Jun
30
Exactly how do I get free credit reports from the 3 major credit reporting companies?
Filed Under Credit | 6 Comments
sylvia1943 asked:
I’m trying to help my step-daughter get the free credit reports which the 3 major credit reporting companies are suppose to provide. She can not find a phone number for any of the companies which is answered by a human. What must she do?
Write them? If it can be done through the Internet, exactly which are the real websites?. Any and all help or suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Thank you
Tony
ISSAC
I’m trying to help my step-daughter get the free credit reports which the 3 major credit reporting companies are suppose to provide. She can not find a phone number for any of the companies which is answered by a human. What must she do?
Write them? If it can be done through the Internet, exactly which are the real websites?. Any and all help or suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Thank you
Tony
ISSAC
Jun
29
Filed Under Credit | Comments Off
Marcus Peter asked:
art to enter the world of financing your personal needs, credit reports will inevitably arise. First of all, a credit report gives detailed information on all the financial transactions you have made. Usually, it involves a track of the expenses you have on your credit cards including the amounts you left unpaid and those which you have already managed to cover. But aside from your credit card billing statement, credit reports will also show your loan history. If you have entered into one before and whether or not you were able to pay it up already, it will be included on your credit report.
What Credit Reports are All About
So who benefits from credit reports? Financial institutions such as banks and other investment companies are the primary personalities who benefit from a 3 in 1 credit report. They use this to evaluate a person’s eligibility to do business with them. Some people actually have issues against a credit report being made to be public property, but in spite of these they are still being given easily to institutions who wish to obtain them. Anything that is related to your current financial state may be shown on the credit report. This is also why people find it a difficult task to succumb to filing their bankruptcies. They often get worried that it would forever leave a bad mark on their credit report despite being able to get back on track.
Under the regulations of the law, people are all given the right to obtain their own credit report. In this way, you can easily track your financial performance and steer clear of things and issues that might taint your financial reputation. There are many ways in which you can actually obtain your own credit report. You can either file it on your local agency or try to retrieve it online. Most people opt for the latter because it is more convenient and not to mention cost-friendly. Credit reports are usually being offered for free, although some may charge for any other details you may want to obtain.
Taking Care of Your Credit Report
Most financial experts advise that a credit report be retrieved every month. But if you are heavily connected within the financial business, it is better to have your credit report analyzed on a quarterly basis. In this way, you can track your progress much better and make sure that you are not going to face any pending disadvantages in the long run. There are also many ways in which you can help protect your credit report. Here are some of the most useful ways you can do so:
1. Check all of the information on your credit report – Since it gets regularly updated, you should not simply assume that everything you see on the report is right. Do some proofreading from your own end. Make sure that you have all the details right especially when it comes to financial declarations and the figures involved. Should there be problems with the information, you should immediately report it to the source of your credit report so they can easily change their database.
2. Keep track of your payment dues – Bad credit reports usually start from fees left unpaid beyond their due date. As those debts increase in number, what makes the amount a lot heavier to bear is the interest rate which also shoots up depending on how long it was left unpaid. Even if you cannot pay in full, try your best to pay even a part of your dues. Some financial institutions accept these installment payments anyway. Make sure you do not totally disregard payment obligations especially if there are deadlines to be followed.
EDGAR
art to enter the world of financing your personal needs, credit reports will inevitably arise. First of all, a credit report gives detailed information on all the financial transactions you have made. Usually, it involves a track of the expenses you have on your credit cards including the amounts you left unpaid and those which you have already managed to cover. But aside from your credit card billing statement, credit reports will also show your loan history. If you have entered into one before and whether or not you were able to pay it up already, it will be included on your credit report.
What Credit Reports are All About
So who benefits from credit reports? Financial institutions such as banks and other investment companies are the primary personalities who benefit from a 3 in 1 credit report. They use this to evaluate a person’s eligibility to do business with them. Some people actually have issues against a credit report being made to be public property, but in spite of these they are still being given easily to institutions who wish to obtain them. Anything that is related to your current financial state may be shown on the credit report. This is also why people find it a difficult task to succumb to filing their bankruptcies. They often get worried that it would forever leave a bad mark on their credit report despite being able to get back on track.
