Want a Free Annual Credit Report? Federal Trade Commission Notice says:
The Only Official Website is annualcreditreport.com The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires each of the nationwide consumer reporting companies – Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion – to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months. The three companies have set up one central website, toll-free telephone number, and mailing address through which you can order your free credit report. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency, wants you to know that, if you want to order your free annual credit report online, there is only one authorized website:annualcreditreport.com.
To Order Your Free Annual Credit Report * Visit annualcreditreport.com * Call toll-free: 1-877-322-8228 * Mail your completed Annual Credit Report Request Form to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281
Many other websites claim to offer “free credit reports,” “free credit scores,” or “free credit monitoring.” But, be careful. These sites are not part of the official annual free credit report program. And in some cases, the “free” product comes with strings attached. For example, some sites sign you up for a supposedly “free” service that converts to one you have to pay for after a trial period ends. If you don’t cancel during the trial period, you may be agreeing to let the company start charging fees to your credit card.
These sites often look like the official site at annualcreditreport.com. Some use terms like “free report” in their names; others have website names that purposely misspell annualcreditreport.com in the hope that you will mistype the name of the official site. Some of these “imposter” sites direct you to other sites that try to sell you something or collect your personal information.
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A background credit check report is often carried out when employers need to hire for positions involving financial responsibilities. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) regulates the situations when a background credit check can be used for employment selection purposes. Basically, you can run a background credit check if the position involves exercising financial prudence or handling large sums of money. If the position does not ask for such responsibilities, as an employer you must be very careful.
There are two basic types of a background credit check: consumer credit reports and investigative consumer credit reports. Along with the written report regarding the subject’s background credit check, the latter type also includes interviews from friends and neighbors. However, a written notice must be given to the applicant before carrying out an investigative
background credit check. If you have a legitimate business need and you wish to conduct a
background search, you have various potential alternatives at your disposal for getting the information you want.
FAQ
Posted:
Feb 12, 2007 - 03:24 PM
