Before we get really close to the end of the year and things start getting frantic, I just wanted to remind everyone to get all the free stuff that the government promised you via the FACT Act:
Free Credit Reports from all three bureaus at AnnualCreditReport.com. I’ve already gotten all of mine. I put in a request to fix a minor error my address, but I don’t think I ever got a reply. Grrr. I’ll have to try again.
Free CLUE Insurance Report at ChoiceTrust. This shows your previous auto and home insurance claim history. More details here. Mine was thankfully mistake-free.
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I think when I put in a request to have an error fixed it took like 2-3 months. I could be exaggerating a little, but I remember I had long forgotten that I even made the request when I finally received the response. I’m guessing its a combination of under-staffing and that they go through the process of an investigation to determine the accuracy of the information.
Costco offers a discounted service through identityguard.com for members. It costs about $7.50(executive)/$9.50(gold) for a credit report AND a FICO score from all three bureaus. I also remember the verification process on annualcreditreport.com being a hassle. I’d rather skip the hassle and get it all at one place for $7.50/$9.50. You can find out more here: https://www.identityguard.com/home.asp?languageid=1&f=costco
Thanks for the info on the CLUE report. Just pulled mine. Have known about and used the free credit reports but never knew about the free CLUE. Thanks again.
Here’s a tip for ya – you don’t have to get them all at the same time, so unless you have a good reason to, don’t. If you get a different one every 4 months, you can keep a closer track on things. And for those married folks, you can get a free report every 2 months by this method.
Equifax has my last name spelled wrong. I sent in a request to get them to fix it, but the only thing they did was to send me a paper copy of my report. Hopefully the bureaus are more responsive to people who actually have credit mistakes on file. I guess I’m not going to worry about it.
According to the fair credit reporting act(FCRA) , you can obtain a free credit report at any time simply by stating that you are the victim of identity theft and place a fraud alert in your file. Use these numbers to put a fraud alert:
* Equifax: 1-800-685-1111
* Experian: 1-888-397-3742
* TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289
Thanks for the ChoiceTrust reminder. I usually do that one in September, but I completely forgot.
Thanks for the reminder.
The CLUE one is interesting too. It makes online insurance quotes a bit of a joke, since they have no problem re-quoting upwards if they don’t like what they see on the CLUE, which is only checked at the end. (Even if it’s the same thing you told them in the application!)
Thanks for the reminder! For some people, depending on their situation, it might be good to just get a credit report from only 1 of the three bureaus.
This way, you can get a free one from a different bureau every 4 months just rotating the bureas. This means that you don’t have to wait an entire year to get your credit report.
If this is your first time doing it, then yeah go for all 3… But otherwise, might as well spread things out.
-William
Is the free report per calendar year?
Or you have to wait for a year before making the second request?
Quite convenient, thanks for the heads up.
Interestingly, I was also able to see auto insurance claims for other residents of one of my previous residences. Could there big a big privacy issue with the CLUE Insurance Reports?
I was mistaken – I was under the impression that it was one per bureau per calendar year. It is actually one per 12 months. So if you get one, you have to wait 12 months to get the next one.
I personally like getting them all at once now to compare them all, if something does happen (victim of ID theft, or turned down for credit for any reason) you can request them again. But spacing them out is also a good option.
I was able to see old renter’s insurance claims for my current residence too, but nothing personally identifiable.
No. The website (AnnualCreditReport.com) clearly states on the front page (right side) that one from each bureau per calendar year is free. See the text copied below.
“This central site allows you to request a free credit file disclosure, commonly called a credit report, once every 12 months from each of the nationwide consumer credit reporting companies: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion”
I got my report every four month (January, May, and September) from one of the agencies for several years already (NJ residents can get a free report every 12 months even before credit reports are free for everybody). However, when requesting the report, it has to be exactly 12 months from last request, not even one day earlier. Last year, I ordered one on Sept. 2 and when I tried to get another year on Sept. 1, I was rejected since it’s not exactly 12 months.
bharani – Once every 12 months is not equal to one per calendar year, I made the same mistake. In other words, you can’t get one on December 30th and then another one on January 1st. You must wait 12 months.
See the FAQ: link