Equifax, Experian and TransUnion have announced that they will continue to offer consumers access to free weekly credit reports through April 20, 2022.
That's an extension of a full year past the original free access period the credit bureaus announced not long after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Under federal law, American consumers are entitled to get just one free credit report per year.
How Do I Access My Weekly Credit Reports?
You can get your weekly credit reports at AnnualCreditReport.com.
- Click on "Request Your Free Credit Reports."
- Fill out the form, which asks for your personal information.
- Confirm your identity with each credit bureau.
- After verification, you'll be forwarded to your credit reports.
Once you get access to your report, carefully review each section. Make sure you look out for:
- Errors related to your personal information (name, address, etc.)
- Discrepancies pertaining to your payment history
- Active credit accounts that you believe you've closed
"This is an opportunity for you to see what's going on with these reports," money expert Clark Howard says. "And the sooner you see it, the quicker you can do something about correcting the error."
What If I Find an Error on My Credit Report?
If you discover that something is amiss with your credit report, there are two options you can take to solve the issue.
- Contact the business: If the error has to do with a fairly recent incident, reach out to the business to get it straight.
- Contact the credit bureau: You can also contact the credit bureau that is reporting the error.
Many credit bureaus have online forms that you can fill out to make reporting an error easy. Here's how to dispute an error on your credit report.
Final Thought
Clark wants you to take advantage of accessing your credit reports for free because he’s a big proponent of monitoring your credit.
In addition to accessing your free credit reports on a weekly basis, Clark recommends you set up free credit monitoring with Credit Karma or Credit Sesame, which are two great free resources.
Need help signing up with Credit Karma or Credit Sesame?
Want to learn more about accessing your financial information? Here are 5 ways to get your free credit score.
More Credit Resources From Clark.com:
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