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FINANCE TIPS FOR SINGLE MOMS

Fighting Back for your credit and what to do when have a dispute.


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Contributed by Amanda Bach

       
If you have become a victim of Identity Theft, it probably wouldn't surprise you to learn that this crime is becoming more prevalent. However, the fact that Identity Theft often involves mail fraud, which is a federal offense, means that strong federal sentencing guidelines are being applied to perpetrators of Identity Theft.

        What identity thieves count on is that you won't find out about the theft until they have opened a number of fraudulent accounts, or a loan, using your name and Social Security number. Identity thieves will sometimes continue to make the minimum payments on fraudulent accounts to keep them open long enough to obtain as many goods and cash advances as they can before letting them slip into delinquency. You might not even hear about any of these accounts until you get a call from a collection agency.

        If an identity thief is using your Social Security number, experts suggest to taking action as soon as you suspect foul play. Do you know what to do first?

Notify the credit report agencies

 

        When you believe that Identity Theft has occurred, either as a result of checking your credit report or being contacted by an account issuer, there are things you can do immediately. The first thing you can do is to contact the fraud departments of any of the three national credit reporting agencies (CRAs): Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. Tell them you are a victim of Identity Theft, and ask them to:

  • Place a fraud alert on your credit file, which should prevent any further credit from being granted without your approval. Making one call to place a fraud alert with any of the three national credit reporting agencies will automatically place a fraud alert on all three of your credit files.
     

  • Ask for a copy of your credit report from each of the three CRAs, and check for additional fraudulent accounts, unauthorized charges, or inquiries you don't recognize.

        Placing a fraud alert on your credit report will prompt creditors to contact you for authorization before opening any new accounts. This course of action will also require creditors to obtain your permission when processing pre-approved credit card applications, which may have been intercepted and sent in by an identity thief. You can also opt-out of pre-approved credit card offers by calling the credit reporting agencies at 1-888-5-OPT-OUT (1-888 567-8688), and requesting an opt-out form.

        Because different creditors sometimes may report to only one or two of the national credit reporting agencies, ordering your credit report from all three can help you to know exactly how many accounts may have been fraudulently opened in your name, and which companies have placed inquiries on your report and why. If you are a victim of Identity Theft, you are entitled to a free credit report from each of the national CRAs.

Notify creditors
Experts recommend that you make your creditors aware of any Identity Theft situation immediately to prevent further fraudulent use of your accounts. You may also want to keep a record of all dates, times, and contacts as you go through the process.

 

 

Dispute Information

 

        We recommend you review your credit report carefully for accuracy because important decisions about your creditworthiness are based on the information in your report. If you find information that you believe is inaccurate or incomplete, then you have the right to dispute it free of charge.

 

Experian Dispute Process

You must have an active report obtained within the last thirty days in order to dispute your information with Experian.

Online dispute link -
www.experian.com/disputes/


Equifax Dispute Process

To dispute information on your Equifax credit report, you can contact the bureau by postal mail:

Equifax Information Services, LLC
Disclosure Department
P.O. Box 740241
Atlanta, GA 30374
By phone: 1-800-685-1111

 

TransUnion Dispute Process

To dispute information on your TransUnion credit report, you can contact the bureau by postal mail:

TransUnion Customer Relations
P.O. Box 2000
Chester, PA 19022
By Phone: 1-800-916-8800
Online dispute link - www.transunion.com


Your rights - Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)

Para informacion en espanol, visite www.ftc.gov/credit o escribe a la FTC Consumer Response Center, Room 130-A 600 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580.

 

A Summary of Your Rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act

The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) promotes the accuracy, fairness, and privacy of information in the files of consumer reporting agencies. There are many types of consumer reporting agencies, including credit bureaus and specialty agencies (such as agencies that sell information about check writing histories, medical records, and rental history records). Here is a summary of your major rights under the FCRA. For more information, including information about additional rights:

go to www.ftc.gov/credit or

write to: Consumer Response Center,
Room 130-A,
Federal Trade Commission,
600 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20580.

  • You must be told if information in your file has been used against you. Anyone who uses a credit report or another type of consumer report to deny your application for credit, insurance, or employment - or to take another adverse action against you - must tell you, and must give you the name, address, and phone number of the agency that provided the information.
     

  • You have the right to know what is in your file. You may request and obtain all the information about you in the files of a consumer reporting agency (your "file disclosure"). You will be required to provide proper identification, which may include your Social Security number. In many cases, the disclosure will be free. You are entitled to a free file disclosure if:
     

    • a person has taken adverse action against you because of information in your credit report;

    • you are the victim of identify theft and place a fraud alert in your file;

    • your file contains inaccurate information as a result of fraud;

    • you are on public assistance;

    • you are unemployed but expect to apply for employment within 60 days.


