It Usually Takes Around 7 Days For A Statutory Credit Report To Arrive

Category: Finance, Credit.

Consumers in the US, UK and Australia can all get their hands on a free copy of their credit report to do a credit check on themselves.

In the United States: Consumers have had the legal right to a free copy of their credit report, for a number, annually of years now. The systems in each country are different, and this article explains how consumers can go about getting a free credit report if they live in one of these countries. The Fair Credit Reporting Act granted consumers a free credit report from each of the three US credit reporting agencies, Equifax and Transunion, Experian. There is also a free toll number, 1- 877- 322- 8228 where US citizen s can order their annual credit report. There is only one authorised website in the US from which American consumers can obtain their free report under their legal entitlement, and that is annualcreditreport. com. A report can also be ordered by filling out the Annual Credit Report Request Form and posting it to Annual Credit Report Request Service, Atlanta, PO Box 105281, GA 30348- 528Online, the service is instant, but security questions will be asked to verify identity. The Federal Trade Commission, which protects US consumers, has warned people to be on the look out for what it calls imposter sites.

By telephone and post, it takes about 15 days for a credit report to arrive, but it may take longer if the agency needs to verify an identity. At one point it was estimated there were more than one hundred such websites in existence, some of which included domains that used misspellings of the authorised free credit report website. With these credit report services consumers need to be aware that if they fail to cancel the subscription within the free trial period they are likely to have their plastic charged. There are other online services offering free credit reports, using subscription free trial period schemes. The trial period schemes usually require consumers to cancel the subscription within the trial period, or the company, usually 30 days may start to charge a fee. The unemployed who are looking for work, those on welfare and people whose reports are inaccurate, can all get, because of fraud a free credit check. Also, in the United States, consumers can get a free credit report if they have been turned down for credit, insurance or employment and they apply within 60 days of receiving notice from the company involved.

In the UK: There is not a legal right for consumers to a free credit report from the credit reference agencies in the UK, unlike the US. All offer a free trial subscription service that provides a free credit report as part of the free trial. But you can go directly to the websites of the three credit reference agencies, Equifax and Experian, Callcredit to get one without having to pay a fee. To avoid incurring a charge, the consumer must remember to cancel the subscription with the credit reference agency within the free trial period, usually 30 days. One website in the UK, annualcreditreport. co. uk, provides UK consumers with free yearly access to their credit report from one of the three credit reference agencies. Failure to do so may lead to the agency charging fees.

This service doesn t require people to provide their credit card details to get a free credit report. A statutory credit report can be obtained by writing to the credit reference agencies and sending a cheque or postal order for �2, with details such as name, full current and previous address, and date of birth to: Callcredit Ltd Consumer Services Team, Leeds LS3 1WZ, PO Box 491. While there is not a legal right for consumers to a free credit report in the UK, there is a right under Data Protection laws for consumers to get a credit report for �This is known as a statutory credit report. Experian Ltd Consumer Help Service, Nottingham NG80 7WF, PO Box 8000 and Equifax Credit Report Advice Centre PO Box 1140 Bradford BD1 5US. In Australia: Australian consumers have a right to a free copy of their credit report under the Privacy Act. It usually takes around 7 days for a statutory credit report to arrive.

Veda Advantage and Dun and Bradstreet, Australia s largest credit reporting agencies, will both provide a free credit report to consumers within 10 days of receiving a request. Australian consumers keen to keep an eye on their credit rating can get a free copy of their credit report by writing to: Veda Advantage Public Access, North Sydney NSW, PO Box 964 205Dun and Bradstreet at Public Access Centre, Dun and Bradstreet( Australia) PL, PO box 7405, VIC 300Tasmanian Collection, St Kilda Road Service can be contacted at GPO Box 814H, TAS 700, Hobart The Tasmanian Collection Service, which covers the citizens of Tasmania, provides consumers with a free credit report if they have been refused credit or an application is to do with the management of an individual s credit commitments.

Priority Debts

Category: Finance, Credit.

To better help you to read this article, here are some definitions.

A debt can be categorised as bad where it is unlikely that the credit provider will ever be able to recoup the money. A bad debt is borrowing where the debt has not been reimbursed according to the terms and conditions of the borrowing contract. Having a bad debt on your file will make it more difficult if you want to get further credit at a future point. It offers( free of charge) , individual and private counselling to individuals on dealing with debt difficulties in Britain. The National Debt Line is a nationwide phone- in helpline. Their telephone helpline can be reached all week long and there is also a website that offers lots of constructive help and advice on it.

The Money Advice Trust provides persons a strategic approach to controlling serious personal debt so they might take back proper control of their financial affairs. The National Debtline is an element of the Money Advice Trust or MAT for short, and is a fully registered charity. There are two types of debt- priority debts and non- priority debts. That way, you can make sure that any money you have left every month to pay for debts goes towards the most important( ie: the priority debts) first. If you are experiencing financial difficulty and are unable to service all your debts, it is important that you understand the type of debts you have. Priority debts.

