Credit score or credit report: Which is more important to know?

credit reportUW-Extension campaign highlights simple way to check your free credit reports

Contact Peggy Olive, 608-262-6766, polive@wisc.edu or Chelsea Wunnicke, Richland County Family Living Agent, 608-647-6148, Chelsea.wunnicke@ces.uwex.edu

University of Wisconsin-Extension’s “Check Your Free Credit Report Campaign: 2/2, 6/6, 10/10” wants you to know that it is much more important to check your credit report regularly than to know your credit score.

About one-in-five adults may have errors in their credit reports, and those mistakes can prove costly. “Errors can affect how much you pay for a loan or insurance, whether you are offered a job, or whether you can rent a house or an apartment,” says UW-Extension financial capability specialist Peggy Olive. “Checking your report is also a way to detect identify theft.”

Your credit score is calculated using information in your credit report, and it is up to you to make sure the information in your report is accurate and up-to-date.

Federal law lets you check your credit reports for free once a year from each of the three credit reporting agencies: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. The free credit reports you are entitled to by law are only available through http://www.AnnualCreditReport.com and its mailing address and phone number. There are some other circumstances that allow you to obtain additional free reports (see www.fyi.extension.wisc.edu/creditreport).

To make it easier for people to monitor their free credit reports, UW-Extension’s “Check Your Free Credit Report Campaign: 2/2, 6/6, 10/10,” encourages people to view their three free credit reports each year on Feb. 2, June 6 and Oct. 10.

“2/2, 6/6, 10/10 is an easy-to-remember set of three dates,” says Chelsea Wunnicke, Richland County Family Living Agent. “Each represents a day to set aside a few minutes to request one of your free credit reports. If you have questions about obtaining your report, please contact us locally and we can provide more information at the Richland County UW Extension office by calling 647-6148”

The campaign’s website www.fyi.extension.wisc.edu/creditreport explains why it’s important to check your credit reports, walks you through the process of getting and reading your reports, explains what to do if you find errors, and provides more information about the differences between credit reports and credit scores.

The Difference Between the Credit Report and the Credit Score:

Your credit report is a collection of all of your credit activities within the past 7-10 years, such as your payment history for a credit card or auto loan. This information is used to calculate your credit scores. Everybody has several credit scores–different companies calculate your credit score in different ways. Your scores change constantly based on your payment history, amount of current debt, length of credit history, amount of new credit, and types of credit used. Because the information in your credit report determines your score, it is critical to check your report regularly.

Although your credit score is not available for free through AnnualCreditReport.com, an increasing number of credit card companies provide credit scores to their customers. Financial counseling organizations may also provide free scores to clients (go.wisc.edu/56fsua).

There is only one legitimate source for a free credit report, and there are many imposters. “AnnualCreditReport.com (www.annualcreditreport.com) along with its phone number and mailing address, are the only truly no-cost ways to obtain the free credit reports everybody is entitled to by law,” says Olive.

Other websites claim to offer free reports, scores or monitoring, but they often charge significant one-time or ongoing fees. Unsolicited e-mails, pop-ups or phone calls offering free scores or reports are not official.

If you need assistance obtaining your free credit report or fixing errors on your report, contact Chelsea Wunnicke, Richland County Family Living Agent, 608-647-6148,or email: chelsea.wunnicke@wisc.edu.

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