and done. He assured me the inquires would fall off in 30 days and this was standard practice. Needless to say, they did not. It has had a profound impact on my credit. As I slowly strategize my way out of suffocating student loan debt, I now have to take action on these minor things, that effect me greatly. They are small potatoes in comparison to other credit factors, but it's a big deal to me. 

So now, 3 months later, after walking into the dealership with a just above 700 credit score & 1 inquiry on my report that is scheduled to fall off this year, I have 6 - 14 hard inquiries depending on which report is pulled, and am fighting my way back up from a XXXX credit score as of XX/XX/XXXX. 

I called Experian, the report which shows the most inquiries to dispute the XX/XX/XXXX inquiries, and was informed they could not, but I could work with the dealership and lenders to have those inquiries changed to soft inquiries. I immediately called XXXX, my salesperson, and was instantly frustrated as he repeatedly spoke over me and was only interested in his own defensive posturing. So the very next day I went to the dealership to sit down with XXXX, I re-iterated the situation, and she said she would work with their business office to get it handled. That was almost 4 weeks ago. I've followed up once a week every week since for an update and every week I get the same toothless response that she will email the biz office for an update, but I never receive a follow up. This is truly my last resort. Though I appreciate that XXXX is the ONLY person on the entire staff remotely feigning interest in helping get this resolved, it seems that I'm only being helped to empty gestures.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation