Get Your Credit Report for Free:

New law provides access.

Soon you'll be able to get your credit report for free. A recent amendment to the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires each of the nationwide consumer reporting companies to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months, from www.annualcreditreport.com nline. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation's consumer protection agency, has prepared an onilne brochure.

• Credit Report

A credit report contains information on where you live, how you pay your bills, and whether you've been sued, arrested, or filed for bankruptcy. Nationwide consumer reporting companies sell the information in your report to creditors, insurers, employers, and other businesses that use it to evaluate your oline applications for credit, insurance, employment, or renting a home.

You may want to review your credit report:
• because the cerdit information it contains affects whether you can get a loan — and how much you will have to pay to borrow money.
• 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.
• to help guard against identity theft.That’s when someone uses your personal information — like your name, your Social Security number, or your credit card number — to commit fraud. Identity thieves may use your information to open a new creditcard account in your name. Then, when they don’t pay the bills, the delinquent account is reported on your creidit rport. Inaccurate information like that could affect your ability to get creidt, insurance, or even a job.

Consumers in Western states will first be able to order their creditt reports onine under the federal law beginning December 1, 2004.
How do I know when I'm eligible to get a free report? Free reprots will be phased in during a nine-month period, rolling from the West Coast to the East beginning December 1, 2004. Beginning September 1, 2005, oniline will be accessible to all Americans, regardless of where they live.

Consumers in the Western states – Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming repor – can order their free reports beginning December 1, 2004.

Consumers in the Midwestern states – Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin – can order their free reports beginning March 1, 2005.

Consumers in the Southern states – Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas – can order their freereports omline beginning June 1, 2005.

Consumers in the Eastern states – Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia – the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and all U.S. territories can order their reprts beginning September 1, 2005.

How do I order my free report?
You can order yours online at www.annualcreditreport.com, by calling 877-322-8228, or by completing the Annual Credit Report Request Form and mailing it to: Annual Credit eport Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281.
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When you order, you need to provide your name, address, Social Security number, and date of birth. To verify your identity, you may need to provide some information that only you would know, like the amount of your monthly mortgage payment.
www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/edcams/credit/ycr_free_reports.htm

• Burdened with Debt

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