Under the regulations of the law, people are all given the right to obtain their own credit report. In this way, you can easily track your financial performance and steer clear of things and issues that might taint your financial reputation. There are many ways in which you can actually obtain your own credit report. You can either file it on your local agency or try to retrieve it online. Most people opt for the latter because it is more convenient and not to mention cost-friendly. Credit reports are usually being offered for free, although some may charge for any other details you may want to obtain.
Taking Care of Your Credit Report
Most financial experts advise that a credit report be retrieved every month. But if you are heavily connected within the financial business, it is better to have your credit report analyzed on a quarterly basis. In this way, you can track your progress much better and make sure that you are not going to face any pending disadvantages in the long run. There are also many ways in which you can help protect your credit report. Here are some of the most useful ways you can do so:
1. Check all of the information on your credit report – Since it gets regularly updated, you should not simply assume that everything you see on the report is right. Do some proofreading from your own end. Make sure that you have all the details right especially when it comes to financial declarations and the figures involved. Should there be problems with the information, you should immediately report it to the source of your credit report so they can easily change their database.
2. Keep track of your payment dues – Bad credit reports usually start from fees left unpaid beyond their due date. As those debts increase in number, what makes the amount a lot heavier to bear is the interest rate which also shoots up depending on how long it was left unpaid. Even if you cannot pay in full, try your best to pay even a part of your dues. Some financial institutions accept these installment payments anyway. Make sure you do not totally disregard payment obligations especially if there are deadlines to be followed.
EDGAR
Jun
28
Filed Under Finance | Comments Off
Robert F. Brennan, Esq. asked:
The Federal Credit Reporting Act ["FCRA"] makes it mandatory for Credit Reporting Agencies such as Experian, Equifax and Trans Union “to follow reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy of the information in the [consumer's credit] report….” A willful and negligent failure to do so is violation number 1 of the FCRA. One wonders then when in fact it turns out that certain Credit Reporting Agency ["CRA"] procedures, or lack thereof, assure maximum possible inaccuracy of information in the consumer’s credit report. Are we to take it that the words of a federal law mean exactly the opposite of what they say? Legally, philosophically, morally, one would think not.
A “trade line” on your credit report provides certain standard items of information about an account you have, such as the name of the company ( say a department store, for example), the company’s address, the account number, the current balance on the account, the terms of the credit, and so forth. Any of this information could in fact turn out to be incorrect, but the item of information we will address in this article is that definite and critical identifier for the CRAs, the account number.
One would think that such a mundane piece of information as an account number couldn’t possibly cause that much trouble, and in a sense that is true. What actually causes the problem is when the account number for the same account gets changed, and sometimes morphed repeatedly, so that the identity of the actual account is greatly obscured. When this is allowed to happen, the CRAs’ super computers, employing simple logic but lacking intelligence, assume that an account is the same, or a match, when it has the same account number, and that it is different when it does not. Therein can lie the source of much headache, aggravation and damages for a consumer, and much denial of responsibility from the CRAs.
A example would be helpful here to illustrate. Let us say that Consumer A is receiving bills for a $600.00 balance on a department store credit card. Consumer A never applied for such a card and therefore the debt cannot be his. He suspects someone stole his identity and opened the account using his social security number and other private information. After numerous phone calls and letters back and forth, the department store agrees that it is not Consumer A’s debt after all and tells Consumer A not to worry about it, that they’ll “take care of it”. Naturally, Consumer A is now relieved and assumes that it will be “taken care of”, i..e., they will stop billing him for the invalid debt and it will be deleted from his credit report. The account number, by the way — let us say it is 1234567890 and that is the way the CRAs are reporting it on Consumer A’s credit reports. Consumer A notifies the CRAs by certified mail of the situation, along with documentation, and they all delete the previously reported trade line within a month.
