Absolutely Free Credit Report – How To Get One
It is now the law that you can see get an absolutely free credit report, on an annual basis. Knowing this information will help you guard against identity theft and credit fraud. If you have access to the Web you can get the info in a matter of minutes. This is perfect if you have to find out your status quickly because you are about to apply for a loan.
But if you’ve spent time on the web you may have come across sites that offer to give you your credit report for free, and then want your credit card details. What’s that all about? Many of these sites will be from credit monitoring agencies. You can normally try out their monitoring service by taking advantage of a free trial, after that time you will be billed monthly.
Credit monitoring services will generally let you have continuous access to your credit files. This may be useful for people trying to improve their credit score. They will allow you to use the service for free for, say 7 or 14 days. Different companies have different lengths of trial so you should be aware exactly how long the trial lasts. They will start to charge you as soon as the trial has ended. Give plenty of notice of cancellation if you do not wish to use the service after the free period.
If you an absolutely free credit report, you can request your files from the credit reporting agencies by writing a letter. This is great if you don’t like to use the computer. The major credit reference agencies you should contact are Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. You can do this for free each year. This is a one-off report unlike a monitoring service that allows continuous access. It may take sometime for the credit reference agencies to reply, so allow up to six weeks.
You will want to study your absolutely free credit report annually to see if anybody has tried to steal your identity. Even if you know you have an OK credit history, it is still a good idea to get an annual credit report.