Credit Report

Your credit report is used to make a lot of critical decisions far beyond your ability to qualify for credit cards and loans. These include renting a house or apartment, seeking employment, and obtaining insurance. This is why you will want to make certain that your credit report is accurate and up to date.

In the past, consumers in most states were required to pay a fee to obtain copies of their credit reports. Now access is free of charge thanks to the federal FACT Act which states that all consumers are entitled to one free copy of their credit report annually from each of the three credit bureaus - Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.

To order your free credit report, you can call the official toll-free number, (877) 322-8228. Or, you can go online to annualcreditreport.com where you can order your reports directly. Or you can print out the form at annualcreditreport.com/cra/requestformfinal.pdf and mail in your credit report request.

You are not required to order all three credit reports at the same time. If you wish, you can stagger your free reports over the course of a year by ordering one credit report every four months. This way, you can monitor your credit report on an ongoing basis. But if you are an identity theft victim or are shopping for credit, it is best to order all three at one time.

There are certain times when you are entitled to a free copy of your credit report for special circumstances. The rule that gives you free access only once a year does not affect your ability to get a free report in the situations listed below. You are entitled to an additional free credit report when:

You have been denied credit

Your are unemployed and intend to apply for employment within the next 60 days

You are on public assistance or welfare

You believe your file has incorrect information due to fraud or identity theft

If an adverse decision related to your employment has been made based on your credit report information

If your credit report has been revised based on a requested investigation

In addition to taking advantage of your free annual credit report, you should also check your credit report when you know it is going to be used to make important decisions, such as applying for an automobile or home loan, renting an apartment, or applying for a job. Your credit report should be ordered at least one to two months before you apply for credit or intend to rent. At these crucial times, you do not want to be surprised to find that your report contains negative information, especially if that information is inaccurate.