About four months go by and Consumer A is dismayed to receive in the mail a letter from a Debt Collection Company named “Pit Bull”. Pit Bull, in its letter, states that it is collecting a debt on behalf of the department store (the same one that earlier told Consumer A not to worry about it, that they would take care of it and delete it from
his credit report.) Pit Bull shows the debt now as $850, having tacked on a $50 penalty and a $200 “default charge” or attorney’s fees), but informs Consumer A that, although he owes immediately the full amount of $850, they will take $450 as a full payment. They can’t guarantee Consumer A that the department store will reinstate him in good graces vis-à-vis his credit card (the one that was never his in the first place) but if he pays them the $450 at least they will stop dunning him. The account number on the letter is now 123DEPTSTRE890. A few months later Pit Bull furnishes the account 1234567890 as 123DEPTSTRE890 to the CRAs, showing the account as a “charge off”, amount $850, and a note that the trade line will be reported for the next seven years!
Consumer A is now distraught. He calls the department store and reiterates his story that the department store had earlier investigated, agreed with him that he did not owe the debt and that “they would take care of it” for him. These words come back to haunt Consumer A as the representative now tells him that they are sorry, the account is now with collections, and that they cannot interfere as it is now out of their hands. Consumer A also tries to clarify the situation with Pit Bull but, other than being cursed at and told to “pay the damn bill”, he gets nowhere. He disputes with the CRAs with certified letters, giving a full account of the situation and a statement that he categorically does not, and never did, owe the debt. Two of the three CRAs shortly thereafter delete the trade line from Consumer A’s report, but one of them does not. That one informs our consumer that they checked with the furnisher (Pit Bull) and the furnisher “verified” with them that the information they provided on the debt was valid.
Some more months pass and Consumer A starts feeling frantic. He tries to get refinancing on his home but is told he’ll have to clear up the derogatory trade line showing on one of his credit reports as a first step. He is also denied credit on a couple occasions which he suspects resulted from the same derogatory reporting.
Consumer A starts religiously checking his credit report, and discovers that now the account is being furnished by another collection company, Viper, Inc., and the account number has changed again, this time to “732******”. Our consumer becomes by this point very discouraged. He tries communicating with Viper, Inc. but they are just as nasty and, if anything, more venomous than Pit Bull.
At this point Consumer A finds an attorney firm that will take his case and initiate a lawsuit on his behalf. Among other things, the Complaint accuses the remaining CRA of a “reinsertion violation”. What the CRA had done in this example was “willfully and negligently violated the reinsertion requirements of 15 U.S.C. Section 1681i(a)(5)(B) in reinserting derogatory information onto plaintiff’s credit report after he had previously disputed it, without certification or notice.” (Even though the account number kept changing, it was still the same account being referred to all along. The CRA in question deleted, then reinserted the same account without notifying Consumer A, a no-no.)
After the account is deleted and then reinserted, the CRA fails to notify Consumer A within 5 business days that they are re-inserting the account information. The ironic twist to all this is that the CRA then argues that the “reinsertion” of the account was not their fault because it had a different account number, and how are they supposed to know that it was the same account?
How, indeed! It was the CRA’s own regulations, or lack thereof, that allowed the reinsertion to occur. The CRA argued that if they had known it was the same account, then they wouldn’t have reinserted it, and yet the CRA is the one who allowed Pit Bull, and Viper, Inc., and whichever entities came afterwards, to keep changing the account number on the same account; in short, in effectively disguising it from the CRA’s computer which only matches identities, not similarities or differences.
It is bad enough that the CRAs frequently take the word of disreputable or highly questionable collection entities over that of disputing consumers (See earlier article, The Seamier Side of the Credit Reporting Business) it is unconscionable that the CRAs allow collection entities to in effect cloak the identity of accounts even from themselves, the CRAs, and then blame it on the same system that they helped create! This bungling would be laughable if it didn’t happen to cause consumers so much frustration and pain.
HUGH
The Federal Credit Reporting Act ["FCRA"] makes it mandatory for Credit Reporting Agencies such as Experian, Equifax and Trans Union “to follow reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy of the information in the [consumer's credit] report….” A willful and negligent failure to do so is violation number 1 of the FCRA. One wonders then when in fact it turns out that certain Credit Reporting Agency ["CRA"] procedures, or lack thereof, assure maximum possible inaccuracy of information in the consumer’s credit report. Are we to take it that the words of a federal law mean exactly the opposite of what they say? Legally, philosophically, morally, one would think not.
