Instant Credit Report: Easy Access To Your Credit History |
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When you are eligible for your free instant credit report annually depends on which state you reside in, in
accordance with the rollout schedule imposed by federal law. A visit to the site annualcreditreport.com will let you know when free instant credit report is available in your state. The arrival of free instant credit report offers everyone exceptional access, amazing convenience apart from greater security and increased value to the rupee. America has only just introduced free instant credit report and is yet to cover a lot of areas that will be done in the months to come. A credit report is basically a comprehensive summary of all your credit transactions including past credit history, credit repayment abilities, timeliness of payments, credit rating, etc. Prior to granting any loan, most banks, credit unions and financial institutes need to view the borrower's credit score. This lessens the risk in lending out money. Therefore it is not only beneficial for you but also for your lender to be able to access your free instant credit report. Your details like residential address, past suits, arrests or bankruptcies, if any, are all reflected in your free instant credit report. The credit reporting agencies actually sell your credit details to creditors, insurers, employers and other business concerns that need it to evaluate your applications for credit, insurance, employment or home rental. A free copy of your instant credit report is set to be even easier to access, courtesy the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT Act), a revised version of the Fair Credit Reporting Act. This act makes provision for the three major credit reporting agencies, Equifax, TransUnion and Experian to grant consumers a free instant credit report on an annual basis from a centralized source with every request. The source is equipped with a website, toll-free telephone number and postal address. Their website, established as the centralized website is located at annualcreditreport.com. It is also the only centralized source offering consumers access to their free instant credit report online. Free instant credit report is also available with a phone call or a written request to the concerned authority. The Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act lays down rules for free instant credit reports for the centralized source. --It should have sufficient capacity to handle requests from the estimated volumes of consumer requests. --It can compile personal information for identification only to the extent necessary for request processing. --The information needs to be clear and easy to understand with instructions on making requests. --No advertising or marketing is permitted if it hampers in any way, the purpose of the centralized source. The purpose of the rules is to create a gradual, structured rollout of the centralized source. Made available in cumulative stages for a 9-month period, the centralized source has started its rollout from west to east from December 1, 2004. The entire transaction is expected to be complete by September 1, 2005. So far free instant credit report from the centralized source covers residents of western states including Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. As for the rest, they can soon expect the same. According to studies, once all Americans have the ability to take advantage of the centralized source for access to their free instant credit report, there will be a drastic reduction in problems like identity theft. US PIRG, the national lobbying group for state Public Interest Research Groups reveals one in four free credit reports to be error-prone to the extent of being denied credit. Identity theft is mainly the reason for this. Fraud experts are convinced of credit reports being essential for any proactive strategy for this crime. It is often possible to detect fraudulent activity early through reviews of accounts, inquiries and addresses appearing on the credit reports. This increases the importance of keeping track of your free instant credit report. By doing so, there are less chances of falling victim to serious credit problems and even if you demonstrate any, the preventive measures necessary can be taken to prevent it from ruining your credit report. |
