FTC vs. freecreditreport.com

smckaybiz · Posted: Wed Apr 01, 2009 5:14 pm Post subject: FTC vs. freecreditreport.com

Hello everyone,

I just had to share this. I just saw a commercial from the federal trade commission mocking freecreditreport.com's commercials. They were singing a song about how you end up having to pay a fee with freecreditreport.com and that the only place to get your free credit report is annualcreditreport.com. I loved it!

Finally someone is going after them for misleading people all of these years. I wish that someone who had a lot of money would just hire a fancy big time attorney and sue them for false advertising.

jameshogg · Posted: Wed Apr 01, 2009 8:10 pm Post subject:

Hi smckaybiz,

Thank you for sharing this information with the community. Smile

This would help a lot of people in saving their hard earned money as they would not go for a credit report from freecreditreport.com anymore.

Thanks

gmakerley · Posted: Thu Apr 02, 2009 6:50 am Post subject:

i am in total agreement - and of course, it isn't just "free"creditreport.com that does it. they're just the most visible. i have to admit the commercials are well done and catchy, but it's a shame that the pubic gets misled in such a way.

i've always made it a point to tell folk to avoid that outfit and go only to annualcreditreport.com for their free reports. i am also of a mind that obtaining one's credit score isn't the be-all and end-all of the discussion.

generally, we all know how our credit is. if we pay our bills on time, we will have good credit scores. of course, they may vary depending on our usage. if we pay late all the time, we will have poor scores. and if we have collections, charge offs and late payments, we will have even poorer scores.

it may seem like rocket science to the public, but it really isn't.

thank you scott.

Garysnober · Joined: 17 Mar 2009 Posts: 455 15.40 Dollars($)

Haha george you hit that one right on the money. As for the free credit report once a year is great and everyone should do it. As far as monthly crtedit checks i dont see a problem with them, As Credit fraud and stuff like Identity Theft is on the rise. Its not a bad idea to check once in a while ur credit report to look for suspicious activity or account that dont belong to you.

gmakerley · Posted: Thu Apr 02, 2009 11:30 am Post subject:

but gary...the only way a consumer can periodically check his or her credit is to find one of those ripoff services that charges them to do so. either that or go to a friendly local loan officer every so often to pretend to apply for a loan.

Garysnober · Joined: 17 Mar 2009 Posts: 455 15.40 Dollars($)

Yes thats is very true. But i have seen BOA, Wells Fargo and such do it for as low as 6.99 a month.. I mean not too bad, And yes ur correct about going in to apply for a loan every so often lol.

smckaybiz · Posted: Thu Apr 02, 2009 3:24 pm Post subject:

What I do is just file a simple dispute like an incorrect address or name spelling(there is usually at least a few of those on everyone's reports). In the dispute letter request that they send you a revised copy of your credit report with the information correctly listed and they will! They actually have to according to the FCRA. That's an easy way to check on your report more than once a year.

You do have a point there Garysnober but something you have to take into consideration is that most people go to freecreditreport to get their free credit reports only to be suckerred into signing up for a service that they hadn't originally intended on using. Then they forget to cancel in time and start getting charged monthly fees. You know that this is how they make a majority of their money.

Illegal, no... wrong, yes!

That is the main reason I created my website. Just because I was burnt by them many years ago and have since tried to get the word out to everyone that I know that you don't have to sign up for anything to view, monitor, or repair your own credit.

gmakerley · Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2009 11:07 am Post subject:

"as low as 6.99 a month"

huh? how does that figure qualify for being "as low as" anything? that's a major ripoff in my view - $83.88 annually to let those bankers pull credit and tell you your score? that's just as ridiculous as the clown dressed up as pirate advertises.

scott, i never thought of your method. it strikes me as little bit off the wall, but then it really is off the wall. i don't think i would subscribe to that theory for me, though.

smckaybiz · Posted: Fri Apr 03, 2009 6:50 pm Post subject:

It's a right given to us by the FCRA. Why not take advantage of it?

Any time you dispute anything on your credit reports you should always request a revised copy just to have for your records. Most people just aren't aware of this and if you don't request it than more than likely all your going to get back in the mail is a letter stating whether they changed any information on your credit report.

Although i won't argue with you about the fact that I'm a bit off the wall George. My kids would tell you the same I'm sure... Very Happy

gmakerley · Posted: Sat Apr 04, 2009 10:50 am Post subject:

now i didnt say YOU were off the wall, scott...only the method.

but who am i to argue with your kids?

Garysnober · Joined: 17 Mar 2009 Posts: 455 15.40 Dollars($)

Yes your correct it is a rip off. As most people will sign up for this service for 1 month to get it free to check it out and then forget to cancel the membership and get charged all year for something you wouldnt use. I was just reffering to how the economy is right now there is a lot of fraud and identity theft going around. But yes you are correct george.

smckaybiz · Posted: Thu Apr 09, 2009 3:20 am Post subject:

You know anymore, a lot of these credit monitoring services only give you a 7 day trial making it even harder to cancel in time. I probably know atleast 4 or 5 people who have been suckerred into this. When I explained to them that they didn't have to pay anything for their free credit reports they were blown away.

Unfortunately there is a big lack of understanding by most consumers when it comes to your credit reports. And if makes it very hard when you search for free credit report on any search browser only to see a over 62 millions results and only one site is the place you want to visit.

gmakerley · Posted: Thu Apr 09, 2009 6:19 am Post subject:

all the more reason, scott, for us to be vigilant in proclaiming the frauds that exist and to point out to all those who are wondering and seeking that they don't have to pay someone else all the time to do what they can do for themselves.

thanks for the reasoned response.

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