Requesting for and Using a Credit Report for Free

Credit history and the figure coining your score are very important to represent your financial reputation. This is why many bureaus sell credit monitoring offers to help consumers. These offers are helpful in providing understanding how credit works, and means to protect you from all sorts of fraud including identity theft. But there is another way of achieving such goals at a less expensive price.

For one thing, every American citizen is entitle to a copy of his or her credit report every year from Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion—all three largest credit reporting agencies in the United States.

January is the ideal time to have a first order for a credit report. It will be followed by another in May, and the last will be in September—three from each agency. This way, every consumer has regular access to his or her credit report annually, enabling them to be abreast about their financial transactions.

How to Order a Free Credit Report

The United States’ Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) provides that the bureaus shall provide for free the credit report every year to consumers who shall request for the same. Having written this, it will not be a hassle at all to make such a request. Now, the modes for submitting for your request are three.

The easiest and the most famous is to visit the web site. www.annualcreditreport.com. This web site is affiliated with all three credit reporting agencies. It will ask you information to establish and verify your identity. After that, you will reach the page where your credit report can be downloaded in PDF or in Word, whichever is your preference. Experts believe that this approach is safest and the quickest, especially, if you want quick access to deter latest suspicious activity.

Another approach is by calling the hotline 1-877-322-8228 and give your request and the name of the bureau that will give you the copy. You have to know that there will also be a similar verification process for your identity.

The last method is by mailing. Fill up an application form and have it mailed to the P.O box address of Annual Credit Report.

Taking Advantage of the Free Credit Report

There are several ways to use your credit report. One purpose why many consumers would like to have a look at their credit report is to check for errors, which may dramatically affect the credit score. Errors in the credit report may not be apparent at first sight. This is why you have to spend time going through every detail on every section of the credit report. Include in your checking the dates, facts, and even time.

Credit report may also be analyzed and have an understanding on how it can affect inquiries about your score and the current credit you have. For example, if you see delayed payments made and overdrafts, you would know what to do to have a sound financial lifestyle.

Another good reason to have your credit report is to verify that you are not a victim of fraud or identity theft. You can do this by going through every activity and see if each of them can have a clear explanation. If not, it could be that such transaction was not actually made by you. The best thing to do about that is to file a report.