Weekly credit reports free for another year
Three biggest agencies extend pandemic offer
In a move being applauded by consumer advocates, the biggest national credit reporting agencies — Experian, Equifax and TransUnion — Tuesday announced they were extending free weekly credit reports for consumers for another year.
Under federal law, consumers are entitled to one free credit report annually from each of the bureaus. But at the start of the pandemic, the agencies announced they would offer free reports weekly for one year.
The free reports now will be offered through April 2022.
Consumer Reports praised the move as a good first step, urging the bureaus to offer free reports permanently.
“There is no good reason why consumers should be charged at all to access their own data,” said Syed Ejaz, policy analyst at the non-profit advocacy group. “The credit bureaus are already profiting handsomely selling access to consumer data to lenders and a whole host of other firms.”
The free weekly reports can be requested at www. annualcreditreport.com, the same website that provides the free reports annually.
The industry’s Consumer Data Industry Association said the one-year extension was aimed at helping consumers keep their credit in good standing during this challenging time by regularly monitoring their finances.
The association said consumers should review each section of their credit report and immediately contact the credit reporting agency to correct any errors by initiating a dispute.
Consumer complaints about credit reports have skyrocketed during the coronavirus pandemic, more than doubling in 2020 from 2019.
“Mistakes can have serio u s financial consequences,” Mr. Ejaz said, calling on the industry to do more to improve accuracy. “No one should lose out on opportunities like an apartment or job or pay a higher interest rate on a loan because of an error on their credit report.”
Consumer Reports supports reforms outlined in a
House bill passed last year called the Comprehensive Credit Rating Enhancement, Disclosure, Innovation and Transparency (CREDIT) Act of 2020.
Among other things, the legislation would change the dispute process to make it easier for consumers to fix errors on their credit reports and strengthen the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s authority to monitor credit scoring models.