A “trade line” on your credit report provides certain standard items of information about an account you have, such as the name of the company ( say a department store, for example), the company’s address, the account number, the current balance on the account, the terms of the credit, and so forth. Any of this information could in fact turn out to be incorrect, but the item of information we will address in this article is that definite and critical identifier for the CRAs, the account number.
One would think that such a mundane piece of information as an account number couldn’t possibly cause that much trouble, and in a sense that is true. What actually causes the problem is when the account number for the same account gets changed, and sometimes morphed repeatedly, so that the identity of the actual account is greatly obscured. When this is allowed to happen, the CRAs’ super computers, employing simple logic but lacking intelligence, assume that an account is the same, or a match, when it has the same account number, and that it is different when it does not. Therein can lie the source of much headache, aggravation and damages for a consumer, and much denial of responsibility from the CRAs.
A example would be helpful here to illustrate. Let us say that Consumer A is receiving bills for a $600.00 balance on a department store credit card. Consumer A never applied for such a card and therefore the debt cannot be his. He suspects someone stole his identity and opened the account using his social security number and other private information. After numerous phone calls and letters back and forth, the department store agrees that it is not Consumer A’s debt after all and tells Consumer A not to worry about it, that they’ll “take care of it”. Naturally, Consumer A is now relieved and assumes that it will be “taken care of”, i..e., they will stop billing him for the invalid debt and it will be deleted from his credit report. The account number, by the way — let us say it is 1234567890 and that is the way the CRAs are reporting it on Consumer A’s credit reports. Consumer A notifies the CRAs by certified mail of the situation, along with documentation, and they all delete the previously reported trade line within a month.
About four months go by and Consumer A is dismayed to receive in the mail a letter from a Debt Collection Company named “Pit Bull”. Pit Bull, in its letter, states that it is collecting a debt on behalf of the department store (the same one that earlier told Consumer A not to worry about it, that they would take care of it and delete it from
his credit report.) Pit Bull shows the debt now as $850, having tacked on a $50 penalty and a $200 “default charge” or attorney’s fees), but informs Consumer A that, although he owes immediately the full amount of $850, they will take $450 as a full payment. They can’t guarantee Consumer A that the department store will reinstate him in good graces vis-à-vis his credit card (the one that was never his in the first place) but if he pays them the $450 at least they will stop dunning him. The account number on the letter is now 123DEPTSTRE890. A few months later Pit Bull furnishes the account 1234567890 as 123DEPTSTRE890 to the CRAs, showing the account as a “charge off”, amount $850, and a note that the trade line will be reported for the next seven years!
Consumer A is now distraught. He calls the department store and reiterates his story that the department store had earlier investigated, agreed with him that he did not owe the debt and that “they would take care of it” for him. These words come back to haunt Consumer A as the representative now tells him that they are sorry, the account is now with collections, and that they cannot interfere as it is now out of their hands. Consumer A also tries to clarify the situation with Pit Bull but, other than being cursed at and told to “pay the damn bill”, he gets nowhere. He disputes with the CRAs with certified letters, giving a full account of the situation and a statement that he categorically does not, and never did, owe the debt. Two of the three CRAs shortly thereafter delete the trade line from Consumer A’s report, but one of them does not. That one informs our consumer that they checked with the furnisher (Pit Bull) and the furnisher “verified” with them that the information they provided on the debt was valid.
Some more months pass and Consumer A starts feeling frantic. He tries to get refinancing on his home but is told he’ll have to clear up the derogatory trade line showing on one of his credit reports as a first step. He is also denied credit on a couple occasions which he suspects resulted from the same derogatory reporting.
Consumer A starts religiously checking his credit report, and discovers that now the account is being furnished by another collection company, Viper, Inc., and the account number has changed again, this time to “732******”. Our consumer becomes by this point very discouraged. He tries communicating with Viper, Inc. but they are just as nasty and, if anything, more venomous than Pit Bull.
At this point Consumer A finds an attorney firm that will take his case and initiate a lawsuit on his behalf. Among other things, the Complaint accuses the remaining CRA of a “reinsertion violation”. What the CRA had done in this example was “willfully and negligently violated the reinsertion requirements of 15 U.S.C. Section 1681i(a)(5)(B) in reinserting derogatory information onto plaintiff’s credit report after he had previously disputed it, without certification or notice.” (Even though the account number kept changing, it was still the same account being referred to all along. The CRA in question deleted, then reinserted the same account without notifying Consumer A, a no-no.)
