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FTC: Your Rights: Credit Reporting

The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires each of the nationwide consumer reporting companies — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — to provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation's consumer protection agency, has prepared a brochure, Your Access to Free Credit Reports, explaining your rights under the FCRA and how to order a free annual credit report.

A credit report includes information on where you live, how you pay your bills, and whether you've been sued, arrested, or filed for bankruptcy. Nationwide consumer reporting companies sell the information in your report to creditors, insurers, employers, and other businesses that use it to evaluate your applications for credit, insurance, employment, or renting a home.

How do I order my free report?

You can order your free annual credit report online at annualcreditreport.com, by calling 1-877-322-8228, or by completing the Annual Credit Report Request Form and mailing it to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281.

When you order, you need to provide your name, address, Social Security number, and date of birth. To verify your identity, you may need to provide some information that only you would know, like the amount of your monthly mortgage payment.

A Warning About "Imposter" Sites

The FTC advises consumers who order their free annual credit reports online to be sure to correctly spell annualcreditreport.com, or link to it from the FTC's website to avoid being misdirected to other websites that offer supposedly free reports,but only with the purchase of other products. While consumers may be offered additional products or services while on the authorized website, they are not required to make a purchase to receive their free annual credit reports.

For more information on free annual credit reports, read Your Access to Free Credit Reports.

Top 10 Consumer Complaints

According to the FTC, for the eighth year in a row, identity theft is the number one consumer complaint category. Of 813,899 total complaints received in 2007, 258,427, or 32 percent, were related to identity theft.

Consumers reported fraud losses totaling more than $1.2 billion; the median monetary loss per person was $349, the report states.

The top 20 complaint categories were:

Rank-Category-Complaints-%

Identity Theft 258,427 32
Shop-at-Home/Catalog Sales 62,811 8
Internet Services 42,266 5
Foreign Money Offers 32,868 4
Prizes/Sweepstakes and Lotteries 32,162 4
Computer Equipment and Software 27,036 3
Internet Auctions 24,376 3
Health Care Claims 16,097 2
Travel, Vacations, and Timeshares 14,903 2
Advance-Fee Loans and Credit Protection/Repair 14,342 2
Investments 13,705 2
Magazines and Buyers Clubs 12,970 2
Business Opportunities and Work-at-Home Plans 11,362 1
Real Estate (Not Timeshares) 9,475 1
Office Supplies and Services 9,211 1
Telephone Services 8,155 1
Employ. Agencies/Job Counsel/Overseas Work 5,932 1
Debt Management/Credit Counseling 3,442

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