You can get a free Equifax Credit Report once per year thanks
to the FACT Act of 2003. This legislation allows you to request
your copy through the www.annualcreditreport.com website. All you
need to do is go to the website and fill out some basic
information. You can learn more about it here: Yearly
Free Credit Report.
All three of the most used credit bureaus will provide your
credit report for free one time per year. Once you login to the
annualcreditreport.com website, you can choose to access one or
all three credit bureau credit reports. It's pretty easy and will
allow you to print out your credit report for review.
When you are transferred the the Equifax website, you will need
to fill out your basic information again and answer 3-4 security
questions to establish your identity. These security questions
involve information reported in your credit history like lenders,
account numbers, and other information only you would know. It's
pretty quick and painless.
Once you complete the security questions successfully, you are
then offered your credit score and other services for an
additional cost. Credit scores are separate from credit reports.
Credit Scores are determined by a grading system that is based on
the information based on a sliding scale of 350-900, the higher
the number the better. Monitoring services or personal alerts when
information is reported, and other offers can also be presented.
If you feel you are at risk for Identity Theft or have other
security concerns, these monitoring services might be worthwhile,
otherwise you probably don't need them.
After the offers, a new web page will appear with your Equifax
Credit Report. The first page of the credit report shows a good
summary of key elements of your credit history. Equifax has two
divisions, one called CSC and one called Equifax. Depending on
where you reside, your report will be handled by one or the other.
This initial summary contains all of the basic information at a
glance. Think if it as a 10,000 foot view rather than down in the
weeds details. There are four sections:
- Accounts
- Account Age
- Inquiries
- Potential Negative Information
They even have a graph of used and available credit (this is a
big factor in determining your Credit Score) in percentages. This
quick snapshot of your credit history may be all a potential
lender needs if there are no obvious negative information. For our
purposes of review, we need to see all the details that make up
this snapshot to verify information is correct.
After the two page summary, a quick index of everything
included in the report is listed (including dispute methods and
consumer rights). After the index, each of the 4 sections is
listed in a very detailed layout. In fact Equifax presents more
individual information than the other two major credit
bureaus.
Most people head right for the negative section to see if any
is incorrect. There could be wrong dates, inaccurate payment
histories, or even the wrong person listed. Negative entries do
have a serious impact on your Credit Score. And this is the place
to find them and file a dispute if necessary.
Disputes are much easier to file since you can now do it
online. This speeds up the process and can get you quicker
results. Always remember that you may need to make the same
dispute at the other two major credit bureaus if they too have
this incorrect negative information listed.
If you choose to dispute a negative item, go read the correct
procedures at the end of the credit report. We strongly suggest
you do it online so you have a date and time stamp, and print out
a copy before you hit the file button. This gives you physical
records and eliminates any confusion on the contents. Although
operators can be helpful, and phone calls are easy, there is no
record to fall back on if you need it.
But don't forget to check the Personal information and Public
Records sections to make sure contact information is current and
any public information belongs to you. There can be tax liens from
city, state, or federal authorities that can really have
impact.
Also check the accounts section to make sure that any positive
credit history is listed. Many times you may have credit granted,
are current in payments or even have paid off the loan and it is
not listed. Even if the account is closed, if paid on time and
completed it can be a positive entry. Good credit history can help
any Credit Score.
The Equifax Credit Report is the most detailed of the three
major credit bureaus. I have to rank them number one on presenting
well organized and complete information. We don't have any
negative feedback on their dispute process either. It appears they
are doing a good job all around.
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