What are Credit Bureaus and What do They Do?
Have you ever applied for a credit card, charge account,
a personal loan, insurance, or a job? Many times when
you apply for loans or a job, the lenders or employers
look up a file about you. What's this file? It's called
a credit report, and it has information about where you
work and live, how you pay your bills, and whether you've
been sued, arrested, or filed for bankruptcy. Who has
this report? These reports are collected by companied
called credit bureaus.
Credit Bureaus compile your information and sell it. They
do this so that companies can gauge your creditworthiness.
They give this information about you to creditors, employers,
insurers, and other businesses. Below are some common
question and answers about the 3 credit bureaus.
Q: Who are the credit bureaus?
A: There are 3 credit bureaus: Equifax,
Experian, and TransUnion.
Q: What do the credit bureaus do?
A: Credit bureaus collect information about you and sell
it to companies who want to see if you are going to pay
your bills on time.
Q: What kind of information do credit bureaus collect?
A: Credit bureaus collect the following information:
- Job history (for employers mainly)
- Current and previous addresses (landlords look at
this when deciding whether to rent to you)
- Outstanding loans
- Amount owed on each loan
- Credit card information
- Amount of times you have applied for credit
- Credit available
- Mortgage information
Q: Can I find out that information the credit bureaus
have on me?
A: Yes, you can. Under the Fair
Credit Reporting Act , you are entitled to a free
credit report if you ever denied for credit. Furthermore,
recent changes in the law allow you to get a free credit
report once a year. Go to www.freecreditreport.com for
more details (this is only available to those in the Western
states at this time).
Q: I was told my credit is low, is this the credit
bureaus fault?
A: The 3 credit bureaus don't make up information on your
credit report. They only compile information that was
given to them. That said, the information they received
might be incorrect. So, if you've had to take out a bad
credit personal loan or a bad
credit auto loan, you will want to contact the credit
bureau that the lender got the information from. They
will give you a free credit report. Then you can check
the accuracy of the report.
Q: How can I contact the 3 credit bureaus?
A: Look in the yellow pages under "credit" or "credit
rating and reporting." The three major national credit
bureaus are:
Experian (formerly TRW)
National Consumer Assistance Center
PO Box 2002
Allen, TX 75013
To order report: 1-888-397-3742
To report fraud: 1-888-397-3742
Web site: www.experian.com
Equifax
Equifax Credit Information Services, Inc
P.O. Box 740241
Atlanta, GA 30374
To order report: 1-800-685-1111
To report fraud: 1-800-525-6285
Web site: www.equifax.com
TransUnion LLC
Consumer Disclosure Center
P.O. Box 1000
Chester, PA 19022
To order report: 1-800-888-4213
To report fraud: 1-800-916-8800
Web site: www.transunion.com
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