Free Annual Credit Report

[esquared]

Originally posted by: Keyone
I'm sorry I can't read through the whole thread right now (forgot glasses), but does your credit rating/score drop per request? This is a "hard" inquery, no?

Forgive my lack of credit-report-knowledge. Actually, one of my old professor's laptop got stolen a few months ago and it had several thousand student socials, including mine, with names. We were all advised to get a credit check, but I am not too clear on how to do such a thing

Keyone, just click on the above link in my first post and just follow the diections. My advice is that you pick one, anyone, like Experian and just get one credit report. In four months pick one of the two remaining credit reporting agencies, say Trans Union, and get your free report from them. In four more months pick the final one, Equifax and get your free report from them. This way you will get a free report from an agency every 4 months. If you get them all at once you cannot get another free report for one year from the date of your free request. That's why it's better to spread them out. In your case I might want to see all three because you numbers were on a stolen laptop.

My question to you is are you still in school, (it shouldn't matter)? Because if you are, and this incident is public knowledge or at least the school knows, you should be able to get the school to pay for the monitoring of yours and the other students credit report. I wouldn't wait too long before making this request to the school for you and all the others.

 

[HarvardAce]

Originally posted by: Keyone
I'm sorry I can't read through the whole thread right now (forgot glasses), but does your credit rating/score drop per request? This is a "hard" inquery, no?

Checking your own credit report/score is not a "hard" inquiry and has no effect on your credit score. The only "hard" inquiries are ones that you initiate with a lender such as when applying for a loan or new credit card. I also believe (but I'm not sure, hopefully someone else can confirm or deny) that non-lending checks you initiate (e.g. insurance, background checks for job applications, rental applications) do not adversely affect your score either.

 

[imported_raulinigo]

Just did one. One of the questions before access told me I have a mortgage and asked me for my lender and payment amount. I about crapped my pants since I have no mortgage. I just choose none of the above for both and it worked. Nice trickery, but it scared me!

Thanks OP. I've been meaning to do this.

 

[lookin4dlz]

This sucks - I ordered a free report from ONE of the services nine months ago & now it won't allow me to order a free report from any of the others...

 

[Jbog]

In that case, I recommend you to try www.innovis.com. It is a relatively new company trying to become the fourth major credit reporting agency. They ask you to pay but even if you don't, they will still send you a copy of your credit report for now.

 

[osiris3mc]

Is there any way to get your credit report if you used this site within the last 12 months? Something is up with my credit and I gotta figure out what it is (for free of course). Thanks guys.

 

[esquared]

Originally posted by: osiris3mc
Is there any way to get your credit report if you used this site within the last 12 months? Something is up with my credit and I gotta figure out what it is (for free of course). Thanks guys.

If you have not requested a free report from all three reporting agencies within the last 12 months then you would be eligible (from whomever you didn't request one). This is why it is good to request one report from just one reporting agency every 4 months and cycle it that way. When this first started two years ago, I did the wrong thing and asked for all three at once. I had to wait a year before I started the every 4 month cycle.

 

[osiris3mc]

Originally posted by: esquared

Originally posted by: osiris3mc
Is there any way to get your credit report if you used this site within the last 12 months? Something is up with my credit and I gotta figure out what it is (for free of course). Thanks guys.

If you have not requested a free report from all three reporting agencies within the last 12 months then you would be eligible (from whomever you didn't request one). This is why it is good to request one report from just one reporting agency every 4 months and cycle it that way. When this first started two years ago, I did the wrong thing and asked for all three at once. I had to wait a year before I started the every 4 month cycle.

Yeah, made the same mistake. Ugh.