Will the Real ‘Free’ Credit Report Please Stand Up?
You’ve seen the ads. They target young adults, but none of us can help watching them.
He’s that sweet-faced twenty-something guy with the oh-so-casual brown curls on his head and an endearing smile. You often see him with a guitar in hand as he sings a clever song. He wears a pirate suit. Or Robin Hood themed attire. Or a waiter’s uniform. He’s playing a guitar and singing an amusing song that explains why he’s wearing such unconventional clothes.
It’s his credit, of course. If he’d gotten his hands on a copy of his free credit report he’d have known about the negative information on it. The implication is that his less than stellar credit score is preventing him from having a career. Now he’s reduced to gigging at the local Lobster Shack/Renaissance Fair/Celebrity B list party. The ads always end with viewers being directed to a website where they can get a “free” credit report that will help them avoid a similar fate.
The catch? The website also requires the consumer to subscribe to a credit monitoring service for a monthly fee that ultimately makes your “free” credit report cost over $100 annually. While credit monitoring services can be useful tools for victims of identity theft or consumers that want some additional eyes on their credit history, purchasing that service is not a requirement for obtaining a free credit report.
When identity theft became the most common white collar crime the federal government took action. They passed a law that allowed consumers to receive a free, annual copy of their credit reports from each of the three major credit bureaus. Not the scores, just the reports. Checking these reports regularly helps us catch identity thieves before they do extensive damage to our credit scores. The sooner you catch it, the easier it is to fix. And make no mistake; there are truly free credit reports; no subscriptions required. The catch is that you need to know where to get them.
When you go to www.annualcreditreport.com (home of the original free credit report) you’ll be required the reveal some personal information about yourself to get your credit reports. At this website, that’s okay. They need to make sure it’s truly you that’s asking for the report, and not an identity thief. Then you’re able to select which of your three reports (or all of them, if you wish), you’d like to see. You’re able to do this once every calendar year and it’s completely free, and without any catches.
If you want your credit score, that’s another story. Scores aren’t free. If you’d like to take a look at your score you can contact any of the three major credit bureaus directly: Transamerica, Experian, and Equifax.
Alicia Diefenbach is a former financial crime-fighter for the Washington State Department of Financial Institutions. After spending nearly a decade helping fraud victims seek restitution and educating consumers about various aspects of personal financial management, she went into business for herself.
Alicia now designs fun, non-commercial presentations and materials that help people make financial decisions that lead to success. She is a published consumer writer and speaks on topics that educate women, teens, adults, and seniors on various aspects of fraud awareness, and successful personal financial management.
Comments
Sorry, comments are closed for this article.
