Posts about TransUnion
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—>John says that his wife's identity was stolen two weeks ago and since TransUnion shows your full credit card numbers on your credit report, the thief was able to run up a $10,000 credit card bill in his wife's name. More »
—>Lenders can use the data from your credit report to deny you credit for any one of several reasons. If you are denied, you receive a letter identifying the credit reporting agency that provided the report, along with a risk factor reason code. Bargaineering published a list of the common risk factor codes that lenders use to deem you unworthy of credit. For all three reporting agencies, the cardinal sins are owing too much and failing to pay your bills. The list of codes, inside. More »
—>Soon consumers will only be able to see two out of the three credit scores lenders use to judge their credit worthiness. Out of nowhere, Experian announced it will no longer be selling its version of the FICO score through myFICO.com. More »
—>SmartMoney's Anne Kadet looked into the process by which the three major credit bureaus—Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax—investigate and correct errors on credit reports. What she found was that the process is "almost entirely automated," and that "many lenders respond by simply rereporting the erroneous data." Here's how it works, and your meager options when something goes wrong. More »
—>Your credit score. It's amazing how one little score can have such an impact on our finances and how misunderstood that number can be. We'll debunk five common myths about it right here, right now. More »
—>Statistics show that 80% of credit histories have at least one error. Most of them are minor and inconsequential but some can have an adverse effect on your credit score, often costing your thousands on mortgages and car loans. I believe credit bureaus were so lackadaisical about accuracy because it forced consumers to buy their credit reporting services. You wouldn't know there's an error unless you paid Equifax for a copy of your report. Fortunately, federal law now makes it possible for us to police our own records and force bureaus to correct them, all on their dime. Here's how: More »
—>The three big credit reporting agencies—Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax—have been inaccurately reporting debts on millions of consumers' credit reports even after the debts have been forgiven during bankruptcy filings. Once forgiven, the debts are supposed to be removed from credit reports, but the agencies are continuing to report them as active. They have until October 1st to comply with Judge David O. Carter's order to "revamp their systems," writes Jane J. Kim on the Wall Street Journal's finance blog. Now if you're in debt trouble, you can look forward (?) to having either unpaid debts on your credit report, or a bankruptcy filing, but hopefully no longer both at the same time. More »
—>You've probably seen those commercials featuring a friendly looking jackass and his factually inaccurate songs about what can happen to you if you don't check your credit report. It's true, checking your credit report is a good idea, but you can avoid subscription-hawking pay sites and, instead, go to AnnualCreditReport.com. More »
—>September 24, tomorrow, is the last day to register for the class action against TransUnion for selling consumer's private data to businesses without permission. If you held a credit card between January 1, 1987 to May 28, 2008, you're eligible to receive benefits. You can choose from one of three options: More »
Just a reminder: you can get free credit reporting services for at least six months by participating in a class action settlement against TransUnion. Carey posted details about it back in June; the deadline to participate is September 24th. (Thanks to Michael!) More »
—>Having trouble finding the mailing address for any of the three major credit bureaus, TransUnion, Experian, Equifax? Here they are: More »
—>The CreditKarma.com site we told you about in our roundup of "5 No BS Ways To Get A Credit Score For Free" has changed its calibration system so the free, advertising-supported, credit score it gives you is now on the 300-850 range, just like your FICO score. It's still not your FICO score, but it does make the approximation, based on TransUnion data, more relevant. If you're do some major money moves, like getting a mortgage, you would still want to pay for the FICO score for total accuracy, but if you just want a general sense of how you're doing, CreditKarma.com is a great way to do it for free. More »
—>Did you have a credit card between Wednesday and 1987? Great! You're part of a massive class action settlement with TransUnion. The credit reporting agency has agreed to fork out services worth over $100 to every cardholder as a way of saying "sorry for grossly violating federal privacy laws by selling your private data to businesses!" More »
—>This is Round 38 in our Worst Company in America contest, TransUnion vs Diebold!Here's what readers said in previous rounds about why they hate these two companies... More »
—>"Why can't I get my credit report?" one of our 16-year-old readers (obviously precocious in the personal finance responsibility department) wanted to know. It seems if someone under 18 tries to get it online, say through annualcreditreport.com, they're told no. It turns out you can order your report, you just need to do it by an old-fashioned letter. You'll want to to include in your request your name, address, and Social Security number. This is good not just for go-get-em kids like our reader who want to make sure no one is buying a $40,000 boat with their credit, but also parents who want to protect their children from identity theft. The addresses for each of the bureaus follow. More »
—>A slate of companies legitimately profit from identity theft by offering services that the three credit reporting agencies refuse to make easily accessible to consumers. The Times brings us the stories of three such companies that are sucking the venture capital teat all the way to market: More »
How filing a fraud alert with each of the three major credit bureaus works, as told by a blogger who recently had to go through the process. [No Credit Needed] More »
—>All three credit reporting agencies recently announced plans to let consumers freeze their credit files. Credit freezes provide security at the cost of convenience: access to credit reports and scores is prevented without the consumer's express authorization, making it difficult to open new accounts or lines of credit. Freezes are considered one of the best, albeit drastic, ways to guard against identity theft. More »
—> Beginning October 15th, credit reporting company TransUnion will let consumers freeze their credit reports, which means imposters will not be able to use your credit to do things like open new phone accounts or sign up for credit cards. While this is great news, the other two major credit reporters, Experian and Equifax, are so far not offering a similar feature, although they say they're considering it. More »
Updated old Reach TransUnion Executive Customer Service post with new information: Cindy Hennessey, assistant to David Wolff, VP of Consumer Service. (312) 985-2000, press 2, dial extension 3802 More »
—>If you haven't been able to solve your TransUnion credit report problems through normal channels, you can escalate your issue to their executive customer service team. Here's the info. More »
—>We think we have a new favorite "go screw" line from a company: We understand that the privacy and security of your information is important to you; therefore we cannot provide a specific reason as to why we cannot fulfill your request. That just punches a steaming hand, Fist of the North Star style, right through the sternum of our old fave, We appreciate your concerns. More »
