Learn More About The 3 Major Credit Bureaus

If you have ever been turned down for credit for any reason, you probably got a letter in the mail explaining that your credit was not sufficient for whatever reason, and then from where that information was gathered. Though some companies only go with one credit reporting company, many more go with reports from all 3 major credit bureaus. They to this for many reasons, and those reasons are the same ones you should use to check up on your own credit. That could save you from getting those rejection letters when you need a loan or line of credit.

The 3 major credit bureaus are Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax. They have been around for a long time and set the standard for credit record keeping and recording. If you have a delinquent account, they will know about it. The reason that some will go with all three instead of just checking with one of them is because some companies only report to one. What is contained in one report from one company may not show up on another. To get the true story, getting information from all three major credit reporting bureaus is a good idea.

When rejected for credit reasons, you will see which of the 3 major credit bureaus was consulted about your credit, if not all. When you get such a letter, you have thirty days to write in and ask for a copy of that credit report. When this happens, you should always take advantage of the offer. This is because in most cases, you are going to have to pay for the information. There is now a program that allows you to get one free report a year, but that is not often enough in some cases. You want to know what is going on, and then how you can fix it.

Another thing that the 3 major credit bureaus can help you with is protecting you from identity theft. They help in the way that shows listings of credit that you may not have taken out and that is now in default. Though this is a slow way to learn about this happening, sometimes it is the first clue that something is not right. When you see something on a report from any of the 3 major credit bureaus that is not of your doing, contact them immediately and then go through the proper channels to see what you can do to stop the activity.