Press Releases
| For Immediate Release |
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| March 1, 2005 |
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Free Credit Reports Available in March
Consumers are advised to review credit report before applying for
credit or insurance
(Madison) Beginning March 1, 2005, residents of Wisconsin and other Midwestern
states will be able to request a free copy of their credit report yearly
from each of the three national credit reporting companies. The Wisconsin
Office of the Commissioner of Insurance (OCI) and the Department of Financial
Institutions (DFI) encourage people to take advantage of this opportunity
to check that the information on their credit reports is accurate and
complete.
“It is to consumers’ benefit to regularly review their credit
reports to make sure that the information about their credit history is
correct,” Insurance Commissioner Jorge Gomez said.
DFI Secretary Lorrie Keating Heinemann added, "By checking their
credit report, consumers can also help protect themselves against identity
theft. If someone else used a consumer’s personal information to
open a credit card and didn’t pay the bills for the credit card,
their credit is damaged and that is reported to potential lenders and
other businesses. By ensuring all the information held by the credit reporting
agencies is correct, consumers can avoid being charged more or being denied
financial services."
Credit reports play an important role in a consumer’s ability
to access credit, a car loan, a mortgage loan or obtain insurance. Information
on a credit report can also affect what interest rate the consumer pays
for that credit. Insurance companies may also take credit information
into account although the extent to which insurance companies can use
credit reports in the underwriting process is limited by OCI and the Federal
Trade Commission (FTC).
In addition to getting a free report yearly, federal law allows consumers
to request a free report if they are denied credit or insurance because
of information on the credit report. Consumers must request a copy of
their credit information within 60 days of the date their purchase was
affected by credit.
The three nationwide consumer reporting companies are Equifax, Experian
and Trans Union. The free report is available only through a centralized
website, phone number, and address that the three consumer reporting companies
have set up. Consumers can request their free annual credit report by
calling 1-877-322-8228, visiting the website www.annualcreditreport.com,
or completing the annual credit report request form available at www.ftc.gov/credit
and mailing it to Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box
105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281.
Beyond one free credit report each year, consumers can purchase their
credit score at any time. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is reminding
consumers that
www.annualcreditreport.com
is the only authorized site to obtain your free annual credit
report, and emails, pop-up ads, or phone calls asking for personal information
and
claiming to be from the website or any of the three companies are “probably
a scam.”
More information about credit reports or other consumer issues is available
by visiting the FTC website at www.ftc.gov
or by calling 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357). Consumers can obtain information
about using credit and handling money by visiting the DFI's website and
link to the Financial Literacy Resource Center at www.finlitwi.org/default/.
OCI publications such as “Understanding How Insurance Companies
Use Credit Information” and “Consumer’s Guide to Insurance,”
can be ordered free from the agency by writing to OCI Publications,
P.O. Box 7873, Madison, WI 5370-7873, calling 800-236-8517
or visiting the OCI website at oci.wi.gov/oci_home.htm.
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