Originally Posted by
travelpye
Does anyone have experience or knowledge of this?
I checked Citi for pre approved offers in preparation for applying for a new Citi AA plat, as my last one was converted from W to WE after opening. I had no pre-approved offers, none at all for Citi, so was concerned about applying. But on reflection, I recall that years ago, late 1990s, I had opted out with the 3 main credit bureaus from pre-approved offers.
Would the mechanism Citi would use for checking for preapproved offers at my request be blocked as well by my opt out? The opt out does not prevent banks from checking my CR if I apply, it isn't like a freeze in that respect. ...
If you have opted out, my understanding is that you shouldn't ever have any pre-approved offers at banks' pre-approval sites. There might be an exception for banks at which you already do business, but I'm not sure.
I, too, opted out long ago, and have never received a pre-approved offer at any of these sites. (I have a thin credit history after living abroad for years, but all of my reports are clean and I have $0 debt.) At most, I get the "you might like ..." or "we recommend ..." language.