Free Credit Report – How to get it?
The Fair Credit Reporting Act or FCRA requires that each of the three national agencies responsible for reporting consumer’s credit provide consumers access to these reports once each year. This law goes even further to state that this report is to be made available to consumers free of charge at their request each year. In addition to this the FCRA in combination with the Federal Trade Commission work together to ensure that these agencies keep all information private and as correct as possible. This is so that consumers don’t have to deal with unnecessary hassles caused by inaccurate information.
The data which is compiled by credit reporting agencies is made available to various sources such as potential employers, creditors and insurance companies in addition to any other businesses who may need this information for legitimate purposes. Some such reasons that may present a need for this information include attempts to secure a loan, rent or buy a home or vehicle and even to obtain some types of insurance as well as secure employment.
The FCRA and FACT or Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction act together have established a program which allows consumers to obtain a copy of their credit report free of charge every year. This program was designed in an effort to ensure that consumer’s rights are protected regarding the ability to gain access to the information which is collected by the national credit agencies.
Every year each person in the country is guaranteed the express right to request a copy of their credit report in one of three possible ways.
These three ways include the following:
- By visiting the website at annualcreditreport.com
- By telephone at 877-322-8228 or
- By U.S. mail
A person should only use these sources for obtaining a credit report and should not contact the credit agencies directly however this does not mean that you have to request all three reports at the same time. You are guaranteed access to each of these whenever you choose to request it as long as it is not more than once in a twelve month period for each agency. It is often recommended however that this is done at the same time to prevent the hassle of having to remember different dates for when each report was requested.
One thing that every person should be aware of is to avoid websites that claim to offer copies of these reports through other websites as these are often not valid sources and their only objective is to gain access to your personal information which in the wrong hands can be disastrous especially with identity theft being such a serious issue in today’s world. Always be extremely careful when providing anyone access to your personal information especially when it concerns social security or credit card numbers.