I posted this in another thread, but this is for everyone, so I thought it deserved its on thread. Saw this in our local paper last week.
Free credit report offered
By Teresa McUsic
Special to the Star-Telegram
Texans, along with everyone else in the country, can get their credit reports for free this month through a special offer by Experian, one of the three major credit reporting bureaus.
During December, Experian will offer a printable copy of your credit report online at www.freecreditreport.com.
Reports from all three credit agencies will be available once a year starting in June to Texans through a geographic phase-in of the federal Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions (FACT) Act.
"With the anticipated response from consumers nationwide to the FACT Act free credit report, we saw the value of providing a free credit report to all consumers now, regardless of their state of residence," said Ed Ojdana, president of Experian Consumer Direct.
Implementation of the new federal law calls for residents of Western states to start receiving their reports this month. Midwest state residents can get their reports starting March 1, those in Southern states starting June 1 and Eastern state residents starting Sept. 1. The rollout is designed to prevent a flood of applications.
I had no problem accessing the Experian Web site. The process is easy and took just a few minutes last week when I tried it. After entering a secured site and typing in personal information, including birth date and Social Security number, the Experian database automatically looks up your file.
Although an offer to buy a credit-monitoring product for $12.95 a month was on the form, it was easy to decline. A similar offer to send promotional offers to your e-mail account could also be turned down easily.
After establishing a user name and password, which might be handy to write down to avoid forgetting, the Web site then takes you through a further security clearance by asking a question only you should be able to answer from your credit report.
In my case, I had to choose my current mortgage company out of a list of five, then my monthly mortgage payment out of another list.
Then my credit report popped up, listing my outstanding debt through mortgages, credit cards and any other types of loans, both open and closed.
The report also shows any public records concerning a person, including bankruptcy records, tax liens and monetary judgments from the past 10 years, as well as who has inquired about the report in the past two years.
A copy of your credit score, which rates your creditworthiness, is not available with the free report, but it can be obtained from the Web site for $5.
Texans can receive a free copy of their credit reports from the other two credit bureaus, Equifax and TransUnion, in June. At that time, consumers can go to www.annualcreditreport.com or call (877) 332-8228 to receive all three of the reports at no charge.
Because consumers are only allowed one report from each agency in a 12-month period, a savvy strategy would be to get one bureau's report, then wait three or four months to get the next, then wait again for the final report.
Spacing out the reports will enable you to monitor any potential identity theft problems for free.
Free credit report offered
By Teresa McUsic
Special to the Star-Telegram
Texans, along with everyone else in the country, can get their credit reports for free this month through a special offer by Experian, one of the three major credit reporting bureaus.
During December, Experian will offer a printable copy of your credit report online at www.freecreditreport.com.
Reports from all three credit agencies will be available once a year starting in June to Texans through a geographic phase-in of the federal Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions (FACT) Act.
"With the anticipated response from consumers nationwide to the FACT Act free credit report, we saw the value of providing a free credit report to all consumers now, regardless of their state of residence," said Ed Ojdana, president of Experian Consumer Direct.
Implementation of the new federal law calls for residents of Western states to start receiving their reports this month. Midwest state residents can get their reports starting March 1, those in Southern states starting June 1 and Eastern state residents starting Sept. 1. The rollout is designed to prevent a flood of applications.
I had no problem accessing the Experian Web site. The process is easy and took just a few minutes last week when I tried it. After entering a secured site and typing in personal information, including birth date and Social Security number, the Experian database automatically looks up your file.
Although an offer to buy a credit-monitoring product for $12.95 a month was on the form, it was easy to decline. A similar offer to send promotional offers to your e-mail account could also be turned down easily.
After establishing a user name and password, which might be handy to write down to avoid forgetting, the Web site then takes you through a further security clearance by asking a question only you should be able to answer from your credit report.
In my case, I had to choose my current mortgage company out of a list of five, then my monthly mortgage payment out of another list.
Then my credit report popped up, listing my outstanding debt through mortgages, credit cards and any other types of loans, both open and closed.
The report also shows any public records concerning a person, including bankruptcy records, tax liens and monetary judgments from the past 10 years, as well as who has inquired about the report in the past two years.
A copy of your credit score, which rates your creditworthiness, is not available with the free report, but it can be obtained from the Web site for $5.
Texans can receive a free copy of their credit reports from the other two credit bureaus, Equifax and TransUnion, in June. At that time, consumers can go to www.annualcreditreport.com or call (877) 332-8228 to receive all three of the reports at no charge.
Because consumers are only allowed one report from each agency in a 12-month period, a savvy strategy would be to get one bureau's report, then wait three or four months to get the next, then wait again for the final report.
Spacing out the reports will enable you to monitor any potential identity theft problems for free.
I would do it right now, but I need a new ink cartridge in my printer. I'll have to make buying one a priority this weekend. Good idea about staggering the reports.
