I Got a Free Credit Report What do I Look For?

A Credit Article Contributed by Annie Bauers

What is the Point in Asking for a Free Credit Report?

If you ask for a free credit report it is important that you understand what to do with it when you receive it. The point of asking for a free credit report is to take the time to look over it and be sure there are no errors on your credit report.

Many consumers do not realize that errors can occur on their credit report. By getting a free credit report you will have the opportunity to look at your report and see if there is anything listed on the report that is not accurate or you do not understand.

I Just Got a Free Credit Report and Some Information is Wrong What do I Do?

You need to contact the credit agency that you got the free credit report from. Either Experion, Equifax or TransUnion will have been the agency who issued you the free credit report. After you have contacted the agency you will be asked to fill out a report. The report is official action to begin a dispute over the information you feel is incorrect. It would be wise of you to notify the two agencies and do the same.

Merchants who pull a credit report may not pull it from the same agency you chose to alert about the error. Since it is your credit involved you will want to alert all three agencies to be assured the error will be taken care of on all three reports.

If you find personal information on your free credit report such as an incorrect spelling of your name or the wrong address you should take the same action as you would do for an error in your financial records. Just contact the agencies and inform them of an incorrect name or address and they will advise you of the proper action you should take to have it corrected on your credit report.

What is the Purpose of a Credit Report and Why Should I Get a Free Credit Report Periodically?

The purpose of a credit report is to score your credit so potential lenders can judge what kind of a credit risk you will be. You should request a copy of a free credit report to see what your score is. By looking at your free credit report you will be able to see if your credit score is high or in good standing or if the score is low. If you look at your free credit report and see that your credit score is low you can see the areas that are causing your score to be low.

You can then work to fix the problem areas and bring your credit score up. You should request a free credit report not only to see what your credit score is bu5 to look for any errors on the report as well. You should get a free credit report at least once a year.