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Skriven 2005-08-14 15:46:58 av Alan Hess
Ärende: free credit reports
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Everyone is entitled to free credit reports under federal law.  This column
includes some telephone numbers to get those reports.
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http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bal-bz.ambrose14aug14,1,2627271.column?co
ll=bal-business-headlines
Federal law provides access to free credit reports
Eileen Ambrose -- Personal Finance



August 14, 2005

COME SEPTEMBER, residents in Maryland and other Eastern states will be entitled
under federal law to a free credit report once a year from each of the three
major credit bureaus.

Or, in other words, they don't have to pay a penny to see what lenders are
looking at before granting a mortgage, car loan or credit-card application.

The federally mandated reports are being gradually rolled out across the
country, beginning on the West Coast last December. Fourteen Eastern states and
Washington are the last to gain access.

Of course, Marylanders for years have been eligible for free reports annually
under state law. That doesn't change. So next month, they will be able to get
two free reports a year from each of the three bureaus, or six a year.

"This is a really important right for consumers to exercise," said Pam Dixon,
executive director of the World Privacy Forum, a San Diego nonprofit that
researches privacy issues.

It's not just lenders who look at credit reports, but prospective landlords and
employers. Reports also can alert you to unusual activity that might indicate
someone is attempting to open accounts in your name.

Consumers can get all three reports at once or order one every few months. By
staggering reports, you can monitor your credit record throughout the year
without having to pay a service to do the same, consumer advocates said.

(The rules to get reports under state and federal law differ. Marylanders
wanting a free report under state law must call Equifax at 800-685-1111;
TransUnion at 800-888-4213 and Experian at 888-397-3742.)

People can order a report under federal law by phone, mail or online. The
quickest way is online, where reports can be viewed on the spot once the
bureaus verify a consumer's identity.

There's one official Web site for the federally mandated reports:
www.annualcreditreport.com.

Take care, because there are plenty of sites with similar sounding names. If
you use a search engine, such as Google or Yahoo, and type in "free credit
report" or "annual credit report," the official site pops up along with others
pitching reports, credit scores and monitoring services for a price.

Likewise, make a typo while inputting the official site's address and you can
land on a site that hawks products - or worse.

In June, there were 112 "imposter" sites up and running that used the words
"annual credit report" in some fashion or slightly misspelled, according to
survey released last month by the World Privacy Forum. That's up from 50
imposters in February, the group said.

Many steer consumers to companies selling products. Some link to paid services
offered by affiliates of Experian and TransUnion, Dixon said. Others collect
personal information and sell it to other companies, she said.

In a few egregious cases, World Privacy alerted officials to sites that
subsequently were shut down, including one that attempted to steal Social
Security numbers, Dixon said.

Those in the credit reporting industry say they are concerned, too. Before
www.annualcreditreport.com was launched, the credit bureaus and their trade
association, Consumer Data Industry Association, purchased more than 200 domain
names that sounded similar to the real thing and shut the sites down. In June,
the association wrote the Federal Trade Commission, urging it to take action
against bogus sites, said Norm Magnuson, an association spokesman.

"It is an issue of concern for the FTC. We are looking into it and plan on
taking enforcement action whenever appropriate," said Sandra Farrington, staff
attorney with the FTC's division of financial practices.

In the meantime, to avoid misspelling the Web address or clicking on the wrong
site, Farrington suggested consumers go to the FTC's site at
www.ftc.gov/credit, which has a link to the official site.

Dixon, however, suggests requesting a report by telephone or mail. Consumers
can order a report at 877-322-8228.

To get a report by mail, fill out a request form available at the FTC Web site
and mail it to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta,
GA, 30348-5281.

If you do opt to get a report online, be prepared to answer a series of
personal questions. That's how each bureau verifies that it's you, not an
imposter. Some say the questions, though, might be a little too tough.

In an experiment this spring, only half of 77 adults were able to access all
three of their credit reports online, according to Robert Mayer, a professor of
family and consumer studies at the University of Utah who conducted the test.

"The most galling to consumers was when they felt they had put in the correct
information and it was turned down" with no explanation, he said. Others
complained that the questions were too obscure and took a lot of digging into
home files, he said.

Experian spokesman Don Girard said security is a top concern, and the credit
bureau doesn't want to make it easy for someone who, say, steals your wallet to
also get access to your report.

Consumers will have access to their reports online for 30 days, but consumer
advocates say it's easier to print out the report.

Once you have it, look for inaccuracies.

Review the public records section, which reports any liens, judgments and
bankruptcies. If you filed for bankruptcy more than 10 years ago and it's
listed on the report, you have a right to have it removed, said Beth Givens,
director of the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse in San Diego.

Check out the inquiry section. There are two types of creditor inquiries, but
you only need to be concerned about one of them, Givens said.

Look at inquiries as a result of your request for credit and that will be shown
to those looking at your report. If there are a lot of them and you didn't
request credit, it could be that someone is trying to get credit in your name,
Givens said.

"Contest anything that is not accurate," Dixon said. Even minor mistakes.

An error in your employment history, for example, might make a prospective
employer wonder why your resume says something different, Givens said.

To suggest a topic, contact Eileen Ambrose at 410-332-6984 or by e-mail at
eileen.ambrose@baltsun.com.

Copyright + 2005, The Baltimore Sun | Get Sun home delivery

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