The amount of the debt does not make it a priority, but what the creditors can do to recover their money from you that makes it a priority debt. These debts are where the companies you owe money to- the creditors- have the power to take severe legal actions against you if you fail to pay. Examples of priority debts: . Rent arrears? you can be evicted by your landlord if you are in arrears. . Mortgage arrears- your mortgage lender can repossess your home. . Fines- fines such as those for traffic offences or magistrates court fines- child support, council tax or, maintenance rates. If you still owe money after this, you can be sent to prison. .

The Court can instruct bailiffs to possess your goods. VAT and income tax- you can be imprisoned for non- payment of income tax or VAT or at the very least, made bankrupt. . Utility debts( eg gas, electricity debts) - your utility supply will be disconnected. Hire purchase- it depends on what the item, is, but, it will be, for example a priority debt if it is a car and you need it to get to work- if you do not pay the debt, it will be repossessed. . These need to be repaid before your non- priority debts, so do not offer to repay any of your non- priority debts before dealing with these. However, you still do need to make an offer to pay? otherwise your creditors will still take you to Court- and could send the bailiffs in.

For non- priority debts, you are unlikely to lose the roof over your head or get imprisoned. Examples of non- priority debts: . Arrears on credit or store cards. . Overpayments on benefits. . Overdrafts and loans( unless the loan is secured against your property, then it becomes a priority debt) . Hire purchase- goods on HP that are non- essential, such as sofa or audio equipment Catalogue arrears. .

Your Credit Card Debt Will Not Go Away Just Because You Ignore It

Category: Finance, Credit.

You have been a faithful credit card holder ever since you opened your first account. So now you are living well on credit and you try to pay all of your bills on time and in full.

Sure, sometimes you tend to splurge a little bit and go beyond the amount you can pay back frequently, but you have always been able to get out with a little time and perhaps some help from family. Still, you happened to see this really expensive thing that you just absolutely had to have, so you bought it with your credit card. It's just a little higher than the normal amount you allow yourself to spend. Oh yeah, you can make the payment, right? But then you get the credit card bill at the end of the month, and the payment you have to make and make soon is way higher than you ever thought it would be. What are you going to do now?

What now? There is no one to help you pay the bill because it's too high, and no one you know could ever afford to loan you that much cold hard cash. Well, there are a few things you can do to get out of this. So what are your other options? Sometimes your credit card company will allow you to fudge the rules a little bit if you call in to them and tell them why you are not going to be able to make the payment on time, or that you can' t make it in full right now. If creditors will not allow you to do this, you will have to resort to another option. Creditors will sometimes rearrange and renegotiate your payment plan so that you can make the payment not necessarily in the same amount, but have an extended period of time to pay a smaller amount in.

One thing you can do is to ignore it completely and hope it goes away. Your credit card debt will not go away just because you ignore it. In 99 percent of all cases, this option never works. If you do not make your payments, creditors will eventually drop the idea of bothering you about it and take your case to court. That allows for the credit card company to take away some of your possessions in order to compensate for the debt you owe. If you do not have a valid argument, you will lose the lawsuit. One option that many take is bankruptcy.

This will also do damage to your credit score and make it more difficult for you to get credit in the future. This is a resort that takes away some of your assets as well to pay off your debt.

Your Statement Can Even State The Time You Made The Purchase

Every year, millions of Americans go on vacation.

Most vacations are spent between the months of April and September. This is a great way to enjoy time with family and friends in a relaxing atmosphere. Whether the vacations are spent domestically or abroad, states and countries depend on the millions of dollars they receive from the tourist industry every year. In recent years, using cash or checks on vacation has become obsolete. Vacationers do not realize exactly how much they can spend every year until they tally it up at the end of vacation. It is much easier to use a credit card when you rent a car or check into a hotel. If you do not have one or want to use it, you may find that you will have a difficult time.

In fact, there are some hotels and rental companies that require a it for security purposes. You may choose to use it for large purchases only, however you may not have a choice if you want to stay in a five star hotel. It is a detailed record of what you have purchased and when you purchased it. Using your charge card can also protect you. Your statement can even state the time you made the purchase. You have detailed information of all transactions made when you use it.

Your statement acts as your receipt of all purchases you have made, regardless if you do or do not have the original store receipt. It can be viewed anytime, on or off line. It is not recommended that you do this because of the threat of violence if a fat wallet is noticed. Another advantage to using a credit card is that you do not have to carry large amounts of cash with you. It may only require a signature and an ID. Many companies offer a cash back reward each time you make a purchase on it.

It is much easier than counting cash every time you want to make a purchase or take your family to local attractions. This means that the company will give you a small percentage of every purchase that you make. There are many companies that award points for every dollar you spend throughout the month. And is usually given on a monthly basis. These points can be redeemed at local merchants for a plethora of different items. For people that do not have one. It is not necessary to redeem your points every month, you can save them and let them add up to purchase that big item that you want.

This does not mean that they cannot go on vacation or will not have a hotel room. Many stores now sell credit cards that are rechargeable. For those people, there is hope. This means that you put funds in it and that is the spending limit that you have. By visiting participating retailers, you can add funds whenever you want. It is feasible to put all of your vacation funds on it.