Host: Am I entitled to a free credit report every year?
Vikki Frank: Yes, every consumer is entitled to a free credit report every year. In fact, you’re entitled to three free credit reports every year because there are three major credit bureaus that maintain separate data basis with your data and so it’s so important to know that each of them have the same and accurate information about you and your credit file.
The three credit bureaus are Experian, Equifax, and TransUnions, but they came together to allow you to access your free credit report each year at the website called www.annualcreditreport.com.
There are a couple of important things to know about coming to this website to get your report. There are all different kinds of credit report and credit files that come out of your credit file. Each of them customized for the type of business that or the type of person who is requesting the information. As the information each type of credit report will be different.
In the case when you go to annualcreditreport.com you’ll be getting what’s called a consumer education credit report and this report is customize for you the consumer to more easily understand your credit report. It doesn’t have a lot of those codes on it. It‘s a much more user friendly format. And also it shows all of the not only hard inquires in terms of people who you’ve gone to request credit, but all the soft inquiries.
So anybody who has to look at your report whether they be insurance companies or employers or people who get your information to direct marketing and offer you all those free credit reports every year. You’ll be able to see on that report. Nobody else can see that on the reports that they received if they are business.
The last thing you should about a credit report is that a credit score is not part of the credit report. It’s actually a separate product and service sold by the credit bureaus, and it’s unfortunately this is not available free to consumers.
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