After the account is deleted and then reinserted, the CRA fails to notify Consumer A within 5 business days that they are re-inserting the account information. The ironic twist to all this is that the CRA then argues that the “reinsertion” of the account was not their fault because it had a different account number, and how are they supposed to know that it was the same account?
How, indeed! It was the CRA’s own regulations, or lack thereof, that allowed the reinsertion to occur. The CRA argued that if they had known it was the same account, then they wouldn’t have reinserted it, and yet the CRA is the one who allowed Pit Bull, and Viper, Inc., and whichever entities came afterwards, to keep changing the account number on the same account; in short, in effectively disguising it from the CRA’s computer which only matches identities, not similarities or differences.
It is bad enough that the CRAs frequently take the word of disreputable or highly questionable collection entities over that of disputing consumers (See earlier article, The Seamier Side of the Credit Reporting Business) it is unconscionable that the CRAs allow collection entities to in effect cloak the identity of accounts even from themselves, the CRAs, and then blame it on the same system that they helped create! This bungling would be laughable if it didn’t happen to cause consumers so much frustration and pain.
HUGH
Jun
27
Filed Under Credit | Comments Off
James Peter asked:
A credit report incorporates all the details pertaining to your financial condition and is very much essential to all your financial dealings. This credit report is usually prepared by the credit agencies, who in turn keep a track on all your financial activities of a particular year. free instant credit report too is similar, but it can be accessed only by applying online. This report not only helps you to maintain a good financial standing but also helps you to make improvements to your credit score, so as to get the best of benefits.
Credit report essentially showcases your financial strength and categorizes you in to a person with good or bad credit record. Creditors usually prefer to check the credit report before approving any financial aid. It is the same while applying for credit cards or home loan or any other external financial aid. So, it becomes very much important to have an instant credit report available by your side. Moreover, you should check out for the errors and irregularities in the report, as it may create a lot of troubles in the near future.
In accordance with the federal law, this report is issued by 3 credit bureaus namely Transunion, Experian and Equifax. The information pertaining to your credit score is offered by the lenders and various merchants who are present in the market. This credit report contains all your personal information along with the personal details. It is on the basis of this report that you will be able to derive monetary assistance. In fact to a certain extent, creditors levy the terms and conditions on the basis of these details.
There are numerous websites present in the online market who are offering free instant credit report. Applying online to derive this report does not require you to pay a nominal fee. The report comes instantly and what more, it is safe and reliable. There is no fear of someone having a look at your credit report. Besides, you can access the report from location at any point of night or day.
MAYNARD
A credit report incorporates all the details pertaining to your financial condition and is very much essential to all your financial dealings. This credit report is usually prepared by the credit agencies, who in turn keep a track on all your financial activities of a particular year. free instant credit report too is similar, but it can be accessed only by applying online. This report not only helps you to maintain a good financial standing but also helps you to make improvements to your credit score, so as to get the best of benefits.
Credit report essentially showcases your financial strength and categorizes you in to a person with good or bad credit record. Creditors usually prefer to check the credit report before approving any financial aid. It is the same while applying for credit cards or home loan or any other external financial aid. So, it becomes very much important to have an instant credit report available by your side. Moreover, you should check out for the errors and irregularities in the report, as it may create a lot of troubles in the near future.
In accordance with the federal law, this report is issued by 3 credit bureaus namely Transunion, Experian and Equifax. The information pertaining to your credit score is offered by the lenders and various merchants who are present in the market. This credit report contains all your personal information along with the personal details. It is on the basis of this report that you will be able to derive monetary assistance. In fact to a certain extent, creditors levy the terms and conditions on the basis of these details.
There are numerous websites present in the online market who are offering free instant credit report. Applying online to derive this report does not require you to pay a nominal fee. The report comes instantly and what more, it is safe and reliable. There is no fear of someone having a look at your credit report. Besides, you can access the report from location at any point of night or day.
MAYNARD