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CONSUMER ALERT
MIKE COX
ATTORNEY GENERAL
The Attorney General provides Consumer Alerts to inform the
public of unfair, misleading, or deceptive business practices, and to provide
information and guidance on other issues of concern.
CREDIT REPORTS,
FREE REVIEW & REPAIR
How to Order a Free Report and Fix any Errors You Find
Consumers can order a free credit
report every year from each of the three major credit reporting companies:
Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Free annual credit reports can be ordered by
mail, by telephone, or online. Monitoring your credit report helps guard against
identity theft. It is also important to make sure the information is accurate,
complete, and up to date before you apply for a loan for a major purchase like a
house or car, buy insurance, or apply for a job.
If you want to maximize your protection against fraudulent activity, order one
report from a different one of the three major consumer credit reporting
companies every fourth month.
This alert details how to order the report, provides a reference for those who
need help reading a report, and explains how to dispute errors.
ORDER YOUR FREE ANNUAL CREDIT REPORTS
By Mail
Complete the Annual Credit Report Request Form available online at the only
truly free credit report website:
https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/requestformfinal.pdf
. The form is also available through the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC's)
website:
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/include/requestformfinal.pdf
By Telephone
Call 877-322-8228 (toll free).
- Online
www.annualcreditreport.com
Caution: Misspelling this site or using another site with similar words will
take you to a site that will try to sell you something or collect your
personal information.
These are the only ways to get free credit reports without any
strings attached. The "free" credit reports advertised by other sources are not
really free!
We recommend that when you order you request that no more than
the last four digits of your Social Security Number appear on copies of your
credit report.
If you are a victim of identity theft, you are entitled to place
a fraud alert on your file and to receive copies of your credit report from each
of the three credit reporting companies free of charge, regardless whether you
have previously ordered your free annual reports. For more information on ID
theft, including advice for victims and tips on prevention, review the Attorney
General's Consumer Alert on ID Theft at
www.michigan.gov/ag/0,1607,7-164-17343_18163-80479--,00.html
HOW TO READ A CREDIT REPORT
A good tutorial on how to read
credit reports is available at
www.truecredit.com.
Click on the "learn" tab at the top of this webpage and then select "How to read
your credit report" under "Related Items" on the right-hand side of the screen.
A sample credit report and breakdown of each section is also available at
www.experian.com/credit_report_basics/pdf/samplecreditreport.pdf.
CORRECTING INACCURACIES OR INCOMPLETE INFORMATION
The consumer reporting company and
the information provider (that is, the person, company, or organization that
provides information about you to a consumer reporting company) are responsible
for correcting inaccurate or incomplete information in your report. To take full
advantage of your rights when you find errors, write to both the consumer
reporting company and the information provider. Dispute errors with each
consumer reporting company individually and keep a separate file for each credit
reporting company and each information provider.
- Contact the consumer reporting company first.
Tell the consumer
reporting company what information you think is inaccurate.
Keep good records. Enclose with your detailed letter
copies of documents that support your position and a copy of your credit
report with the items in question circled. Send the entire dispute by
certified mail, return receipt requested, so you can document what the credit
bureau received. Keep copies of all correspondence, and take detailed and
dated notes about each phone conversation you have. If you file your dispute
online, be sure to print dated confirmation pages of all correspondence.
Consumer reporting companies must investigate the items in
question - usually within 30 days - unless they consider your dispute
frivolous. They also must forward all the relevant data you provide about the
inaccuracy to the organization that provided the information. After the
information provider receives notice of a dispute from the consumer reporting
company, it must investigate, review the relevant information, and report the
results back to the consumer reporting company. If the information provider
finds the disputed information is inaccurate, it must notify all three of the
nationwide consumer reporting companies so they can correct the information in
your file.
When the investigation is complete, the consumer reporting company must give
you the written results and a free copy of your report if the dispute results
in a change. (This free report does not count as your annual free report.) If
an item is changed or deleted, the consumer reporting company cannot put the
disputed information back in your file unless the information provider
verifies that it is accurate and complete. The consumer reporting company also
must send you written notice that includes the name, address, and phone number
of the information provider.
- Also contact the creditor or other information provider.
Many
providers specify an address for disputes. If the provider reports the item to
a consumer reporting company, it must include a notice of your dispute. And if
you are correct ? that is, if the information is found to be inaccurate ? the
information provider may not report it again.
WHEN THE CONSUMER REPORTING COMPANY OR INFORMATION PROVIDER
WILL NOT RESOLVE THE DISPUTE
If your written dispute does not resolve the inaccurate
information, you can ask that a statement of the dispute be included in your
file and in future reports. You also can ask the consumer reporting company to
provide your statement to anyone who received a copy of your report in the
recent past. You can expect to pay a fee for this service. If you tell the
information provider that you dispute an item, a notice of your dispute must be
included any time the information provider reports the item to a consumer
reporting company.
HOW LONG CAN NEGATIVE INFORMATION BE REPORTED?
A consumer reporting company can report most accurate negative
information for seven years and bankruptcy information for 10 years. There is no
time limit on reporting information about criminal convictions, information
reported in response to your application for a job that pays more than $75,000 a
year, and information reported because you've applied for more than $150,000
worth of credit or life insurance. Information about a lawsuit or an unpaid
judgment against you can be reported for seven years or until the statute of
limitations runs out, whichever is longer.
ELIMINATE UNWANTED CREDIT & INSURANCE OFFERS
You can safeguard your personal information by excluding your
name from nationwide consumer credit reporting company lists for pre-approved,
unsolicited credit and insurance offers by calling toll-free 1-888-567-8688 or
completing the online form at
www.optoutsprescreen.com.
COMPLAINTS
Complaints about consumer reporting companies or information
providers may be sent to the Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division at:
Consumer Protection Division
P.O. Box 30213
Lansing, MI 48909
517-373-1140
Fax: 517-241-3771
Toll free: 877-765-8388
www.michigan.gov/ag (online complaint
form)
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