Free annual credit reports

It's "old" news now that you can get free annual credit reports from the three major credit-reporting bureaus in the U.S. But ... do you get them?

The free reports can be ordered from TransUnion, Equifax and Experian by going to http://www.annualcreditreport.com/  Be careful how you type it in or the result you click on, if you do a search on a major search engine. You might end up at a website that is similar to the free-order website but which will ask you to pay for the report(s).

You can order one free report from each of the bureaus each year. I order one every four months; I don't order all three at once.

You can print the report, but you don't need to. Examine it carefully. If it looks okay to you, merely record the Reference Number and exit the report. Look carefully for indications that credit cards or credit accounts that you thought were closed, that are still open.

These reports do not inform you of your Credit Score. To get your score, contact one of the bureaus directly and ask its procedure. There is often a charge for that service. Ask if there are circumstances under which you can learn your Score without a charge.

An article in the USA week-end magazine (newspaper insert) reported that four out of five credit reports contain errors. The time to fix errors is before you apply for new credit. Order a report today.