Free (REALLY FREE) Credit report
Just a friendly reminder that those cutesy Free Credit Report Dot Com commercials are not telling you the whole story. There’s a disclaimer at the bottom of the screen that says it only applies if you enroll in the so-called Triple Advantage program – which will cost you $9.95. per MONTH.
Don’t fall for it! The really really free credit reports can be run once every 12 months by going to https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp.
But there’s a catch there too! In order to get your actual number – your score – you have to pay extra! Don’t bother. If you’re running them to keep yourself informed on what you can do to improve your credit, or to protect against identity fraud, you don’t need the number. Figure out how many accounts you have open, your credit lines, and how much you owe. Then go to Google and search for “How do I improve my credit?”
I’m no credit professional, I’m just putting this out there because a lot of people found my “Picture.com is a SCAM” blog and were saved from being taken by these bastards. I figured I’d put this out there too in the hopes that Free Credit Report Dot Com will get less business.
And because I think they’re awesome in keeping people informed, a link to an article on Consumerist.com on the subject:
http://consumerist.com/5035512/another-consumer-scammed-by-freecreditreportcom
Useful to know, many companies adopt “scam” like offers to drag people in and they should really be able to get away with it, just because they mention something in the small print.
Yeah, I have heard this before. The site you show above give you
a free credit report, but leave out many of the real details.
The thing I don’t get is that we are allotted 3 free credit
reports every year. I forget the site, but there is no need to
sign up for stupid deals that could end up wasting you money in
the end.
Yes, this screams of being a scam so nice of you to point it out!