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Study: Finds as many as 42 million Americans have errors on their credit reports
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I mention that new government study that threw up red flags for anyone who has a credit report it doesn't matter where the have a credit card or loan or mortgage anything like that.
If you have one of those you have a credit report and a credit score more.
If people look at when they decide whether your credit -- able experts are saying tens of millions of those reports have mistakes or may.
And in today's take charge consumer protection segment I wanted to show you how to protect your credit history and also how to fix it if your report is wrong.
John alzheimer's a president of consumer education for Smart credit dot com it's great to have you here John welcome back.
Thanks Jamie thanks for having me this is so important and and it's so easy first -- -- break the news for those who don't know.
How easy is it to get a copy of your credit report.
Well it is extremely easy.
We all have a right under federal law.
Where we can get one copy of our credit report from any of the credit reporting agencies every twelve months and depending on what's that you -- -- You might actually be entitled to additional free copies because of your state law.
The legitimate web site to claim your federal freebie is annual credit report dot com you don't need a credit card because of -- and ask for it.
But you should claim it at least once every twelve months because if you don't then you don't know something bright or something's wrong.
Okay let me jump in annual credit report dot com there's lots of other -- that will charge you money it's free folksy got to get -- once you get.
Had -- you know John what Erica look for what are the most common.
What you want -- wanna go to the -- report a fine -- come doing what I refer to as the crowd report diagnostic.
-- -- -- wanna look specifically at the identification section.
The trade section of the trade is kind of a fancy way of saying all of your account information.
Public records collections.
And inquiries everything I just mentioned has -- on -- impact on your ability to get credit.
Most of that has an impact on what your credit score is going to beach because they're gonna want to make sure that when you go -- the inventory of information.
That account information is accurate balances our -- -- If they're already delinquencies that they actually did happen and if you do have public records on -- credit report that they actually belong to you.
For exam that's what -- -- could be on their reorganization.
Owing money when you lose a job it could not have been your fault.
You still want to corrected to make sure it's up to date just a credit reporting agency do that for you what do you have to do on your part.
So that's a very very good question and -- probably the most important thing coming out of this FTC study.
Is that the credit reporting agencies actually don't have to do anything until you tell -- that something is wrong.
So you could have erroneous information -- -- crime report right now under under no obligation to correct it because frankly they don't know that it's -- -- So you have to go to the process of identifying what's wrong and then telling them hey lock.
This is wrong and here's why it's wrong and then there -- obligations kick -- under the fair credit reporting act.
And they have to perform perform an investigation and then -- -- -- in what period of time.
They have thirty days to correct tick bite that's the bad news the good news is is that look we're in 2013.
And -- -- -- highly automated process.
And most credit file disputes -- rectified within a couple of -- Weeks so the more information you sent back up wise and you gotta do all three of the reporting agencies.
Trans Union -- facts and what's the one I'm missing.
Yet the last one is Experian and you're actually bring up America quite a lot of people believe that if you get one of your quote porch corrected.
That automatically means that the other two are going to get corrected as well that's absolutely not true.
If you have an error on all three of your -- -- and have to go through this drill three times one with each of the three credit reporting agencies and.
Such great inspiration John let me tell folks one sobering statistic in this report.
42 million Americans have errors on their credit report.
Yet 96%.
Of Americans don't hold their credit report and leave it there and those errors continue to stand much to do something about it.
Great information so glad to have you here John thank you.
-- Travis -- -- -- today -- sale of all the take charge consumer protection segments that I've brought to you here only on this program I think this is the one that you can ignore.
If you want to see some of the other one so it's pretty easy just go to foxnews.com.
Click on America's News HQ it's at the bottom of the page and there you'll find a link for the last 21 consumer protection segments so take charge and take care yourself.
