Occasionally, when you check your credit score, you may notice accounts you don’t recall working with or applying for. They might seem like nothing, perhaps blips on the system, but rather than forgetting all about them, these unknown accounts should be investigated to ensure they’re accurate.
Otherwise, you risk your credit score taking a hit for no reason.
Have you recently noticed Tbom Retail appearing on your credit score, but you aren’t sure why? We can help you explore the possible reasons. But first, let’s take a look at why you should care in the first place.
Why is Your Credit Score Important?
If you’re becoming more invested in your financial future, you’ve probably been paying more attention to your credit score. But while 6 in 10 American adults have a FICO score of more than 700, that leaves the rest of the US population with a score of less than 700. This isn’t ideal when you want to apply for a loan or even a house.
Then there are those 28 million Americans who are credit invisible, meaning they have no credit history at all. But your credit score actually does count for a lot, especially if you plan on applying for credit in the near future in the form of a loan or mortgage.
Your credit score can impact your financial future for better or for worse, depending on how high it is.
The higher your credit score, the more likely you will be accepted for top credit cards, mortgages, and other loans. Even something as small as a mobile phone contract will take your credit score into account.
Having a high credit score shows you’re not a threat to lenders. This, in turn, improves your financial opportunities by making it more likely that companies will be willing to lend you money.
What is Tbom-Retail?
TBOM stands for The Bank of Missouri. If you recently applied for a credit card or retail credit line issued by TBOM, it will show up on your credit report as Tbom or Tbom Retail. It might also appear as Tbom Genesis Retail or The Bank of Missouri.
Sometimes, The Bank of Missouri issues credit cards under different names. This means that even if you don’t think you’ve taken out credit with them, double-check any recent credit by looking at the bottom of your cardholder agreement. Also check your account’s Ts & Cs or the credit account website.
If you’re in debt with Tbom and the account appears on your credit score, you can dispute that, too. Ask them to validate the debt, dispute it with the credit bureaus, and if both of those fail, ask for a Pay to Delete deal.
What is a Hard Inquiry?
If you see a check by Tbom on your credit score, it’s a sure sign that the company did a hard inquiry before deciding whether or not to issue the credit card. Hard inquiries occur when you apply for credit with a lender, and they request to view your credit reports to see if you’re safe to lend to or not. Unfortunately, a hard inquiry shows up on your record.
If you apply for credit with multiple creditors and they all perform a hard inquiry, this can dip your credit score. This is because providers see applying for multiple lines of credit, usually as a sign that you might be in a bad financial position. This then poses a risk to lenders.
Soft inquiries, on the other hand, don’t show up on your credit score. Before applying for any form of credit, it’s a must to read through the terms and conditions to establish whether it will show up as a soft or hard inquiry because there are different consequences for your credit score depending on which one it is.
While a single inquiry shouldn’t affect your credit report too much, multiple hard inquiries in a short period of time can raise red flags for lenders.
Can you delete hard inquiries? In many cases, yes, but it does depend on a few factors.
How to Remove Tbom Retail From Your Credit Score
To get a hard inquiry removed from your credit report, it has to meet one of three criteria. Either you didn’t know the hard inquiry was created, you didn’t approve it, or you’re seeing too many inquiries on your account.
Naturally, if you didn’t actually attempt to take out a credit card or line of credit with Tbom, this will meet the criteria for removing the hard inquiry from your credit report.
To enter into a hard inquiry dispute, you’ll need to get in touch with the credit bureaus. Then, you can dispute the inclusion of the inquiry in your credit report.
You’ll need to cite one of the three allowable reasons to avoid including it. If the inquiry is shown to be inaccurate, the credit bureaus will ensure it’s wiped from your credit report. If the inquiry negatively impacted your credit score in any way, the change will be reversed.
Unsure about going through the process by yourself? There’s an app for that. Here at Cambio, we can support your disputes, helping you regain control over your credit for a brighter financial future.
Take Full Control Over Your Credit
Does it feel like your finances control your life, not the other way around? We get it. Keeping on top of your credit score can be time-consuming and confusing. That’s why we’ll help you do it with as little fuss as possible.
The Cambio app can help you boost your credit score by as much as 36 points in just 30 days. All by helping you manage and monitor your report and take power into your own hands by disputing inaccurate accounts.
Ready to start rebuilding your credit future? Download the app today.
Credit score holding you back?
Fix bad credit, build good credit with Cambio
Get the app
