In the age of identity theft and credit card usage, much is said about credit bureaus, credit reports, and credit scores. If you are curious about what all these things are, contacting one of the three major credit bureaus is the place to begin. Here is some information about how to contact these credit bureaus and get the facts you're seeking.
- Know what a credit bureau is. A credit bureau is a company which collects information on an individual's credit, including how much credit a person has, how much money he owes (loans, credit cards, etc.), if he filed for bankruptcy or had a lien put on his property, and of course, if he has ever been delinquent in paying off any debts. The credit bureau also has your name, current and past addresses, and social security number. I'm not sure exactly why they have a right to all this information, but there it is.
The credit bureau takes your debt and credit information and gives each individual a credit score. This score is than accessed by lenders, credit card companies, apartment landlords, etc., to see if the person can be trusted to pay what's owed. The major credit bureaus in the U.S. are Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. Why three companies have a monopoly on the business, again I have no idea, but there you go.
- Know what information you can get and what information you want. Individuals usually contact credit bureaus for two reasons--either they want copies of their credit reports or they want to clear up mistakes on their credit reports.
You might want a copy of your credit report for a few different pieces of information. First, you may want your credit score. In other words, if someone checks your credit, will he be getting a good report, or one that says "By God, don't lend to this person!" Generally, people have a pretty good idea of whether or not they've got good credit by considering if they pay their bills on time, have tons of maxed out credit cards or have defaulted on student loans. But getting your actual score is concrete information you can use when preparing to apply for a loan or when planning how to repair your credit.
You also might want a copy of your credit report to see who has been asking about you. Have you applied for a loan or credit card lately? Your credit report will indicate if that company checked your credit. Or you might want to check out your credit report to see if anyone has been perpetrating any identity theft--signing up for a credit card in your name, for instance. You credit report will list all the credit sources you've taken out money with, including credit cards you've already paid off. If there's one on there you don't know, that's a red flag to do some checking.
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Author: B. Danesco