    In addition, by September 2005 all consumers will be entitled to one free disclosure every 12 months upon request from each nationwide credit bureau and from nationwide specialty consumer reporting agencies. See www.ftc.gov/credit for additional information.
     

  • You have the right to ask for a credit score. Credit scores are numerical summaries of your credit-worthiness based on information from credit bureaus. You may request a credit score from consumer reporting agencies that create scores or distribute scores used in residential real property loans, but you will have to pay for it. In some mortgage transactions, you will receive credit score information for free from the mortgage lender.
     

  • You have the right to dispute incomplete or inaccurate information. If you identify information in your file that is incomplete or inaccurate, and report it to the consumer reporting agency, the agency must investigate unless your dispute is frivolous. See www.ftc.gov/credit for an explanation of dispute procedures.
     

  • Consumer reporting agencies must correct or delete inaccurate, incomplete, or unverifiable information. Inaccurate, incomplete or unverifiable information must be removed or corrected, usually within 30 days. However, a consumer reporting agency may continue to report information it has verified as accurate.
     

  • Consumer reporting agencies may not report outdated negative information. In most cases, a consumer reporting agency may not report negative information that is more than seven years old, or bankruptcies that are more than 10 years old.
     

  • Access to your file is limited. A consumer reporting agency may provide information about you only to people with a valid need -- usually to consider an application with a creditor, insurer, employer, landlord, or other business. The FCRA specifies those with a valid need for access.
     

  • You must give your consent for reports to be provided to employers. A consumer reporting agency may not give out information about you to your employer, or a potential employer, without your written consent given to the employer. Written consent generally is not required in the trucking industry. For more information, go to www.ftc.gov/credit.
     

  • You may limit "prescreened" offers of credit and insurance you get based on information in your credit report. Unsolicited "prescreened" offers for credit and insurance must include a toll-free phone number you can call if you choose to remove your name and address from the lists these offers are based on. You may opt-out with the nationwide credit bureaus at 1 888 5OPTOUT (1-888-567-8688).
     

  • You may seek damages from violators. If a consumer reporting agency, or, in some cases, a user of consumer reports or a furnisher of information to a consumer reporting agency violates the FCRA, you may be able to sue in state or federal court.
     

  • Identity theft victims and active duty military personnel have additional rights. For more information, visit www.ftc.gov/credit.

States may enforce the FCRA, and many states have their own consumer reporting laws. In some cases, you may have more rights under state law. For more information, contact your state or local consumer protection agency or your state Attorney General. Federal enforcers are:

TYPE OF BUSINESS:

CONTACT:

Consumer reporting agencies, creditors and others not listed below

Federal Trade Commission: Consumer Response Center
-
FCRA
Washington, DC 20580 1 877 382 4357

National banks, federal branches/agencies of foreign banks (word "National" or initials "N.A." appear in or after bank's name)

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
Compliance Management, Mail Stop 6-6
Washington, DC 20219 1 800 613 6743

Federal Reserve System member banks (except national banks, and federal branches/agencies of foreign banks)

Federal Reserve Board
Division of Consumer & Community Affairs

Washington, DC 20551 1 202 452 3693

Savings associations and federally chartered savings banks (word "Federal" or initials "F.S.B." appear in federal institution's name)

Office of Thrift Supervision
Consumer Complaints

Washington, DC 20552 1 800 842 6929

Federal credit unions (words "Federal Credit Union" appear in institution's name)

National Credit Union Administration1
775 Duke Street
Alexandria, VA 22314 1 703 519 4600

State-chartered banks that are not members of the Federal Reserve System

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Consumer Response Center, 2345 Grand Avenue, Suite 100
Kansas City, Missouri 64108-2638 1 877 275 3342

Air, surface, or rail common carriers regulated by former Civil Aeronautics Board or Interstate Commerce Commission

Department of Transportation , Office of Financial Management
Washington, DC 20590 1 202 366 1306

Activities subject to the Packers and Stockyards Act, 1921

Department of Agriculture
Office of Deputy Administrator
- GIPSA
Washington, DC 20250 1 202 720 7051


Note: This article is provided for general guidance and information. It is not intended as, nor should it be construed to be, legal, financial or other professional advice. Please consult with your attorney or financial advisor to discuss any legal or financial issues involved with credit decisions.


Sources:

From
Consumer Response Center,
Room 130-A,
Federal Trade Commission,
600 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20580.
www.ftc.gov/credit


FreeCreditReport.com, Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion,

Contributor - Amanda Bach is co-founder and co-creator of SingleMom.com. The co-creator currently resides in California and Washington, DC. She was raised by a single mom and so she learned it first hand how difficult it was to watch her mom struggled everyday life. And that is the main reason she co-founded SingleMom.com to create this wonderful Website/organization. Her energy, natural creative ability and superior business intuition make her contributions to this website immeasurable. Her hobbies include volunteer, Internet, reading, ballet, traveling, snowboarding, and especially wine & food.

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