Credit Repair Schemes
You are listening to the radio when you hear a commercial promising to repair your credit. All your worries will be over. You quickly run to get a pen and paper to write down the company's phone number and website address because you are desperate to get your credit in shape. To sign up for their program all you need to do is pay them upfront before they can offer any services to you. But you feel uncomfortable in paying a company before they offer any credit repair services for you. You drop the pen and paper in discouragement and wonder if there is a better way.
The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 allows all American consumers to receive one free copy of their credit report every year. Unfortunately, the new law also has triggered the creation of hundreds of other websites with similar sounding names that don't always have your best interest in mind. Some of these sites offer free reports but also sign unwary visitors up for expensive and unnecessary credit-monitoring services or sell your information to mass-marketing firms. Some of those sites are also operated by downright thieves.
The Federal Trade Commission has been cracking down on these nefarious web sites. But the FTC watchdogs can't solve the problem overnight so the consumer has to protect themselves in identifying scam artists.
Here are a few things to look out for:
- Beware of any organization requiring you to pay upfront for their services. The Credit Repair Organizations Act restricts companies from demanding payment until they have actually performed the services promised.
- Beware of companies that do not tell you your legal rights and what you can do yourself to resolve your credit matters.
- Beware of companies that recommend that you not contact a credit bureau directly or
- Advise you to dispute all information in your credit report or take any action that seems illegal, such as creating a new credit identity. If you follow illegal advice and commit fraud, you may be subject to prosecution.
Credit repair has strict government regulations and it is best that you stay away from trouble by getting help with your credit matters from a competent and trustworthy source. You want to improve your credit the legal way and the attorneys at Lexington Law can help rescue your credit and they make the entire process easy for you.
What You Should Know About Credit