Rental Car Inquiries

You can get a low balance Secured credit card to use for car rentals. I did that because I got tired of all the hoops you have to jump when you use a debit card.

But, yes, a hard inquiry hurts it a little bit, not much though. And they will drop off after 2 years.

But go to www.annualcreditreport.com and get a copy of your credit reports and check. You should be doing that every year.

Using a debit card does not affect you credit score. This is because when you use the debit card, you spend your own money. Now, if you find hard inquiries in your credit report, you should always send letters to the inquirers asking them to verify your authorization or remove the listing from your report, because only authorized hard inquiries can stay in your credit report.

All well and good except for the fact that this IS an authorized hard inquiry.

Yes I had to authorize it to get the car. I travel once per month so they will add up. Will the secured card charge interest on the deposit/hold? I will pay with my debit card

You just use the secured card for the deposit, you can pay any way - even cash - when you return the car. As far as interest, that depends on the card (read the fine print), but if it's all paid off before the due date, there is normally no interest. It's just up to you what is better - to have them run your credit, have to fill out that form, have to wait for them to call a contact and verify you - or get a secured card, swipe, and off you go. I rented cars regularly at one point, so I know what a pain it is to use a debit card for the deposit.

Car rental companies check your credit????

If you use a debit card, they consider it the same as a cash deposit (which I've done both).