 |
Watch Out For Credit Repairs
It is very easy to find a site that is neat,
professional-looking, and one that offers a free three-agency
credit report and free credit report without a credit card.
This scam is too good to be true. Usually the only catch is an
upfront charge to the consumer of $7.95 or something similar for
each disputed item on your report. I was on the verge of signing
up, but got a sneaking suspicion that something wasn't right.
Every other site I'd seen offered an Equifax report for free,
and a three-agency report for around $35. How could they offer it
for free, and How could anyone get a free credit report without a
credit card?
Skeptical, I researched the company and found multiple
complaints. One of the prominent ones was a claim that they
disputed every negative entry on your credit report without your
approval, and then charged you $7.95 for each one.
I requested an explanation of the above link to give them a
chance to share their side of the story. While I awaited their
response I continued my research.
The Department of Justice says there is nothing a credit
repair agency can do that you can't do for free, making Clear
Credit's offer seem even more suspicious.
Almost all of the other sites I found made it clear that you
should be suspicious of anyone claiming to improve your credit
for a fee and offering free credit report without a credit card,
because non-profit groups are available to help people with
credit trouble.
My hopes were dashed in a matter of days. I received two
e-mails from Clear Credit, but they didn't contain an
explanation. They told me to act now to improve my credit.
They spam a potential customer who made a perfectly legitimate
request for more information. I was not impressed.
My search to find a quality three-agency credit report for a
low price will continue, but Clear Credit is clearly off the
list.
John Parsons is founder of http://CorporateNarc.Com?. The
mission of http://www.CorporateNarc.Com?
is to educate the public in consumer affairs and to provide
consumers with up-to-date business information. In addition we
hope to ensure better services for the consumer by exposing
business fraud and corruption, as well as unfair and deceptive
business practices.
This article my be reproduced as long as the author's name and
url to http://www.Corporatenarc.com
are present at the end of the article.
MORE RESOURCES:
Credit - Google News
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
How Your Credit Rating
Affects You, and How to Check It
You might not know it, but every time you take out any kind
of loan or credit or pay something back, it gets counted on
your credit rating. Who keeps a record on you will vary
according to where you live, but the big three credit
reference agencies are Experian, Equifax and Trans Union.
Myths and Truth about
Credit Scoring
Credit score is the key factor determining approval of
almost any type of credit. It is based on the information
contained in your credit report files.
Why Does FACTA Matter to
Me?
FACTA stands for Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act.
FACTA is the law which allows any American access to their
credit report once per year.
Credit Repair Companies
and Credit Counseling
Let's be crystal clear, right up front. Paying someone to
"fix" your credit is a waste of your time and money, since
the negative issues that are temporarily removed from your
file will only reappear again in a couple of months.
Cash Advance - How Does
It Work?
If you want a cash advance or a payday/paycheck loan, you
usually get a personal check. Some companies use your bank
account or credit card in addition to or instead of a
check.
Rewards Cards: Are They
Worth It?
Virtually all consumers will have a credit card at some
point in their lives. Is this an understatement? Probably,
as most consumers carry multiple credit cards.
What You Didnt Know
About Your Credit Card Numbers
Have you ever really looked at your credit card and tried
to figure out what that huge string of numbers really
means? Do these card issuers have so many customers that
your account number has to be 16 digits long?You may be
surprised to know that all those numbers you see actually
do stand for something, and it's not just who you are.
Let's take a look.
Avoiding ID Theft and
Credit Fraud
Article excerpted from the new book, "How to Do Space Age
Work with a Stone Age Brain" TM copyright 2004, all rights
reserved, by Eve Abbott, the Organizer ExtraordinaireEach
year billions of dollars in credit fraud is perpetrated on
unsuspecting citizens. With so much personal information
publicly available (or easily available to someone with
medium computing skills) it is essential to develop good
habits to prevent your information from falling into
criminal hands.
Top 7 Factors to
Consider While Reviewing Credit Card Offers
Credit cards have migrated from being hip or convenience
product into a must have entity for everybody. Shopping
Online you need a credit card.
Check Your Credit Before
Shopping For That Home Loan
Review Your Credit Score.Nearly every bank, credit union,
and mortgage lender relies on a three digit score provided
by one of the three major credit bureaus to help them make
lending decisions.
A Summary of the Fair
Credit Reporting Act
This summary of the Fair Credit Reporting Act will explain
what you can legally do if you want to repair your own
credit report. No matter what you hear, you can dispute
credit information on your credit report if you understand
the legal rights you have under this law.
Identity Theft - Monitor
Your Credit Report
The recent security breach at credit card processor
CardSystems Solutions has many consumers worried. Thanks to
a well-placed computer virus, nearly forty million credit
card numbers were stolen, and cardholders nationwide are
justifiably concerned about identity theft.
Why Does Your Credit
Card Rate Keep Going Up?
Have your read your credit card contract through
completely? Do you know when it is okay for your creditor
to raise your interest rates? If you are not sure about how
and when your rates can be affected over the life of your
contract you should take a few minutes to read your
contract thoroughly from beginning to end.Creditors must
have clauses in their contracts that give them the right to
change your interest rates.
Credit Card Disclosure
Table - Do You Understand It All?
In addition to the APR (annual percentage rate) and the
finance charges, most credit cards have a number of 'fees'
associated with their use. Some fees are unavoidable with a
particular card (like an annual fee or a program
participation fee), while others are triggered by certain
circumstances.
Credit Counseling: Could
it Work for Me?
In the face of financial hardship, many seeking a
responsible solution turn to credit counseling. Credit
counseling is, all too often, the last stop before
bankruptcy.
Understanding Credit
Card Penalties
Because most of us have one or two credit cards and we use
them every day, understanding credit card penalties and
fees is a significant issue since one time or another we
have paid a penalty for some reason. Every user of a credit
card must first understand that every charge on the credit
card represent a loan which must be repaid.
Consolidating Credit
Cards
Credit card consolidation is a popular solution for those
with significant credit card debt, usually distributed on
three or four different cards. Basically, this means
putting all your debts together on a single card, like
transferring it all to one loan.
Fixing A Credit
Report
Fixing a credit report starts with seeing what's on it. You
may get access for free online.
What is a Credit
Card?
A credit card allows you to buy things even though you
might not have the money to pay for it right away. The
company that gave you the card lets you spend up to an
agreed sum and then makes additional money available to you
as you pay off what you've spent.
Why Should You Use Credit
Cards
Believe it or not, the way society, especially the
commercial side, is set up these days, the only alternative
to using credit is to pay cash for everything. But it's
actually quite hard to do that.
|
|
