Credit Card Articles

Credit bureaus are companies that collect and record our personal financial records such as payment history, past credit problems, and financial status. This is used by credit providers to assess our suitability, before they make a decision on our applications for credit facilities such as loans, mortgages, credit cards etc.

This helps businesses with an element of risk management, ensuring they do not offer credit to individuals who are unlikely or unable to repay their debts. The three main credit bureaus are Equifax, Experian and Trans-Union. Each of these may hold a file on you.

However these bureaus don’t just help out credit providers, they also provide the consumer with reports too. It’s always a good idea to check your report at least every 12 months. Here’s how:

Firstly you need to visit the websites of the credit referencing companies where you can request your report. You will need to give them some personal details and there also may be a small charge. Once you get the report, take some time to look through the information contained and look for any inaccuracies or incorrect entries. Unfortunately this does sometimes happen, so it’s important to correct it quickly. The bureaus will tell you how you can contest the entry, but it’s normally a small form.

Next you should contact the creditor that the entry refers to. For example American Express. Ask them to correct the entry and explain why you feel it is incorrect. The Fair Credit Reporting and Fair Credit Billings Acts require that creditors must respond to your request but do not force them to change a report. After this initial process, you should check your credit report again after 90 days. This will normally solve your issue, but if not, you have the right to make a 100-word consumer comment that must be sent out with all future reports. You can read more on <a target=”_new” href=”http://www.think-creditcards.com/how-to-repair-your-credit-rating-yourself.html”>how to repair your credit rating yourself here.

Gary is the Editor of Think-CreditCards.com, The consumer orientated credit card comparison site designed to help you find the perfect credit card while avoiding high interest rates, charges, and fees!