Understanding your credit report is as simple as requesting one from any of the reporting agencies and combing through it for inaccuracies or simply to gain a different perspective on your financial history. A credit report is simply a record of know consumer relationships, personal details, and historical transactions that impact your credit worthiness. Items like loans, jobs, home of record (places you’ve lived), medical bills, student loans, and consumer accounts (retail accounts and credit cards) will all appear on your credit report.
No matter which bureau generates the report, you have the ability to request changes to the information, when it is inaccurate, or to dispute any details reported that are not correct. The process for requesting changes or disputing recorded information varies, depending on the agency, but each is required by law to give consumers access to their information and a method for correcting it.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or FDIC offers a number of consumer protections regarding bank balances and credit accounts. The FDIC is responsible for protecting your money when you deposit it in a bank or credit union. Along with these insurances, the FDIC also maintains the Consumer Credit Protection Act. This law has a number of regulations concerning the protection of consumers from malicious financial tactics, unfair reporting practices, and a number of important policies.
One is a provision for a free annual credit report. Learn more about the FDIC and Consumer Credit Protection Act by visiting, http://www.fdic.gov/regulations/laws/rules/6500-200.html#fdic6500tilaccpa.
Free and Annual Credit Reporting Services
Every year consumers are allowed to request a credit report from any of the three credit agencies, free of charge. This rule was enacted to help consumers stay abreast of information added to their credit report over the course of a given year. Current regulations only allow for one free report from one of the three organizations, but obtaining reports from any agency is often a very easy process and cost very little.
To obtain a free copy of your credit report you have to visit AnnualCreditReport.com. This website is the only authorized portal to obtain a free credit report yearly as provided for by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation through the Federal Trade Commission. Visit the FTC’s official site, http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/microsites/freereports/index.shtml, for specific details about the service provided through AnnualCreditReport.com or if you need to obtain a hard copy of your report.
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